His Dark Materials Review: Tower of the Angels (Season 2 Episode 4)

“Don’t confuse the man for the mission.”

These words hang over His Dark Materials Season 2 Episode 4, “Tower of the Angels,” as answers are finally given and journeys find their (at least for now) destinations.

Asriel has been impossible to pinpoint over the show so far, where man and mission are blurred and so one must be as bad as the other. But with John Parry, going by Jopari when Lee finds himself, both are separated and given the proper difference.

Asriel may not be the best candidate to make these moves given the horrible things he’s done to get there, but his mission is far more valuable at the end of the day. This helps to settle the conflict down to its simplest of forms: freedom versus the Magisterium, and to a larger extent, the Authority.

With that in mind, and Mary learning that Dust and dark matter are effectively angels interfering in human evolution, as they say, the battle ahead is now as clear as ever.

Andrew Scott plays John/Jopari with an air of knowledge and authority, as though he knows the answer to every question but may not have the full means to complete his tasks.

Hopefully it doesn’t relegate him to simply being exposition, as Scott is a wildly talented actor, but since he takes off with Lee in search of Lyra and Will, and does have some sort of shaman-like powers, there will likely be more to his character than that as the story moves forward.

A lot of the episode’s tension comes down to Will finding the same willpower and focus that Lyra has to use the alethiometer, but now with the knife.

The loss of his fingers will leave him with a battle between pain and commitment, where one will need to win out in order to make the moves forward.

The cut of a universe is a really neat effect, looking like a curtain torn into another world. It’s one of a larger part of the episode where the effects work is helping build the scale as the stakes grow larger. Along with the airship attack at the end of the episode and the constantly shifting spectre design, this episode is always visually interesting on top of the gorgeous photography.

Terence Stamp brings a weariness to the knife-bearing Paridisi, as though the weight of the life-altering blade has torn him down over the years. But he is still kind and with patience, which really helps give Will the power and confidence to become the next knife-bearer.

Lord Boreal makes for a fascinating villain, as you can never tell if he’s doing all of this with ego boosting his confidence, or if it’s all for show. Mrs. Coulter’s line about not quite having Lyra trapped breaks that facade for such a short time, but it’s enough to see through him for that brief moment.

But now that he’s brought Coulter to Cittagazze, and the witches have gone through Asriel’s portal, it appears that Cittagazze will grow more important despite the knife now being in Will’s possession. Everyone is descending on this one location, and with the spectres about, it will prove to be a dangerous spot to center the events.

The episode comes across as the most important, lore-wise, as it allows a history into the subtle knife while also delivering on John Parry and setting everyone in motion to their destinations.

With what comes next, the knife may be Lyra’s only way to gaining back the alethiometer, and with everyone heading for Cittagazze now, perhaps a big confrontation is due.

It’s a little exposition heavy, but it does so with the right level of emotion and humanity. Amir Wilson is fantastic throughout, able to use both pain and heart to find a place for Will to start to come into his own.

 

What did you think of this episode of His Dark Materials? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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His Dark Materials airs Mondays at 9/8c on HBO.

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