As the opening episode of Joan begins, Joan Hannington (Sophie Turner) puts on makeup in London in 1985. She has a bunch of money and jewelry. Joan answers the phone using an American accent and confirms she’ll be checking out soon. Four months earlier on the Kent Coast, Joan feeds her daughter Kelly (Mia Millichamp-Long). Joan asks a neighbor to look after Kelly. Then, she goes out with Gary (Nick Blood) who speeds down the road in his sports car. He drops her off at Rene’s a short time later. While she’s working, Tom (Jack Greenlees) enters and offers to buy Joan a drink. She has to tell him she can’t just again. She believes he wants to be more than friends. Tom shows her his card for double glazing. Joan returns home after work and checks on Kelly who is sleeping.

The next day, Gary rushes into the flat. Joan asks him about leaving Kelly alone. Gary retrieves something and leaves in a hurry. He says he has to be on his toes for a bit. She asks him if he’s cheating. Gary suggests he wants to be with a woman who doesn’t expect him to care for her kid. Joan says it’s his kid. Gary tells her to keep her trap shut. Joan threatens to change the locks just before Gary leaves. Later, Joan takes Kelly for a walk on the beach. Tom meets her and claims he’s a friend. Joan suspects he’s undercover. Tom knows Gary has done a big job and he’s in trouble. He offers to keep Joan safe. Joan refuses to tell him anything. In the middle of the night, Don the gangster (Gary Grant) and another man enter Joan’s flat. Don grabs a gun and makes her stand up. They want to know where Gary is because he owes them money, but Joan insists she doesn’t know anything.

Don slaps her and puts the pistol in her mouth. He says they better hope Gary comes home for breakfast. Otherwise, it’ll be little Kelly who gets it. Once the men leave, Joan tells Kelly to wake up so they can flee. In the morning, Joan tells Kelly they’re going to a safe place. Joan goes to Southernwell Social Services to ask about putting Kelly in emergency care. She tells Mrs. May (Dorothy Atkinson) that she has a sister in London, but she cannot take Kelly there. She needs help until she can find a flat. Mrs. May says they’ll put her with a foster family. Joan wouldn’t want her in a home since she was in a home as a kid. She wants to make sure she won’t lose Kelly. Mrs. May promises she won’t. Joan wants to give Kelly the ring her mother gave to her. She says goodbye to her daughter. Joan goes to the salon where she tells Nancy (Kirsty J. Curtis) what’s happened with Gary and Kelly.

Nancy agrees to let Joan stay at her place for a bit. Joan goes upstairs. Later that night, Nancy fixes Joan’s hair. One week later, Joan works at the shop. She gets upset with Dave’s comments so she puts bubblegum in his hair. Nancy complains about losing one of her best clients later. Joan receives a call from the social worker. Later, Joan bums money from Nancy so she can visit Kelly tomorrow. Nancy says they need her there and she should’ve checked first. That night, Joan leaves a note saying sorry before leaving. She goes outside where she steals a car. Joan visits Kelly who is happy to see her. She talks to the foster mother about cutting Kelly’s hair. Joan asks about the ring she gave her. They put it on a chain. Joan thanks her for caring for her daughter. As Joan returns, she gets pulled over and arrested. Tom visits her and asks if she was trying to ruin her chances of getting her back.

Tom urges her to tell the magistrate that she is going to get a job and a flat. He offers to write something for her and back up her statements. Joan speaks to the magistrate. Once she is released, Joan goes back to Nancy and shows her the drawing Kelly did. Nancy can’t have her working at the salon because she’s not reliable enough. Joan begins looking through newspapers to try to find a different job. She ends up setting her sights on the shop assistant job at Bernard Jones Jewellers. Joan goes to another shop and asks about jewelry. Then, she goes to Bernard Jones to try to get the job. Joan says she knows all about the four Cs. She is given a month trial. Two weeks later, Joan is still working at the shop.  She helps Mrs. Judy Asher (Elizabeth Holland). Bernard (Alex Blake) comes in to check on them. Then, Bernard tells Joan she’s ready to show her the premier section.

Joan is enamored with the necklace she’s asked to try on. One night, Gary visits Joan and refuses to leave. Nancy comes down and tells him to leave. They argue about Kelly and other things. When Gary leaves, Joan makes sure to lock the door to the salon. Nancy tells Joan she doesn’t have to leave like this. Joan insists she’ll be fine. She ends up sleeping outside before going to work. Joan asks Bernard if she could get an advance on her wages. He says they’ll have to see what they get at the stock take. Later, Bernard tells Joan to lock the door. Then, he tries to get flirty with her. Joan thinks they should start with the premier collection. Bernard keeps pushing himself on her. Joan goes into the back to freshen up. When she comes out of the bathroom, she sees the safe open. Joan looks at a ring as well as diamonds. Bernard calls her name. Joan swallows the diamonds.

She tells Bernard that the painters have arrived. He suggests they can postpone the stock take until next week. When Joan leaves, she goes to a bar where she meets Boisie (Frank Dillane). Joan learns that he runs Hannington Antiques. She tells Boisie it’s been a tough day because she’s a thief. When Joan gets up in the morning, she finds a note from Boisie asking her to come work for him. She drinks alcohol and looks around the property. Joan finds tons of money in drawers. In a kitchen drawer, she finds a gun. She retrieves the diamonds she swallowed earlier. Then, she goes to Hannington Antiques where Boisie is busy working. She asks him if he ever buys jewelry. Boisie suspects it’s stolen. Joan shows him the loose diamonds. She admits it was on impulse. Boisie believes it’ll take a few weeks to find a buyer. When she says she needs cash now, he asks if she’d do more work.

Boisie has a proper job for her. They share a drink. Boisie thinks they’re going to get along. Joan claims it’s just one job. She’ll kill him if he rips her off.

 

Joan Review

The opening episode of ITV’s Joan felt like a mixed bag with some strong points and certain weak points. For the most part, the performances are strong. The series is well-made and well-acted. The soundtrack is good for the time period. The story is surprisingly dull at least in the first episode.

For starters, Joan’s story isn’t all that original right now. She’s stuck with an abusive cheater and strives for more. Joan is given multiple opportunities, but she continues messing up or she runs into another bad guy. From there, she will sink deeper into the criminal underworld.

It’s also difficult to see the purpose of the series so far. It seems to be just tediously telling Joan’s story without any real motive behind it. As a result, it’s not easy to care about Joan. There needed to be some type of motivation to retell these events and to give viewers a reason to care.

It’s still early into the series, but it really is just going through the motions at this point. The opening episode scores a 5.5 out of 10. Recaps of Joan can be found on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support our independent site at this link. Learn more about advertising with us here. See what others are saying here.