The Anti-Heist – As the finale of The Gallows Pole begins, David Hartley (Michael Socha) has a vision in which he is told to walk through the fog. The stagman tells him that those in the grey light offer their blessing to his criminal endeavor. The man he will commit a crime on today also needs his help. He is a painted man because the colors hide his scars and pain. David is urged to trust the lady with looms because she is wise and he cannot fulfill his destiny without her. Grace can see the boy in David again. David is told to walk back to his people because they need him to guide them today.

After the intro, Isaac Hartley (Samuel Edward-Cook) speaks to Joe and others about the possibility that their plan could go wrong. Isaac says he and Tom will get a bit physical. Susie wants to make sure they don’t put any marks on them. William Hartley (Thomas Turgoose) and Gwen complain about the jobs they’ve been selected for. James Broadbent (Adam Fogerty) tells Mand (Stevie Binns) that he has a plan to put himself back in the good book. James hopes they’re a team, but Mand argues that they’re not. James refuses to go if they’re not a team. When David finally arrives, Grace (Sophie McShera) checks to make sure he is okay.

William and Gwen come over to argue about their jobs. Grace tells David that he needs to go rally his troop. David stands up and begins speaking to everyone about the clothier. The clothier, Mr. Arkwright, goes to Susie’s brothel. They start talking about his business and how he is diversifying. This continues until Mr. Arkwright is ready for some playtime. Once he goes in with the prostitute, Mr. Arkwright says he wants to be Eliza again. While Mr. Arkwright is busy, Joe the pickpocket (Joe Sproulle) goes inside to get his key. Joe manages to get the key without being caught. Gwen gets the key and runs it over to Mand who gives it to someone else. James goes over his plan with Mand.

Despite a bad accent, James manages to get into the clothier’s house. James keeps them occupied for long enough for his friend to steal the coins. Mand complains about James being inside the house before telling the man to get them to Gwen. Mand tries to get James to come out of the clothier’s house. Grace gets the coins back to David and the others. She argues with David about him stretching for too long. Mr. Arkwright wakes up and says he dreamed about being at the ball. David comes in and tells the clothier to take a seat. Once he sits down, he says his name is Rex Arkwright. After he notices that his keys are missing, David says he needed to show him what they’re capable of.

He explains that they got into his house, opened his safe, and stole his guineas. David says he has 100 guineas and he could make another ten. He could give Rex five and the community five. Rex eventually says he won’t judge David if he doesn’t judge him. Rex says it could be interesting if David can actually do what he says. He wants David to show him how it is done. David agrees and begins working immediately. He thinks it is brave to do stuff like that and promises it won’t leave this room. Once Rex sees the finished product, he thinks he might be able to get considerably more coins to work with. Rex tells him to take the 100 guineas. He’ll come up with a friend from Halifax who is a coin merchant. If he says they’re good, they’ll come up with a thousand guineas.

They’ll be coming up with a bunch of lads with guns. David says he has his own lads with guns. He asks Rex if he recognizes Billy. Billy tells Rex that he comes around every month to take money for their loom without bringing them any work. Rex says Billy will have no debt with him if David can pull in ten guineas a week. If he can pull in one hundred guineas a week, no one in the village will have a debt with him. Once David agrees, he takes the guineas back to the others. They begin talking about what they need and how they can get kids involved. David tells them that the clothier will be coming with a Portuguese guy who will inspect the work.

Mand and James come in with soot all over their faces. James admits he didn’t plan for that bit before everyone shares a drink. Joseph Broadbent (Fine Time Fontayne) asks James what he is up to. Although James says he doesn’t need a gang, Joseph believes something is going on. David is asked about the rumor of putting together a team of gardyloos. James meets a group and tells them he is putting together a little team. David and the others work on making coins while the kids are formed into a gang. James tells the men that this guy wants his cargo protected. The men tell David that they would die for him because they admire what he is doing. When Rex arrives, David gives him 105 guineas as promised.

Rex says he’ll get his Iberian friend to take a look before walking away. David and Grace don’t know what Iberian means. The man tells Rex that they’re very good. Rex informs David that they might be in business. He gives David 1,000 guineas as promised. David says he’ll trust him that there are 1,000 guineas in the box. Rex and his men leave after that. David wants to wait for Hannah before opening the box. Once Hannah arrives, everyone celebrates what they’ve done so far. They open the box and grab the guineas. David tells Grace he shouldn’t have left years ago and he is happy just having her as a friend. Everyone cheers when they kiss. They sing, dance, and celebrate. The stagman visits David when he is sleeping. He calls him King David Hartley and tells him to rise.

 

The Gallows Pole Review

The finale of The Gallows Pole really wasn’t any better or worse than the episodes before it since all of them were equally disappointing. The series really felt like an unfinished product in every aspect, including the dialogue and the story which was very shallow. The soundtrack was slightly annoying as well and didn’t fit the time period at all.

The intro music was okay, but some of the songs in this episode weren’t great. There was so much that could’ve been done with this show considering the source material. It just never got to the point, never developed the story, and never fleshed out the characters. Instead, ten minutes at a time were wasted arguing about stretching or rambling about something silly.

Truthfully, The Gallows Pole was the least enjoyable and least interesting series I watched in the last few months and that is saying a lot. The finale did very little to finish the story or provide any satisfying ending. It scores a 4 out of 10. Recaps of The Gallows Pole 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.