As the 2nd episode of Around The World In 80 Days begins, we see Niccolo Moretti (Giovanni Scifoni) and others on a train. He says he told the Council President that the new Italy can’t run on poetry and ideas alone. His son screams out when he sees the hot air balloon above them, but his father refuses to believe it and ignores him. Phileas Fogg (David Tennant) tells his comrades this is the only way to travel before they crash and Fogg is blamed. Regardless, he doesn’t think they’ll be there long since the train should be headed in their direction. While they wait, Abigail ‘Fix’ Fortescue (Leonie Benesch) annoys Fogg with questions such as why he thinks he is the one to travel around the world in 80 days. Phileas wants to talk about technological advancements instead of himself and that doesn’t satisfy Fix. She promises to stop asking questions when he quits being so evasive although he denies that.

On the train, Niccolo tells everyone about buying a restaurant because he was insulted by someone there. As the train approaches, Phileas runs toward it in hopes of getting it to stop. Meanwhile, Nyle Bellamy (Peter Sullivan) believes Bernard (Jason Watkins) is wasting his time and money on a massive map because Fogg will be home this weekend with his tail between his legs. Although Nyle doesn’t think Phileas has a chance, Bernard suggests otherwise since he has Abigail by his side. Phileas and Abigail are taken to their cabins. Abigail asks the worker to get some hot water and soap because she hasn’t washed since London. Passepartout (Ibrahim Koma) is sent to the 3rd-class section which is at the end of the train. He invites Passe to play cards with them later tonight, but he says it isn’t for him. Passepartout is told that is a shame since a Frenchman and his money are easily departed.

Then, the worker asks Fogg and Fix if they’d like to meet their fellow travelers. They agree and are promptly introduced to Niccolo and the others. When Passepartout sits down among the other 3rd-class passengers, they begin looking and staring at him. He breaks the silence to ask if anyone knows any good songs. Niccolo and Eva (Aida Economu) learn about Fogg and Fix. They tell Fazi (Cristian Popa) and the others about flying in the air balloon. Fix again asks the worker for soap, towels, and hot water before apologizing for smelling so bad. Fogg asks her to stop mentioning body odor. Then, Fogg is properly introduced to Niccolo’s son Alberto (Cristian De Vergori). When Niccolo is formally introduced to Fogg, he forcibly grips his hand as they shake. Passe tries to enjoy his stale bread so one of the other guests gives him a cup of Bagna Cauda. He takes a bite, loves it, and says he will live in Piedmont and eat Bagna Cauda for the rest of his days.

Later that night, Fogg and Fix have dinner with the others as Eva asks about his plan to cross the world in 80 days. While Eva seems excited by the idea, Niccolo is not and jokes about Fogg’s outfit. Fazi asks what convinced him to go on a trip like this. Abigail wants to know too since she has been asking for a while now. She also points out that he didn’t go until he read her brilliant article. Then, the conversation turns to his travels as Niccolo asks whether he has been. Niccolo brags about his travels since his business has taken him all over the world. Phileas is humiliated since he hasn’t been anywhere. Abigail tries to take up for him by telling everyone how he stopped the assassination attempt, but he says he was just in the right place at the right time. Phileas says nothing as Niccolo continues making jokes about him and his travels. When Eva asks what his wife thinks about it, Fogg admits he doesn’t have a wife. As for Abigail, she says she doesn’t need a man.

She asks about Niccolo’s wife and learns she passed away. He explains he is taking his son to live with his sister because they think he needs a woman’s care. Alberto doesn’t want that although his father believes he’ll like Brindisi. Alberto shows Fogg a book by Jules Verne and asks if he has read it. Niccolo doubts it, but Fogg has. Alberto wonders if people will ever be able to travel to the moon. While Niccolo thinks that is silly, Phileas says he had a friend who said any one of us could achieve anything. Phileas doesn’t think the moon is off-limits. Alberto tells him about the rocket he created. He gets excited and thanks Fogg when Phileas says he’d like to see it. Fiz says he thinks Alberto likes Fogg. Niccolo says that is odd because he usually prefers the company of women.

Meanwhile, Passepartout and the others have difficulty sleeping in the 3rd-class section of the train. When a little boy begins attacking his sister, Passe thinks about his brother and his death. He rushes outside to collect himself as we see a flashback of Gerard being shot to death. Niccolo isn’t sure why someone would want to go to the moon in the first place. Alberto rushes in with the rocket and causes Fogg to spill his drink on his shirt. Niccolo gets mad and ends up breaking his son’s rocket during a scuffle. Before Niccolo goes after his son, he blames Fogg for this. Passepartout plays cards with the workers and tells them about his background. He has a brother and they’re going to build a house in the countryside by a river. Being a valet is going to be his last job. Marco (Simone Coppo) joins them and reveals Fogg is annoying Niccolo. Passe says he is good at annoying people.

Then, they talk about the English woman being pretty. Passe is asked if she likes men of the soil. He responds she doesn’t like as man-of-the-soil as you. When asked if she likes Italians, Passepartout says she likes newspapers. Niccolo takes his son to a private spot and tells him he’ll respect him because he is his father. Phileas interrupts to ask if everything is okay, but Niccolo doesn’t want his help. Fogg quickly takes the blame for everything and insists Alberto shouldn’t be punished as a result. He tries to smooth things over, but he manages to make Niccolo madder. Niccolo warns Fogg to go to bed before he gets a thrashing. He screams at his son that he can’t believe he’d side with this idiot before Abigail enters. Niccolo tells her that Fogg was about to go to bed. He says nothing and leaves the room. When he does, Niccolo tells Abigail that he is a fraud. Fogg locks himself in his cabin as Niccolo repeats the insult.

Passepartout gambles as Abigail enters and gets a glass of wine. Abigail says Fogg had more passion and belief when he was in Paris so she really thought he could travel around the world in 80 days. As she goes on and continues drinking, the men agree she talks too much. Abigail says Phileas isn’t the man she thought and she doesn’t think he is much of a man at all. Fogg is shown looking through his pictures while hiding in his cabin. Abigail tells Marco about being a woman and the expectations her father has for her. Passepartout tells her she is naïve to the ways of the world and she’ll be married if her father wants her to be married. She doesn’t like that and reminds him that he knows nothing about her. Abigail turns to Marco and says she is a good writer, but he isn’t interested. She rambles on once she learns that Passe can speak Italian. Passepartout continues drinking and spiraling out of control. He smashes his glass to the ground before getting into a fight with the other men.

Abigail gets involved before Passepartout is knocked out. Then, she begins tending to his wound as they discuss whether she really thought Fogg could do it. She was only thinking about returning to the club and seeing everyone reading her article in the newspaper. She also thought she could make her father proud. When Passe says he is sorry, Abigail doesn’t know why he cares since he is going to leave them when he reaches Brindisi. She describes him as the type of man who runs away when things get difficult since he ran away from France and London. Passe admits he likes to be somewhere safer when life gets complicated, but she says he is running away. She recommends talking about his brother instead of goading Italians into beating him up. Before she leaves, he promises to talk to Fogg in the morning. In the morning, Passepartout approaches Fogg outside but he is told to go away.

He says Abigail is worried about him. Phileas says it is of no interest to him what Fix worries about. Passe tries and fails to get him to shave. Marco makes Abigail a drink to deal with her hangover. Marco leaves as Passepartout arrives to tell Abigail about Fogg. Alberto hears them and decides to go outside. Passe suggests they bet on the wrong horse. Niccolo tries to fix his son’s rocket before Marco enters with breakfast. When he learns his son is going to see Fogg, he tells Marco not to bother him because he is going where he is happy. Alberto sits down with Fogg and apologizes for getting him into trouble. He claims he disappoints his father who thinks he is a weak coward. Phileas suggests he just hasn’t had the opportunity to show his courage yet. When Alberto asks about his father, Phileas says he died a long time ago so he can’t remember what he was like. He isn’t sure whether he was proud of him since Englishmen aren’t eager to share their feelings.

Alberto says he’d be proud of him if he was his father. He asks Phileas to send him a postcard when he gets back to London on Christmas eve so he’ll know he was successful. Fogg begins wondering whether he is the right man for the job after all. The train stops abruptly slinging the passengers around. Abigail’s face goes into her food and she warns Passe not to laugh because she will kill him. Once the passengers get out, they learn that the bridge is damaged. They’re not sure they’ll be able to pass it. Fogg wonders if this is a sign that they should go home. Abigail says no, but Passe isn’t sure. Niccolo worries what the foreigners will think since they can’t get past the bridge as his son screams in the distance. He checks on his son and finds a big wound on his leg. Passepartout creates a makeshift tourniquet to slow the bleeding while they try to figure out how to get him to a doctor quickly. Marco says they’ll have to go back 6 hours or cross the bridge and travel 2 hours to reach a doctor.

They believe it is impossible to cross the bridge, but Fogg suggests it can be done. All carriages except the last one would have to be uncoupled from the engine. He says it is all about load and balance. They believe he is crazy and could get them killed. Alberto says he believes him. Nyle learns he made a mistake putting his money into the American railroad industry. He learns he owes the bank 15,000 pounds and restructuring isn’t a possibility. Instead, they’re going to call it in although they’ll give him a month to raise the money. When Nyle says they’re going to bankrupt him, the banker says he has done that to himself. Nyle believes he’ll have a considerable amount of money on Christmas Eve thanks to Phileas Fogg. The bank agrees to hold off on the foreclosure until then. Phileas gives Passe a bucket of sand to sprinkle on the rails to ensure the wheels do not spin too last. Niccolo comforts his son while Fogg says he worked out the load precisely so everyone has to remain still.

Passe rides at the front of the train and covers the rails with sand. Fogg orders them to move forward slowly. The train glides over the rails until Passe knocks the sand bucket to the ground below when the train shifts and they have to stop on top of the gap. Since they don’t have any more sand, they’ll need to find another solution. Abigail decides to fill a bucket with coal ash before climbing up the train and joining Passepartout. She helps him cover the rails as the train begins rolling forward once again. Once the train reaches the other side, they realize they’re out of coal. Phileas says it’ll run on wood too and gives them an ax. They tear the wood from the cabin and use it to fuel the train’s engine. Phileas has a moment of doubt. Abigail reminds him he did the calculations so he should believe in them. She says they all need him. Passepartout and Niccolo keep Alberto awake by talking to him about the rocket and what is needed to reach the moon.

By the time they reach Brindisi, the cabin is a bare shell and not much else. Niccolo calls for someone to get a doctor to help his son. He is taken away on a stretcher moments later. Abigail believes her father will be pleasantly surprised when he reads about this. Before Niccolo leaves with his son, Alberto tells Fogg he is exactly the man for the job. Niccolo shakes his hand and hugs him. Passe calls him crazy while Abi calls him brilliant. He asks what she is going to do. She is going to find out which one he is although Passepartout won’t say what he is going to do. He follows her to Fogg who admits he almost got a boy killed. Passepartout says they only have 10 minutes to make the connection so they’ll have to hurry.

Both believe they should continue. Phileas gets up and they continue to their next stop. Before the episode ends, Thomas Kneedling (Anthony Flanagan) gets a note from Nyle Bellamy asking him to stop Phileas Fogg. He reads and burns the letter.

 

Around The World In 80 Days Review

While the episode ended on a better note, it was difficult to stomach at times. The show is trying too hard to make Phileas Fogg a sympathetic figure by constantly beating him down. He has been humiliated and abused by everyone on the show especially his traveling companion. In this episode, he was warned he’d be beaten to a pulp by Niccolo. It is difficult to believe he would be this much of a sad sop and that people would just relentlessly abuse him.

It hasn’t made the character sympathetic and instead has had the opposite outcome. Alberto’s conversations with Niccolo and Phileas were a bit creepy at times, to be honest. During some scenes, Abigail and Passepartout can be annoying especially with Passe acting like a hothead. We can already see where these two are headed. Finally, I can’t understand why they couldn’t just let Fogg finally prove himself. The constant abuse of Phileas Fogg is becoming very annoying very quickly, and I suspect it isn’t going to end yet.

He couldn’t even get the train across the gap on his own since Abigail had to help by finding a way to ensure there was enough friction to make it across. Why did the writers decide to hate and belittle Phileas Fogg so much? I can imagine those who developed the character and dialogue for the adaptation sitting around throwing darts at a picture of Phileas Fogg’s face or a copy of the original book. Finally, the shaky camera scenes are difficult to take, but they’ve been limited so far. We can only hope it stays that way.

The episode scores a 6 out of 10. Recaps of Around the World in 80 Days can be found on Reel Mockery here.