Cucumber, Banana & Tofu: Episode 6

Wow. Every once in a while you get something that is genuinely great television and the latest episode of Cucumber is one of them. A dark and gripping drama.

When the episode started I was happy it would be focused on Lance. Then the words 'Lance Sullivan 1966-2015' appeared and a foreboding tone was set. As views saw the key moments of Lance's life, they knew that something was coming. The life itself was pretty fascinating, with Lance coming out to his family and his father eventually forgiving him. I liked that even when Lance's father died, it was still an issue for Lance.

Then we cut to the present, with Henry trying to get forgiveness from Lance. This was the first great conversation and great performances by Vincent Franklin and Cyril Nie.

The cringe worthy date with Dan turned into something really strange when the Sullivan lorry passed and the ghost of Hazel from Queer as Folk turned up and talked of the lost boys in the river. The episode started to feel like Turn Left from Doctor Who. Loved the directorial touch that Alice Troughton of Hazel standing in the dark and Lance turning to see Daniel bathed in street lights.

Back to Dan’s flat and Lance being hit on the head. The fact that they keep interspersing various flashes of Lance’s life with him Lance just sitting there, bleeding is horrific. His actual, dying, with clips and white noise seemed grim. His death is all the more horrific because we saw him as a well rounded person beforehand.

Last week’s episode saw things going downhill for Henry but that was nothing compared to what happened to Lance this week. And how will Henry react. Russell T Davies has said in interview that gay panic will play a part of the next two episodes so that should something to watch out for. This viewer is definitely waiting around to find out.

The only bad thing about a piece of television like Cucumber is that I couldn't bring myself to watch the Banana episode that followed it, written by Charlie Covell who also played the main character, Amy. When I did watch it it turned out to be a funny and sweet story.  I could certainly identify with some of Amy’s obsessive compulsions. It linked in quite interestingly with the main plot. It was not on par with Cucumber as a drama, but it was a necessary piece of light relief.

Tofu segued nicely with the return of Hazel by having an episode dedicated to looking at the effect of Queer as Folk which might sound a bit self indulgent but when the progranm has affected so many gay people it can only be expected. It was also funny hearing actors talk about performing in sex scenes.

In the end, both Banana and Tofu were eclipsed by Cucumber, which had so many brilliant moments packed into one episode. Nevertheless the other two shows had their moments. Cyril Nri has put in a great performance and will be missed, but at least his work has made an impact here.