The Second Coming
A Manchester pub-crawler vanishes one night, only to be found later on a back road, claiming to be the son of God. Naturally, the authorities dismiss his claim, attributing it to a hangover, but he’s determined to prove himself. With his friends wondering if he’s gone mad, he steps into a football match and proceeds to pull off a miracle, literally turning day into night, and instantly attracting worldwide media coverage, speculation, and skepticism. He announces to a global audience that judgement day is fast approaching - in five days, no less - unless humanity can write its own Third Testament. The media spotlight turns to hysteria, and the skepticism escalates into assassination attempts, apparently fueled by the devil himself in human form. And perhaps worst of all, this self-proclaimed son of God can offer no clues as to what the Third Testament should say…
An acclaimed and somewhat controversial ITV miniseries, The Second Coming wound up on my “must-watch” list for a number of reasons. The star of the show, as unlikely messiah Steve Baxter, is Christopher Eccleston, and the script was written by Russell T. Davies (of Queer As Folk fame). Together, they’re possibly the most visible members of the creative team currently reviving Doctor Who as a multi-million-dollar series in the UK as I’m writing this - Eccleston is the new Doctor, and Davies is guiding the show creatively as its producer and head writer. So perhaps it’s not too much of a stretch to say that Second Coming provides a helpful template of what we might be able to expect from the new Who.
Frankly, I think we’re in for a treat. Chris Eccleston, though largely filling a dramatic role here, is delightfully quirky and has an immense emotional range. It doesn’t hurt that the part’s practically written for him, with moments of madness and moments of humor, but what’s most striking is an almost unnatural, eerie serenity that seems to descend upon him when, for example, he learns that the end of the world is coming, or when a fanatic with a bomb tries to end his world. Maybe I’m keeping Eccleston’s current role far too much in mind, but whereas some of the pictures of him in his new costume have made him look a bit too “street” for some fans who expect the Doctor to be more flamboyant, Eccleston has a nuanced style of performance that will easily transcend whatever he’s wearing. I can see him as the Doctor. And if nothing else, hey, he makes a grand Steve Baxter.
Chris Eccleston isn’t the only person in the movie, however; Lesley Sharp (The Full Monty) gives the proceedings a solid grounding in reality as a friend of Baxter’s, and potential love interest, who wonders if he’s gone completely mad. Her performance is excellent in this regard - she never really signs on as a disciple of Baxter’s, but endures the media speculation nonetheless by sticking close by him. As we get into the second episode, there’s a bit of a Mary Magdelene parallel as well, but her most powerful scene may be the one in which she tries to stop a friend of hers from committing suicide and taking her children with her, an event manipulated by demonic forces.
And while we’re on the subject of demonic forces, let’s do give actor Mark Benton a mention as well; his character is essentially the Devil’s foothold in our world throughout the proceedings, and he pulls the role off convincingly enough that his mere appearance, even if he doesn’t say much, is extremely unnerving the deeper you get into the story - and we’re just talking about a somewhat chubby man showing up in everyday clothes, not someone in robes and a heap of prosthetic makeup. It is he who orchestrates the near-suicide mentioned above, as well as the death of one of Baxter’s closest friends. He pulls it off extremely well, and it’s perhaps no accident that he too is going to be appearing in the new Doctor Who, in a role known currently only as “Clive.”
High marks also to co-stars Ahsen Bhatti as Baxter’s friend Peter Gupta, and Peter Armitage as Baxter’s troubled father, the person closest to Baxter who falls under the control of Benton’s character, with disastrously violent results.
Where the DVD itself is concerned, there are some nice bonus features, including some amusing outtakes, several deleted scenes (most of which tend toward the typical “okay, I can see why that was deleted” scene), and a lively commentary with director Adrian Shergold and writer Russell T. Davies. Davies carries a lot of the commentary, giving loads of praise to the cast and crew, and explaining what inspired specific story points, scenes, characters, and even casting decisions. Davies impressed the hell out of me with this commentary, with both his humor and his interesting style of storytelling, enough that I’m really eager to see what he’s working on now.
So again, I think we’re in for a treat. However, if you want a nice appetizer with a story that seems like it might be predictable but winds up being anything but, do check out The Second Coming. Maybe it’s not a fair comparison, but both Davies and Eccleston wowed me here, so I’m eager for their journeys in time and space to begin.
