As the fifth episode of Sherwood begins, Andy Fisher (Adeel Akhtar) wakes up in the woods near Scott Rowley (Adam Hugill) who wants his help with something. He asks Andy if he has something to write on. After Andy gives him his notebook, he tells him that he did something terrible although it was an accident. Scott warns him that they don’t have long because the police will be here soon. He writes something down and keeps the paper as Andy asks whether he always knew they’d catch him. Scott explains that he was getting sent down the day he left anyway. Andy says he doesn’t have a plan before Scott puts the note on an arrow and shoots it into a nearby tree. They begin walking with Scott in the lead position while the police search the woods nearby.

They find one of Scott’s camps. While waiting to speak to his boss, Kevin (Robert Glenister) receives a message from Helen St Clair about meeting at the Moor Hotel. Commissioner Charles Dawes (Pip Torrens) complains about the former office putting a bullet in his brain during Kevin’s visit. He asks where they’re placing this on the spectrum of his professional catastrophes of late. Kevin says he only had a few weeks left to live anyway. He admits he told him about the old operative living under the identity assigned to him by the Met. He gave him the code name of Keats after the Romantic poet. Kevin explains that he sent a text to the other four before he killed himself and the person they’re looking for in Notts might’ve received the text. Although Charles says it’d be difficult to obtain that information, Kevin thinks he might know who it is.

Ian St Clair (David Morrissey) gets off the phone with Kevin and tells Helen (Clare Holman) that he spoke to someone who knows the identity of the undercover copper here. The guy shot himself instead of revealing who it was. Ian warns her that he can’t predict what Scott will do next if he knows who it is and he doesn’t. He is worried that Scott is going to harm them and he won’t be able to protect them. Helen promises it’ll be okay in the end because it always is. She tells him that she promised to have a drink with someone later that night. Ian goes into the woods and discusses the recent discovery with Cleaver (Terence Maynard) who says there are two sets of tracks so they think he has taken Andy Fisher. Ian notices the note on the tree that asks if they want to play a game of “eye spy”.

Ian calls someone to say he’d like to have Helen’s restricted records unlocked. In a flashback, Keats learns that she was selected because she has the skills to survive such an ordeal. They’re told about the difficulty of the job. In 1984 at Scotland Yard, Keats learns that her proposed alias died at only 11 months old. She confirms that no major news stories can be traced to the name. She is sent to Nottinghamshire. Keats heads to the club where striking miners are drinking. A young Gary (Jonathan Readwin) sits nearby and complains about his two friends ganging up on him. Keats sits next to Gary, Julie (Poppy Gilbert), and Cathy as they continue chatting. She begins hanging out with Cathy during the strike and claiming her dad got moved down from Bury.

She claims her dad is like Gary and thinks a picket line is sacrosanct. They begin discussing Ian and Martin St Clair who are police officers. Gary and Ian argue over the street and their decision to shout scab at everyone before the police are called Maggie’s boot boys. The police protect the bus full of miners as it crosses the picket line. Kevin meets with Helen at the hotel to say he doesn’t think he should be in the middle between her and Ian. She claims she isn’t the person they’re looking for, but Kevin doesn’t believe that. She says no one knows because it starts to define you as soon as you tell one person. Helen refuses to give her father that power because he had a horrible habit of trying to kill them. She claims they were in witness protection. Kevin says the person they’re looking for will have an uncanny ability to convince people they’re something they’re not.

He is convinced she contacted him because she is afraid that Scott is after her, but she remains adamant that it isn’t her. When Ian calls Kevin, Helen pleads with him to let her talk to him about it. In a flashback, young Kevin (Tom Glenister) hangs out with Jenny and tells her that he likes her a lot. They contemplate seeing each other again tonight since the clubbie is trying to throw a festival for both sides. Ron St Clair (Mark Addy) talks to his sons about looking after one another. He says it is hard for him being a striking miner and his sons leading the scabs through. Ian insists nobody saw this coming when they signed up, but Ron believes it was a long time coming. Ron admits he is proud of them, but this isn’t going away anytime soon.

Before he leaves, he tells his sons that he’ll be at home instead of taking charity from scabs. Jenny makes sure she can trust Keats before telling her that she has been seeing a London cop. She admits he is supposed to be guarding the bus garage, but he is going to sneak off to see her tonight. Once Keats goes inside, she tells Ron and some of the others about the gossip regarding a certain London pig. She explains that he is supposed to be guarding the bus garage where the Met store its supplies but won’t be. Ron doesn’t want to do anything since his sons are in the force. Young Warnock claims they’d only be robbing a cupboard and making a statement. Gary reminds Warnock that they have to live here while his lot comes and goes. Later that evening, Kevin waits for his chance to escape. Gary notices Jenny hanging around the greenhouse.

Keats works at the clubbie where Robbie says he doesn’t like getting his photo taken. Ron and Warnock sneak into the garage and steal from the police anyway. One officer is beaten before a fire is ignited. Gary runs into Jenny and Kevin while they kiss. He promises not to say anything. As he walks away, Kevin learns about the fire on his radio. Ian and Martin discuss whether the striking miners started the fire, but Martin doesn’t think their father would be involved. They rush over to the garage as Kevin arrives with Jenny. Martin notices Jonathan Ryan on the ground. He reminds Ian that he was one of their father’s mates. It is also Jenny’s father. Martin begins worrying that their father might still be in there so he runs into the fire. Keats calls her boss to tell her this was likely her fault, but he blames the perpetrators instead.

She asks why she is here because she doesn’t know anymore. She is told that they’re going to need names so she needs to do her job. Keats gives him the names of the militant strikers who weren’t there tonight including Gary Jackson and Johnny Ryan. Keats returns to the clubbie where the strikers and scabs argue. Meanwhile, Ian thinks about his brother running into the fire. Ron meets with Ian and learns that his son is at the hospital. Ian asks his father where he was last night. He warns him that they’re going to put it together that strikers did this and there is only a handful in the village. He won’t be able to help him unless he tells the truth. Ron says they never meant to and were just there to grab some supplies. Ian tells him that Martin ran in there because he thought he was inside. Ron accuses him of leaving his brother while wanting to be the big man.

He tells him he can’t look after his own family so he is useless. Mugshots are taken of Gary at the station. Ian joins him seconds later and says he is okay. He warns Gary that someone has come forward with names. Ian is pulled away and told that Kevin saw Gary at the allotments so they got it wrong about him. He is tasked with taking Kevin’s statement. Kevin asks if he should be questioned by an officer of higher rank, but Ian reminds him that everyone is stretched thin right now. Ian questions why he was away from his post when he saw Gary. He explains that he left to meet some girl and it is more than just that. Ian tells him that his brother is in the hospital with his skin melting off. Kevin tells him about Jennifer who is a teacher at the primary school.

She is at the hospital because her father is dead. Ian blames Kevin for his death. He reminds Kevin that he’ll be making a full report. In the present, Ian remembers this while waiting for Kevin at the club. He tells Kevin that he should’ve told him that he did a background check on Helen. Kevin wasn’t sure he’d feel comfortable needing to eliminate her as a suspect. Ian insists he wouldn’t let his personal circumstances cloud his judgment. He always puts his duty first and he suspects Kevin of all people would know that. Kevin argues he didn’t need to dismantle his career in the process before it had even begun. Ian reminds him that none of this would’ve happened if he’d just stayed at his post and done his job. Kevin says he knows that. He believes they were too young for that situation considering what they’re still doing to each other.

Ian is going to take Helen somewhere safe until they have Scott in custody. Kevin claims it isn’t her and he was wrong although Ian hasn’t gotten the results back on her file yet. Kevin says he has and she checks out before urging Ian to just speak with her. He tells Ian to stop because he is doing it again. When Ian asks who he thinks he is, Kevin explains that he is trying to be his friend. Ian says he doesn’t need a friend. He just needs to get this job done and he is doing it. Scott and Andy reach the Alamo colliery as Scott says the track leads to nowhere now. Andy tells him that he wants to get caught so he can try to ask for forgiveness. Scott tells him that his son is never going to forgive him and will hate him for the rest of his life for what he did. Andy asks if he believes in the afterlife before telling him about Araf in Islam.

It is like the Catholics’ purgatory. He suggests that you can wait there for a bit while your fate is decided depending on all the good and bad things you did. He thinks he might be able to see his wife again if you’re allowed a visitor’s room while you wait. Andy tells Scott to just go on and make it quick. Instead, Scott turns the phone back on and gives it to Andy who leaves another message for Neel (Bally Gill). DI Taylor (Andrea Lowe) tells Ian about the message. Cleaver says they can isolate his location since his phone is still pinging off two towers. Neel isn’t sure he should be there, but Ian says it is just a precaution in case they need someone he can trust to talk to him. Andy waits with Scott’s crossbow as the cops move closer. They spot him and yell for him to drop his weapon, but Andy continues walking in the opposite direction.

Once he finds himself trapped, he hides in the bush. Ian tells Neel he can come out unharmed if he drops the weapon. Neel yells for his dad to cooperate. Andy pleads with Trudy to wait for him. He stands up and points the crossbow toward the police officer before he is shot once through the chest. Neel rushes in to check on him only to be pulled away by officers. Ian wonders where the heck Scott went while Scott uncovers a motorcycle that he uses to escape. In a flashback, Ian returns to the station and learns Kevin will be going back to the Smoke. It is all thanks to Ian’s report. Ian confirms he is interested in being a detective one day and is told Martin deserves justice. He is told about the informant who provided names of militant locals from last night without alibis.

The rest of the names need to be corroborated on record by an actual officer since Gary didn’t pan out. Ian was at the clubbie so he should be able to tell them who was absent. He admits that Jonathan Ryan, Liam Warnock, Ron St Clair, and James Apestead were absent. Ron is arrested while Ian watches. Later, Keats meets with Robbie who complains that they’re not supposed to meet like this. He tells her to think about this because their job was to stir stuff up and flush out the troublemakers. He calls it a tour only for Keats to say it isn’t a war. This is the only place where she has ever felt welcome.

He tries to calm her before asking what her name is. She says her name is Daphne. Then, she begins working at the club. Mickey approaches her and offers to show her a life of adventures. He insists he isn’t a bad guy despite what people think. She tells him that it is just complicated and she can’t explain it. Mickey says it is about allowing yourself to have what you want and following your heart. In the present, Daphne looks at the text message before hearing a thud at the door. She opens it and finds an arrow stuck in the door.

 

Sherwood Review

Sherwood should’ve been condensed in every possible way, including cast and episode count. As it drags on, it becomes more farfetched and sadly humorous. In the fifth episode, it seems the writers are striving for viewers to sympathize with a murderer who killed his daughter-in-law after she heard him pleasuring himself to pornography in the most implausible way. Scott’s motives still haven’t been fully explained unless we’re really expected to believe he is hung up on something that happened before he was even born.

The show has become more about identifying Keats than the murders and I personally care very little about that aspect of the show. While certain members of the cast are fantastic, the cast is also so big that they’re often left out or underutilized. Gary’s death and how it impacted Julie and the family have become moot points as the show attempts to juggle the past and present to uncover Keats.

It doesn’t do the victims any favors in the way it coddled and humorized the perpetrators of these horrible events. Then again, it would’ve been easier to just never say anything about this being linked to any real-life event considering how different the two really are. The episode scores a 5.5 out of 10. Recaps of Sherwood are available on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support our work at this link.