Thoughts and ramblings

Season 1 episode write ups

Lockdown Episode Write Ups

Part 1 – tableaus

Part 2 – dialogue

Season 2 episode write ups

Fanfics

I realise I have been largely absent from the arena for a while. I have been trying to stay spoiler free, and this was just the best way to do it. I no longer need to do that so I'm back! And I HAVE THINGS TO SAY. Should go without saying, but GO3 spoilers below the cut.

Well, hey! I know, I know it’s been a little while (*mumbles* 10 months…). Truth is, as a 2-module trimester rolled relentlessly into a dissertation project, I have been somewhat… pushed for time. But. My MSc is over (with a distinction no less – for US peeps, I got a 4.43 GPA, and for others who might not know the post-grad grading system, it’s a first-class degree), which means I can start doing stuff I really enjoy again. Honestly, I don’t think there was a day that went by over the last 10 months where I didn’t think about the Omens fandom and my contribution to it, such as it is, and I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous about getting back to it. So please, be gentle with me – this first one is likely to be a bit rusty around the edges and I am sure to be more than a little forgetful. But that’s enough about me, let’s get back to where we left off (*blows dust off notes and peers at them*) – following our beloved ineffables into a trip to the doctor’s office.

Alright, let’s start with an easy one – the good doctor’s surname. We should all recognise the name “Dalrymple” from season one, where it was given to the blunderbuss-style gun owned by the Witchfinder Army. Whilst I think it would be a lovely Easter egg to have two Dalrymples in the show representing the conflict between outward appearances and intended purpose (the gun being an obvious weapon of destruction being used to try to prevent Armageddon, the doctor using “wicked” methods to further medicine), I struggle with that concept, largely because it would have required some seriously detailed knowledge of the future plot as early as the making of the first season. It is probable that the Dalrymple character is based on the historical person, Robert Knox, who was disgraced by the medical community because he bought corpses from the infamous murderers/graverobbers, Burke and Hare. It is likely not a coincidence that the grisly career of Burke and Hare is documented to have started in November 1827, when they delivered a corpse to Robert Knox’s dissecting rooms (for an alleged price of seven pounds and ten shillings). The name “Dalrymple” however, may be a nod to John Dalrymple, who graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 1827 and went on to be become a renowned ophthalmologist – the location and date combination is a little too much of a coincidence for me to think otherwise.

Well, if that isn’t a lovely bit of foreshadowing, I don’t know what is. Check out the only bottle on a shelf of many with both a lid and a label, which further stands out because of the green glass, in contrast to the other clear-glass or earthenware jugs that surround it. Pretty much screams out to be noticed, yet I never saw it until I was panning through the film looking for an image of GIF to put here. Nice.

This may be the strangest “miracle” we see Aziraphale perform in the history of the show. Or at least, of the ones that we’re made aware of that he’s actually doing. And there can be no mistaking it – the hand gesture and of course, that noise, which resembles (most closely) the same noise from the first episode of this season, used when hiding Gabriel. I use the word “strange” to describe it because, aside from the fact he’s basically desecrating a corpse, it’s not driven by need. Most (all?) of the miracles we see Aziraphale perform are to fulfil some sort of need. Granted, sometimes those needs are rather trifling, but it is mostly need that drives them. This is… well… almost spiteful. It could be argued that he is removing the ability for Elspeth to complete her “wicked” act, but that’s not the way I read his post-miracle gloating. It would also go against his own definition for being able to achieve holiness, as he removes her choice – she is no longer capable of choosing not to do something wicked. Crowley is clearly not impressed either – he knows Aziraphale has crossed a line with this particular “unexpected blessing”:

At least the angel has the decency to look ashamed of himself with the non-verbal dressing down. Doesn’t stop him asking Crowley for a favour seconds later though, and I think the demon’s willingness to oblige and clear understanding of Aziraphale’s vague hand gestures is testimony to how well this pair can work together when not under duress. This particular instance of time-freezing offers us a great opportunity to hear the VERY clear difference between the noise allocated to this particular brand of demonic miracle:

I mentioned it way back in the Hard Times write up – it starts off similar to other miracle noises (like wire brushes being brushed over a cymbal) but finishes with a distinct wobble board noise. I think this distinctive noise (or lack of it) will become important later in the season, but I don’t want to get ahead of myself. For now, let’s just say that this particular noise and the action that follows can be taken as proof that Crowley has just frozen time. Or frozen time for a particular being at least – the candle flames don’t stop flickering. I’m not sure whether that’s intentional or just a production/costs choice – if intentional it suggests that Crowley’s ability to “stop time” isn’t the all-encompassing ability we might have originally thought it to be. This latter point is perhaps further underlined by the fact that Mr. Dalrymple is clearly able to be manipulated whilst under the influence of Crowley’s demonic intervention, making it appear more like some sort of forced hypnosis. Interestingly, the noise that accompanies the lifting of the “time freeze” is completely absent of wobble board/bubble noise, instead sounding more like the one we heard alongside Aziraphale’s corpse desecration earlier in this scene.

Alright, so there’s a lot of stuff to take from this next conversation, not least that Aziraphale is clearly not a fan of whiskey.

I feel like I could pore over the of a conversation for literally hours, which would be tedious and boring. I do love it the circularity of Aziraphale’s moral dilemma though – it’s not OK for Elspeth to dig up bodies because she earns money by doing so but it would be alright for the doctor to do it because his motives are more philanthropic. But it’s not OK that he “uses” vulnerable people to do it for him because this appears to be taking advantage, despite the fact that it actually benefits those in need whilst keeping the skilled and knowledgeable person able to do the work that benefits society as a whole. As I said in previous write ups for this episode (and honestly, I only really know this because I reread them before starting this one to try and remember how on earth I used to do this), I still consider the minisodes of season 2 to be Aziraphale’s story – pivotal moments in his life where his point of view is forcibly and irrevocably shifted. This particular conversation, short as it is, is demonstration of that with perfect clarity, and one in which he has no argument against. Aziraphale’s response to the story of the 7-year-old boy is heartbreaking – watching the understanding dawn on him that perhaps an innocent could have been saved if others were able to perform more morally questionable actions without fear of reprimand is devastating:

Even more astounding is that the cradling of the jar, complete with the discrete glance at Crowley to be sure he’s not being observed, is reported to be an improvisation by Michael. Goddam that man knows how to tug at heartstrings.

Let’s move swiftly on the present-day segment as I think I should be able to get it done without too much more to say. First off, and this one’s just a nice personal knowledge sort of Easter egg, that sign outside the pub reminds me of something similar where I live.

One pub, one sign, two sides of the story. Or perhaps more like two difference perceptions of the same principle. Where I live (Stratford-upon-Avon), there is a pub with a similar sign, except it also has two names: The Dirty Duck/The Black Swan. The sign outside has a different image on each side, complete with different names. It’s also on the street between the two main buildings of the Royal Shakespeare Company and is well-known for its acting clientele. As such, I have no doubt that there would be those in the Omens cast and crew that would have knowledge of it, so I wonder if inspiration was taken from it for the sign for the Edinburgh pub – certainly the practice of having different images on opposite sides of a pub sign is not common in the UK.

Let’s talk briefly about that jukebox, shall we?

I actually learnt something when I was looking this up. I had initially wondered whether “High-Fidelity” was an actual jukebox make, rather than “just” being a reference to a novel about a record shop owner (making a lovely circular loop back to Maggie and the originator of Aziraphale’s quest for Clues). Turns out that the phrase “high fidelity” also happens to be the full name for a “Hi-Fi”, referring to the reliability of the sound produced. There are perhaps some people out there who already knew this, and sickeningly also some people who have never heard the phrase “Hi-Fi” – for the latter this was a common name for a stereo, much the same way that vacuums are commonly called hoovers. This was a nice new bit of knowledge for me though, which makes me happy. Please don’t mock me if you’re one of those former people who already knew.

I’m not sure what to make of this next scene. Some of it is downright silly (Aziraphale asking if it’s The Resurrectionist pub, for instance), some of it gives us a delightful further look into the angel’s character and desire for whimsy (he looks like he’s genuinely going to explode when he’s led to believe he’s successfully pulled off the characterisation of an investigative reporter). That conflict aside, there are also some very useful bits of narrative here (the fact that the record started changing in the previous year, and that Gabriel was not alone when he was in the pub) and some lovely subtle Easter eggs (see the Powell and Pressburger post from the previous write up), making for a scene that never sat entirely comfortably with me, purely because it seems like its trying to play a load of roles all at once. Throw in Aziraphale’s detective costume, which is probably about 60 years out of date, and I’m left just feeling a little discombobulated but that’s probably just me.

Alright, I'm not really back-back. I mean I haven't suddenly written another 1500 words on a tiny 5 minute segment of a single episode and spent countless hours making GIFs and audio clips to prove a point. Sorry.

But.

Do you remember, what seems like a very long time ago now, I said that I would be away for a bit because I was about to start getting VERY busy with an MSc? Yeah. That happened. It REALLY happened. I don't really sleep or see the outdoors anymore. And if the hubbie didn't cook for me, I probably wouldn't eat too much either. Anyway. The home straight is here! I am now writing my dissertation and what I came here to say was that I would really love it if there are any of you out there who would like to help me, I've written a little survey that forms part of my research. It should take about 20 minutes and it's about phishing training.

I promise (and I really do) this isn't some clever/obvious actual attempt to phish you - I really am doing an MSc in Cyber Security and my dissertation really is about how effective current phishing training techniques are.

If you're able to fill it out, great. If you want to share it so other people can do the same, also great!

I appreciate this probably isn't the sort of content you're accustomed to from me, but it's all I have right now. Outside of that, I actually can't wait to get back to writing GO stuff - I miss those boys so much!

This may well be another short(er) instalment, for similar reasons to the last one - ultimately this episode just breaks down into nicer chunks if I tackle this “present day” section on its own. That said, we should all be familiar with my tendency to ramble by now so let’s see how I get on.

The very first thing I wanted to comment on is the cut between the past of Edinburgh into the present of the Bentley. It’s entirely visual/audio so describing it is likely not to come out too well, but I’ll give it a go. At the end of the previous scene, the camera pans up and then appears to move, extremely quickly, towards the sky. At the same time there is a noise in the soundtrack, a “whoosh” that suggests rapid movement. On the opposite side of the cut there’s a tiny movement that suggests the end of the movement which ends on a close up of Aziraphale’s face. I hope that didn’t come off as too laborious. Not much I can do about it if it did anyway. Anyway, all of that to say that this cut between scenes suggests to me that, just like with the previous episode, the scenes that we see of Edinburgh are actually Aziraphale’s memories, his flashbacks. Which in and of itself, doesn’t really seem important. It does however lend credence to the theory I raised in the last section (that the minisodes show us epiphany-inducing moments specific to the angel, rather than being simple retellings of events that have occurred in his history).

I don’t think it would be inaccurate to say that the scene that follows in the Bentley is something of a fandom favourite for the Clues it gives to the state of the relationship between Aziraphale and Crowley, and for a couple of neat media references that can be found in it. I won’t be going over well-trodden ground too much in this write-up, and I’ll try and keep it as brief as possible. With that said, I want to touch briefly on the changes we see on the Bentley. I’ll start with the music, which, as is explicitly stated, is classical (Danse Macabre by Saint-Saens to be exact. I looked for a potential Easter egg here but couldn’t see anything obvious) and “stays classical”. This last point is pretty obviously a reference to the fact that all music in the Bentley inevitably eventually changes to Queen, not dissimilar to the music in the jukebox Aziraphale is seeking out (artist and song differences aside). There is something here I find interesting though:

So, we can see that the radio has been tuned to BBC Radio 3. For those of you outside the UK, this particular radio station does play whole programmes of classical music, though they do play other genres. He would probably have been better of choosing Classic FM if he had wanted an uninterrupted schedule of classical music. Perhaps there was a rights issue. Anyway, that’s not what I find interesting. If I understand correctly, the fact that Aziraphale is using the radio is what facilitates the conversation that is about to take place with Crowley. I think I actually recall that communicating using existing radio waves was something that Crowley had suggested to Hell as a precursor to the mobile phone. So, radio in use = possible communication. So far, so good. Here’s the “but”. It’s typically static sources of music that are prone to changing when left in the Bentley - in the book it was cassette tapes, in the show it’s updated to CDs. I have a feeling it may even be possible to use the cassette/CD player in an attempt to stop communications coming through (no radio waves = no communication) - I think this may even be why Crowley inserts a CD when trying to get through the wall of fire in the first season. So we have a bit of an inconsistency with the lore here. In all likelihood, I think it’s probably another instance of scriptual convenience - we need to have the conversation; we also need to be told how the Bentley has adapted to Aziraphale’s preferences. You can’t have both things whilst maintaining the previously established elements of Omens legend. There might be some other things to be said about whether the angel chooses to use the radio in order to ensure communication with Crowley was possible, or whether he’s actually not aware of how the music tends to change, but I think it might be overkill in this particular instance.

Looking at some of the other changes we see to the Bentley itself - there’s the horn (now delightfully camp) and of course, the colour. Looking first at the former, I was trying to recall a time when we hear the horn when it’s not Aziraphale driving but I’ve come up empty (even after watching some of the scenes where it might most likely be used), so if anyone has an example I’d be grateful - that way I can make a direct comparison. As it is, we only have Crowley’s word that the Bentley’s horn doesn’t sound like that all the time, though I will agree that it’s hardly the mean sound you might associate with a demon’s car. The colour though, we can be in no disagreement as to the huge change that has been made there. And it would be remiss of me not to highlight the commonly accepted fandom trope that Aziraphale has chosen yellow because it matches the colour of Crowley’s eyes.

(Image shamelessly lifted from a Reddit post by r/goodomensprime - if you’re here on Tumblr, let me know and I’ll credit you properly)

It’s quite a sweet little tribute really, and gives us a huge insight into Aziraphale’s feelings. It’s no wonder he looks so put out when Crowley tells him it’s unacceptable.

There’s something else about this exchange though, and (combined with the demon’s comments about driving at the speed limit) should tell us a lot about Crowley’s link to the Bentley, which is that this vehicle really is like an extension of his own being. The horn he could hear, maybe even the travel sweets (that’s quite a distinctive noise it makes when Aziraphale removes it from the tray), but the colour? And he doesn’t just know that the colour has changed - he knows what colour it’s been changed to. At this point I feel like it’s worth noting the phrase that Crowley uses about the changes to the Bentley:

CROWLEY: What are you doing to it?

So here’s the insinuation that the changes to the Bentley are being intentionally caused by Aziraphale. The fact that it “doesn’t seem to want to” drive above 30 miles an hour would further suggest that the changes are not being resisted by the Bentley, if there is to be an element of sentience applied to the car. I feel like there is something to be said here about Aziraphale presuming tangible changes to something that isn’t strictly within his (moral) power to do - we’ll see that presumption raise a very ugly head in the Final 15. And just as with the Final 15, status quo with the Bentley is returned by force and threat, albeit in a slightly less devastating way.

When I was first writing my notes for this episode (which seems like a very long time ago now), I made a comment about the presence of tartan and the loch ness monster in this shot. Now that some time has passed, I have been made aware that this is a direct reference to a Powell and Pressburger film that this episode shares its name with. I also now understand that this is one of many references to the work of the British duo. @captainfantasticalright made a beautiful post about it here and rather than rehashing the lovely work they’ve already done, I’ll direct you there. It's really beautifully put together. The only thing I now find odd about this tableau is that it’s a really “breaking-the-fourth-wall” sort of reference. As much as I can remember, the Easter eggs I’ve seen up to now are subtle - they blend into the background, and look absolutely natural. This one, sweet and comedic as it is, sort of screams that there’s something to be found. I think the tartan is supposed to look almost like sedentary rock, and I feel like it almost does. The Loch Ness monster is somewhat harder to argue about on that point, though you gotta love the addition of the bagpipes to that awesome rock treatment of the theme tune as this scene plays out.

I don’t think I have an awful lot to say about the next scene with Beelzebub, other than perhaps we should have realised there was something more going on with her than he run-of-the-mill Hellish responsibilities. It’s pretty clear she’s very worried about Gabriel’s absence, especially as we actually haven’t had any indication that she’s been issued with any instructions to find him from higher-up. I do quite like the throwback to the conversation she had with Crowley earlier on in the season when she asks the crony if they ever wish they were told they were doing a good job, and it makes me suspect that part of her mental crisis isn’t just about finding Gabriel, but that she has started to sympathise with Crowley’s point of view when it comes to doubting those that exert power over you.

That book that Gabriel is using to try and understand the concept of gravity is another Powell and Pressburger reference. Again, I’d encourage to look over that blog post if you want to find out more about this particular Easter egg (or the whole set of them).

Those two GIFs are there for no other reason than so that everyone can watch Crowley showing his fully domesticated self, stalking around the bookshop, looking sassy whilst he does it. Do I need any other reason that that? I mean, those bicycle clips around the arms are a slightly strange choice, but I can understand the logic for them being there. And I know I’m nowhere near the first person to want to know exactly what it is that the demon is doing here. Tidying? That seems like a sensible solution.

Ah. Not tidying then. Or perhaps intending to tidy and getting bored. I can only assume he’s trying to keep himself busy here, as opposed to being bored without Aziraphale or stressing about the state of the Bentley. I have seen a lovely little catch somewhere that there are an awful lot of fire extinguishers on the second floor of the book shop (which we’ll see in episode five), and that this is likely to do with the fire that consumes the store in the first season. With that in mind, it would be nice to think that Crowley is at this point covertly making space for those extinguishers by moving books. That said, if the fire deterrents were in response to the previous fire, you’d think they would have been installed long before now. And then there’s that sneaky little suggestion that the people involved in the aversion of the Apocalypse in the years prior don’t actually have any memory of the events as they took place. Whatever Crowley’s reason for his “tidying”, there’s another suggestion about the demon’s behaviour that I really love, which is that he brings an organised chaos to Aziraphale’s disorganised chaos, and with that in mind I think it’s a real shame we don’t get to see what books it is that he’s carrying. I guess we maybe shouldn’t be surprised at his actions here; according to the book has sorted his CD collection meticulously, so it stands to reason that he might want to bring order to another collection (especially if, like me, you believe he’s actually living in the bookshop with Aziraphale at this point).

Leading on from that bracketed point in the last paragraph, I think it’s probably worth noting that Crowley is sans sunglasses at this point. On the one hand, I can absolutely see that this is likely because he’s comfortable in his environment and feels physically and emotionally safe there. On the other hand, we know that his feelings towards Gabriel are, and will continue to be, very guarded. He still doesn’t trust this ex-archangel, not one little bit. Nor is he particularly comfortable with Muriel, who may or may not be in the book shop at this point. And yet, these are the only beings with which he can interact with during this scene. It just strikes me as a little odd that he would go without them, particularly in Aziraphale’s absence, but it does at least really highlight how comfortable he is when he’s at home in the book shop. And if you don’t think that relaxed attitude is evident from the lack of eyewear, it’s blatantly obvious in the way he speaks with Jim about his plan.

I mean, it’s so conspiratorial. Again, remember how much Crowley hates and distrusts Gabriel at this point. Even Aziraphale hasn’t gotten comfortable enough with Jim to speak to him with that level of comfort, so I find this friendly tone from the demon very peculiar.

I have a sneaky feeling that this might be a short one - if I try and do the first Edinburgh section as well as the next “present day” section, this is probably going to come out way too long, but let’s see.

There’s something missing for this introductory Edinburgh scene - have you noticed? This is the first time we’re introduced to a new time period without a banner on the screen to announce when and where the action is set. We do of course have Aziraphale’s voiceover to provide us with that information, so it’s not like there’s any confusion caused by the lack of a banner, I just find the absence of one interesting, particularly if you consider that the opening for the scene from 1862, likely the next time they meet after 1827 (not counting the alleged meeting Crowley calls in 1859 according to the Script Book), also differed from its flashback counterparts in Hard Times (it was the only banner to be incorporated into the scene - appearing below the surface of the water in St. James Park).

Moving on to this delightfully teenage-girl side of Aziraphale that we get to see with him writing in his diary. First thing’s first - the voiceover tells us this is volume 603 of his diaries. My first thoughts about this were along the lines of “where the hell are the other 602 and what do they contain” and “how many more were there after this one”, but the significance of the specific number used here is likely to be much simpler, and a Good Omens favourite - Strong’s Concordance. According to my research, the number 603 in the Greek version of the Concordance translates to “eager expectation, earnest longing”, which seems very fitting for a chronicle of Aziraphale’s adventures with Crowley. But wait! There’s more…

So Aziraphale is writing in his diary about the journey to Edinburgh on the 10th November (he goes on to add the year as 1827 but you can’t make out the beginning of the date very well once it’s been added). I found myself wondering if there was anything special about this date, and honestly what I found blew my mind a little bit. I cannot believe that this is a coincidence, and once more my hat is well and truly tipped to whoever discovered this gem and found a way to work it in. Because on the 10th November 1827, there was an article published in The Lancet about the lack of available anatomical subjects to work on for medical research. The article even references the high prices paid by “the resurrection men”. Don’t believe me? Here’s the link. Very sadly I could not attribute a name to the author, but I kind of don’t care. Fucking chapeau of the highest order for this little treat, honestly. As to the diary entry previous to this, I was unable to decipher it myself but I was able to figure out enough of it to Google some of the phrases. Turns out the content has already been confirmed to us by the author:

This sounds like a very exciting adventure for Aziraphale to have undertaken on his own! I love the insinuation that an attempt has been made to seduce him previously, which he rigorously objected to using a line that sounds similar in subtext to the one he utters upon Shadwell’s accusation that he’s running some sort of brothel in his book shop.

Whilst I appreciate the statue of Gabriel will be used later in the episode to provide a link between the past and present-day scenes in Edinburgh, I struggle to find any narrative purpose for it. In fact, I just end up with a long list of questions about its presence, for instance:

What is its purpose?

Why has it been built in this particular graveyard in this particular city?

Who built it?

Is Gabriel aware of its existence?

Assuming that Gabriel is aware of its existence, what is his interest in it? Did he commission it, or was it commissioned for him?

See what I mean? So many questions for an object that doesn’t really have any purpose whatsoever. I know we’ll hear Aziraphale refer to it later in the episode, but even then I don’t really see a reason for him to return to the statue when there are far bigger fish to fry in his Clue hunting. Perhaps its only real purpose is to find a reason for them being in the graveyard in the first place, though that feels pretty weak: building an entire statue as a prop for it to be used in less than 30 seconds of film just as a way to justify their existence in a particular place. There is one thing that it might be good for though:

What’s that look from Aziraphale when Crowley mentions the word “beauty” in a sentence about Gabriel? It looks a little like jealousy to me. Silly angel! I have no doubt that Crowley is just using words he believes Gabriel would associate with himself but I can understand how the angel might perceive it differently, especially given that both he and Crowley lack the ability to understand the other’s subtext when they’re not in immediate danger. I really don’t think he has anything to worry about.

I love how amused Crowley is that Elspeth shows such disgust towards Aziraphale’s clear Englishman status:

Here we have another opportunity for him to get really mischievous, and I’m not just talking about Crowley. Speaking as a fellow Celt (of the Welsh variety), I can genuinely say there’s something very satisfying about English people being shown disdain. I think it’s an ingrained, from-birth thing, because I’ve never really had to work on it, it just comes naturally. With that in mind, I’m sure David must have had a lot of fun indulging his Scottish nature in both accent and attitude towards the English. Which is all pretty ironic considering how public-school-boy Crowley sounds when he’s not speaking with a Scottish accent. I find it interesting that Crowley adopts the accent so early on in this scene - it’s immediately after he hears Elspeth speak. I suspect he does it because he understands that there’s a lot of bad blood directed towards the English from the Scottish natives, which demonstrates how much further on he is in his journey towards understanding human nature than Aziraphale is.

I also find it interesting that the angel makes no attempt to stop Crowley assisting Elspeth, instead trying to reason with her directly about the perceived “wrongness” of her actions. Presumably he knows that an argument with Crowley is doomed to failure, not least because he technically still has to file reports with Hell about his Earthly achievements. What’s also notable about Aziraphale’s attempts to stop Elspeth’s bodysnatching is that he shows absolutely no understanding of the trials that real-life people face.

ELSPETH: It’s not an easy job. If the Watch catch you, you’ll swing for it. AZIRAPHALE: Well it’s not the danger of what you’re doing. Don’t you know that it’s wrong?

Of the two reasons for not doing a spot of gravedigging, personally I’d prioritise getting caught and killed over and above it being “wrong”. Not so Aziraphale; he prioritises morals over life itself, which I suppose might come from his being immortal. And when you consider the lessons he learned in Uz shown to us in the previous episode, you might think he would have some understanding for extenuating circumstances when it comes to the lives of humans. However, there is an important difference between the actions he campaigns against here, and the ones from Uz, and that’s the originator of the actions. See, in Uz he rebelled against actions he perceived to be unjust and unfair taken by Heaven. Here he asserts the moral high ground against actions he judges to be morally wrong taken by a human. I will likely do a post specifically about the minisodes when I have completed the write ups for the three episodes containing them, but for now I’ll just say this. I think these minisodes, and perhaps the entire season (I have some more work to do there), are keyed towards showing us crucially important moments, specific to Aziraphale. Epiphany creating moments you might say. In Uz he learned that the actions of Heaven cannot be said to be Good simply because Heaven is the originator. He will come to learn in this episode that actions taken by humans cannot be categorically defined as either good or bad. In 1941… well, let’s do that one when we get there, and leave this topic for a separate blog specifically geared towards the subject, because I think I could wax lyrical about it quite a bit.

Anyway, back to the theme that things don’t have to be explicitly good or bad, but can in fact be both:

Beautifully put, and subtly done. Even this poor creature Morag can understand that you can be described as something bad whilst also having good intentions and a good nature, it’s really all about the context. Unfortunately Aziraphale will need to have the point made to him in all the more explicit terms later on in the episode before it sinks in with him, despite the fact that he specifically states he sides with Morag on her view of the situation. Some foreshadowing there perhaps.

Little side note, and this one because I haven’t mentioned anything about the sound in this part so far. If you listen beneath the dialogue in this scene, you can hear a woman coughing, pretty badly, in the background. This is another one of those little elements I so love about this show. That coughing has no relevance to the immediate narrative, most people won’t even hear it, but its presence reiterates how awful the living conditions are in the “piss-drenched patch” that Elspeth and Morag call home. The scene would be poorer without it, but you’d never know why - it’s so subtle, yet so effective. And knowing that someone out there, a sound editor and an actor at the very least, had to proactively do something for it to be included makes me feel very appreciative that we have such a committed cast and crew for this show.

Here we have an explicitly stated outline of Aziraphale’s (somewhat oversimplified, IMHO) view. To sum up:

Heaven = (unconditionally) Good.

Hell = (unconditionally) evil.

Humans = can only be considered Good if they actively choose not to be evil.

Note particularly that last point - his view doesn’t extend so far as to say that humans could be considered Good if they themselves chose to be good. No, there must be an active shunning of evil for them to fit the criteria. Pretty one sided, don’t you think? Though I’m sure none of us are surprised by this.  In applying this condition though, he has automatically applied the label of “wicked” to Elspeth, purely based on her choice to do something he considers to be wicked. I think Crowley’s facial expression speaks for us all in his reaction to this exclamation:

And his counter argument to Aziraphale is rather good, isn’t it? So much more biassed towards the nuances of humanity, showing us, yet again, how much further along in his journey towards his own humanity he is when compared to Aziraphale.

I’m so glad that Crowley tries to call this out with Aziraphale, because the idea that poor people have more opportunities because of their poverty is one of the most aristocratic and arrogant things I’ve ever heard. Honestly, I’m a little ashamed to hear those words come from the angel, but playing devil’s advocate (no pun intended) I can see how these views help us as an audience appreciate how much of a change this episode causes in him. And let’s just take a quick look at his use of the term “ineffable” here. To be clear, the definition of the word I refer comes from the Oxford dictionary:

What exactly about Aziraphale’s pompous ramblings would fit with this definition exactly? It’s my belief that he knows exactly how weak his argument is at this point, and his use of this word in particular is used simply as a way of bringing a close to the argument with the (false) assertion that he’s in the right. Sort of an “agree to disagree” statement with an extra pinch of righteousness.

Tiny bit of trivia about me that I’m sure nobody really cares about - as of Christmas just gone, I own my own version of Jim’s mug. It’s definitely one of the top three presents I got (one of the others is a GO themed long-sleeved t-shirt), and I absolutely have been using it to drink hot chocolate out of. I LOVE it.

Anyway, it’s Easter egg time! Yeah, that’s right, this one appears right at the beginning of the episode. And I suspect that many people will already have noted this one, but as I’ve said before, you never know. So here it is:

That’s the music instrument shop across the road from the bookshop, called “Arnolds”, presumably for the soundtrack composer for Omens - David Arnold. Obvious though it may be, it’s a bit “blink-and-you’d-miss-it”, so I felt like it was worth drawing attention to, just to reiterate the level of care and attention on display in this show that we all know and love. And whilst I have my attention-to-detail hat on, I have a brief point of speculation to make about Jim’s location in this opening shot. Given his view across the street, and the limited view we get into the room behind him (I’m thinking mostly about the lamp you can just about make out over his shoulder), this would appear to be Jim’s bedroom. In front of him is a tray with his mug and a container of hot chocolate on it. There’s even a trail of hot chocolate powder in between the mug and the container, as if someone has been a bit careless when spooning the cocoa from the pot into the cup (no judgement, I do this ALL the time). Before breaking away from this shot, we see Jim pouring boiling water into the mug from an electric kettle. All perfectly understandable actions for a set-up to show a man looking out over his neighbourhood, right? So my speculation is this, and I am jumping ahead a little. Why is it necessary for Crowley to leave the room when offering to make Jim a cup of hot chocolate in a later episode? It would seem that all the equipment required is right there in Jim’s bedroom. Sounds like another instance of scriptual convenience to me, albeit a small one. Anyway, enough pedantry, let’s move on.

It's taken me ages, but I’ve worked out what the music is playing in the background of the coffee shop. Unsurprisingly it’s another Queen tune - “Radio Ga Ga” this time. Given the lyrics, which speak of a fond farewell to a medium that no longer has relevance given more modern offerings, I wonder if this might be a reference to the state of Nina’s relationship with Lindsey at this point? Aside from that potential insight, I can’t really say there’s an awful lot about this scene that I like. Obviously Nina is still being her unlikeable self (checking her phone whilst she’s in the middle of serving someone? Not being funny, I would genuinely walk out of a coffee shop if a barista did that to me), but now we’re “introduced” to another fairly abrupt character, but this time we don’t even learn her name. Poor Mrs. Sandwich, she turns out to be an incredible likeable addition to the show, but in my opinion, she really doesn’t get to shine here. And what’s the point of this scene really? So that we can get a long shot of Muriel’s arrival and have it hammered home that their appearance is visible and noted as odd by the people in Whickber Street? If that’s the case, honestly this whole scene feels pretty unnecessary, but perhaps that’s just me.

Now. I did a little bit of digging about the way that Muriel introduces themself, because this stereotype is familiar to me, but I have no idea where it comes from. There’s a lovely bit of hive mind research been done here, which suggests the origin of the phrasing is over 100 years old but personally my money is on this being a nod to Monty Python (as detailed in that forum post), particularly as it wouldn’t be the first time we’ve seen a Python reference in the show (NIAT RUC, I’m looking at you). I think there might be another little homage here though, and this one if a bit more niche. It’s to do with the whistling in the soundtrack, heard here:

It rang bells with me, and unlike the backing music in the coffee shop earlier, this one didn’t actually take me very long. Back in the mid-90s, there was a sit-com show here in the UK called The Thin Blue Line, which followed the personal and professional lives of a group of policemen from an English town. The policemen in question were of both the uniformed (commonly called “bobbies”, or “on-the-beat”) and non-uniformed variety. Muriel is most definitely dressed as one of the former. Here’s the theme tune from that show:

Not too dissimilar, are they? I couldn’t find any evidence for whether the theme we hear in the Omens soundtrack is an homage to the theme from The Thin Blue Line or not. Perhaps it wasn’t even a conscious thing, though I highly doubt that. I would so love it if this was an intentional reference to that little copper comedy from the 90s - it ran for only 2 seasons, but I remember watching every episode when it aired and finding the whole thing really funny. I don’t know how well it will have aged, but I do remember that (bearing in mind this was the mid-90s) its casting was progressive - an Asian woman and a gay man both playing lead roles and part of the police force, with the characters most commonly ridiculed for being wrong and unreasonable being the middle-aged white men.  It was perhaps a little slapstick in places, and intrinsically “British” in its humour, but I still feel like it was a delightful addition to our televisions, so if this is a tip-of-the-hat to the show, I feel it’s well placed. Right, time to move on, this is supposed to be a write up of a Good Omens episode, not an appreciation post for long-dead British TV shows.

It's pretty difficult to say with any certainty, but I don’t think Aziraphale recognises Muriel when they arrive. Granted, he wouldn’t have seen or spoken to them in quite some time (since his defection from Heaven at the latest, though the only time we see them interacting is in the Uz flashbacks), but given the conversation he had with them during the Job debacle, you’d think he might at least realise he’d seen their face before? Particularly given the memories he has so recently lived through. Don’t get me wrong, he clearly knows they’ve come from Heaven, but that outfit pretty much gives the game away on that front, and he has been told to expect a visit from an auditor. Doesn’t take him long to decide to play along either.

I really love this moment - I’m pretty sure that this is where he decides not only to pretend he doesn’t know Muriel is there to check up on his miracle claims, but to be gentle about his interactions with them. He's recognised the joy that Muriel is getting out of the situation and decided that the nicest thing to do will be to let them enjoy the ride, which can only happen if the pretence is maintained. Subtle as it is, I actually think this is one of Aziraphale’s clearest indications of his Good nature - faced with a similar situation, many people (Crowley included, as we’ll come to see shortly) would openly mock Muriel for their apparent lack of intelligence, and given their visit’s true purpose I don’t think anybody would have been too displeased if Aziraphale had just closed the door in their face. It’s such a selfless act of kindness, and in not shunning Muriel, we are treated to some truly beautiful comic moments throughout the rest of the season.

Oh hold up. Was I just waxing lyrical about how kind and considerate this angel is? I take it all back. I almost feel like Crowley has suggested this to him, it’s that mischievous. And not the first time he’s done it either, except the last time he tricked another angel into sullying their body with a liquid intended for human consumption, that being was suffering from complete amnesia. Vulnerable you might say. Which is actually not that dissimilar to Muriel, who is clearly in a very precarious position and not doing a particularly good job of hiding their discomfort and mild panic in trying to maintain their cover whilst staying in character. He even manages to sound as if he’s trying to coach them on proper human responses with no hidden subtext. At least he has enough of a conscience to show pity for his visitor and the position he’s put them in:

Bit of a tangent here - why doesn’t Aziraphale recognise that the fact that Crowley is bringing his plants into the bookshop gives the game away that he’s living in his car? Don’t get me wrong, I am in no doubt that the reason Crowley removes them from the car at all is because he wouldn’t trust anybody else to look after them, not even his angel, so I do understand the reason for them to be removed. As far as I can see, there are four possibilities for this:

Aziraphale doesn’t make the connection between Crowley having his plants in the car and what means for his living situation.

Aziraphale does make the connection but, perhaps due to the current awkward situation panning out in the bookshop and his plans for his Edinburgh road trip, doesn’t mention anything about.

Aziraphale already knows that Crowley is sleeping in his car.

Crowley isn’t really living in his car at all, and the plants are simply kept there to maintain the cover story.

I think Aziraphale is smarter than the first option, even with his innate inability to pick up on Crowley’s cues. And I can’t really comprehend that Aziraphale would have taken the revelation that Crowley is living and sleeping in his car without any sort of protestations (let’s not forget that Crowley openly offered Aziraphale a place to stay when they thought the bookshop was gone, and that was before their respective defections). The third possibility has legs, but it doesn’t sit right with me - I just can’t see that Aziraphale would tolerate this living situation for Crowley, even if it meant buying or renting a place somewhere else for the demon to call home. The last of those possibilities is where my head canon lives, as I think I’ve mentioned in previous write ups. We’ll see Aziraphale “reacting” to the confirmation that Crowley has been sleeping in his car in a future episode, so I’ll hammer this point home one last time when we get there. And regardless whether you agree with my ideas or not, you can’t deny that Crowley’s confident swagger when he bursts into the shop really goes to show just how comfortable he is in this environment, and that he has no qualms about asserting himself there. Almost like it was home in fact…

See? No problems asserting himself at all. The subtext here is pretty glaring - his joining Aziraphale gives a clear message to Muriel about the fact that they’re a team (a group. A group of the two of them), and despite the fact that there surely must be A LOT of body contact going on here, Aziraphale’s expression doesn’t change at all. Not a muscle moved. It feels to me as if this is the sort of close proximity contact that the two of them are very accustomed to when not in the presence of other beings that might see it for what it is. And not only is Crowley comfortable with his position, he’s really enjoying himself:

I’ve mentioned it before, about us not getting to see much of Crowley’s mischievous side in the present day in this season, but this is it on full display. I’m not sure why I love more about this interaction with Muriel - Crowley’s cheeky grin or the fact that Aziraphale does absolutely nothing to reprimand him over his behaviour. That angel is having just as much fun partaking in the mischief as Crowley is, and I find it really adorable to see him indulging his playful side, even if it does eventually result in another one of those pitiful compassionate looks he throws Muriel’s way.

There’s a potentially interesting use of pronouns in the conversation that follows in the back room:

Interesting, see? Crowley refers to Heaven as “your lot”, despite the fact that Aziraphale has openly admitted that he no longer works for them. Not only that, the angel takes the baton up with his reply, grouping himself together with his former workplace using the “we” pronoun. Perhaps it’s just the habit of the previous multiple millennia, it just strikes me as odd, not least because Crowley’s questioning of them being “in charge” would appear to imply that he feels Heaven has the upper hand in the Heaven/Hell power play. Semantics aside, there’s something about this conversation that I really love. They’re both actually listening to one another, the tone is congenial, and they’re engaging in teamwork, and it all feels so natural. There’s no emotional stress going on, no arguing, just two people working together to try and achieve a common goal. I think this is probably the closest we come to seeing them in their normal relationship state, and it feels so relatable.

Well, it looks like Crowley’s plan has changed somewhat following his streetside conversation with Nina - now it needs a “fabulous kiss” for it to be successful. Considering his previous plan was so obviously a retelling of the love story between he and Aziraphale, I find the addition of a kiss at this point to be a notable one. Yes, my head cannon has our hero couple very firmly established in a relationship in the present day, but no, I do not believe that they kissed during either of the two “shelter-under-an-awning” moments that they have shared. Not to mention that I feel like there’s an element of heartbreaking foreshadowing going on with his throwaway comment (though to be fair, I don’t think there’s anything “fabulous” about that kiss in the Final 15, but I’m getting ahead of myself). What is it that makes him add the need for a kiss for his plan to be successful? Consulting my head cannon again, I suspect there might be some further revelations to be had about when he and Aziraphale shared their first kiss, and that this might tie into his updated plan somehow, but whether we’ll get to see that in the space of our final 90 minutes, I don’t know.

Oh I love this. Like, so much. It’s such a MARRIED COUPLE mini spat. It’s so obvious that Aziraphale takes the role of the stereotypical wife - there’s no negotiation, just the thinly veiled threat of extreme rage if his wishes aren’t complied with. And just as obvious is Crowley’s adoption of the stereotypical husband role - downtrodden, with the resigned knowledge that he’s been beaten and can’t worm his way out of a situation that whilst he knows he doesn’t like, he has no logical argument to counter. It’s so lovely. Beautifully delivered and excellently timed. The more I look into the episodes for this season, the more I seem to find that feels stilted and somewhat unnecessary, but moments like these are most definitely not one of them, and in fact I think they’re probably largely responsible for our intense love of the relationship between our hero couple. There’s another one coming up, but I’ll get there in a moment.

Despite being at the tail end of a spat, and that Aziraphale is clearly both disappointed and distracted not to have put his hands on the car keys, we’re about to see a lovely example of Aziraphale and Crowley showing a sixth sense for knowing their roles in the relationship. Regardless of the fact that there is no verbal communication between them following Muriel’s entrance to the room, Crowley knows instinctively that this is his cue to step up and perform a mini rescue, and Aziraphale knows to simply let him do his own thing. He doesn’t say a word once Muriel bursts in on them, just allows Crowley to do all the talking, with the instinctive knowledge that they will be in a better position soon. Which of course leads to this OUTRAGEOUS look from Aziraphale:

There it is, another one of those moments I was just discussing! I remember the first time I caught this look from Aziraphale, it was like a bomb had gone off in my head. It’s… well it’s pure filth, isn’t it? We all thought the look Crowley drew in the Bastille was the best example of a mental undressing we would ever see, but this just blows it out of the water. And why wouldn’t Aziraphale be feeling particularly enamoured of his demon at this point in time? There he is, doing his little rescue and invoking feelings of his knowledge of love (“love”?) at the same time. It’s pretty clear to see how much Crowley’s little speech has affected him, because he barely manages to catch the keys that the demon throws to him mere seconds later. He doesn’t even argue when Crowley continues to assert that the Bentley belongs to him alone, and even manages a wink, which I can only assume is supposed to be reassuring that he’s on the same wavelength about the current situation, and that he appreciates the olive branch just offered to him by way of Crowley’s accepting of the mission he’s been given.