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I began to watch Rev. with a mixture of curiosity and trepidation. As a Christian, and the daughter of a minister, I’ve become increasingly worried by the depiction of Christianity, and specifically men of the cloth, on TV over the last few years. Christians are the butt of the jokes on comedy shows, while vicars are either overly pious or scheming hypocrites; often both. But how exactly does Rev. fare?
Rev. is the story of an Anglican vicar, Alan Smallbone (Tom Hollander), who is struggling with the move from a country parish in Suffolk to a failing church in inner city London. The problems just keep coming for the vicar: a strange, nerdy assistant; an even stranger helper; a broken stained glass window; and, most terrifyingly of all, a load of middle class parents desperately trying to get their children into the church school.
This first episode had real promise. The writing is gentle and well-observed, if not laugh out loud funny. I was really impressed with the characterisation of Alan – he was portrayed as a slightly weak but genuinely good man. Some of the funniest moments come from his most un-vicarly behaviour, particularly when he removed his dog collar to swear at the builders. It wasn’t big, it wasn’t clever, but I have to admit it did make me laugh. Comparisons with The Vicar of Dibley are inevitable, but not really helpful. The scene in which Alan prays about his dilemma highlights the difference between the two shows: in Dibley, Geraldine’s prayers were usually used solely for comic effect; here, it was both comic but also revealing and touching.
The rest of the characters are drawn with slightly broader brushstrokes, particularly the archdeacon and the smarmy MP. But there’s real potential for development in some of them, in particular the vicar’s wife (a nicely understated performance from Olivia Colman) and the nerdy, more zealous parish assistant (Miles Jupp, using his slightly mad eyes to all their comic potential). The richness of comedy actors in the supporting cast promises interesting things for the future, as long as they’re given some interesting material.
But really, holding it all together is Tom Hollander. He’s one of those actors that’s a real mark of quality; even if what you’re watching isn’t very good (not to mention any names but, you know, Pirates of the Caribbean 3), if Tom Hollander is in it, there’ll be at least something worth seeing. And here, he gives a calm, nuanced performance as a man slightly out of his depth, dealing with things as best he can while grappling with his own weaknesses. I’d tune in next week just to watch him be quietly brilliant.
The comic situations are fairly obvious, but with the opening episode of a sitcom, it’s the characterisation that really matters. Despite a few missteps, Rev. got that fairly spot on, so I think it’s worth giving it a go, if only for Tom Hollander being a bit marvellous at the centre of it all.
Oh, and in case you’re wondering: my dad quite liked it too.
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