With Nathan over in America, and while they’re trying to adjust to their new powers, the gang meet Rudi, whose power really does put him at odds with everyone, including himself…

This episode works hard, and there’s a lot of ground to cover to try to get the format back on track while still presenting something new. The change of powers at the end of the second series was an opportunity for a new tranche of storytelling, so it’s a little disappointing that this follows the pattern of loads of previous episodes – gang meets person with superpower, who pisses them off, gets into a superior position over one or more of them at some point, and is eventually dealt with.

The key point of the episode is to introduce Rudi, and while he’s got Nathan’s potty mouth (and a guile that comes out at the oddest times), some of his comments seem to be gratuitous – which of course may well be the point, given the nature of his super power, something we see at the top of the episode. It’s based on an idea that’s played well in genre pieces in the past – an early episode of the original Star Trek, and one of the Superman movies are probably the best-known examples – but it could become a get out of jail free card if not handled carefully.

Given the amount of time spent with Rudi, it’s not surprising that we don’t get too much time with the others, although there are nice moments for Simon and Alisha, a hysterical meeting for Kelly, which really does come under the “be careful what you wish for” heading, and a great reveal for Curtis.

Verdict: The jury’s out on this new set up – but the potential is still there for Misfits to be as great as before.  6/10

Paul Simpson

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