Published by Mason Oldridge, 11 June 2024
CONTAINS SPOILERS!
Good day sunshine! Benedict Cumberbatch leads the cast in Abi Morgan’s new thriller riding atop the Netflix charts.
When puppeteer Vincent Anderson’s 9-year-old son Edgar goes missing, he finds his child’s drawings of a new seven-foot tall puppet called Eric and devises a madcap plan to get the creation on his TV show in the hopes that he will see him and come home, set in 1980s New York against a backdrop of homelessness, racism and homophobia.
For the most part, Cumberbatch carries the show. Having already proven himself as a versatile actor, he is compelling and captivating as the eccentric and volatile puppet handler with addiction issues, serving as the ultimate anti-hero, drawing comparison with Bryan Cranston’s Walter White. Delicately balancing aggressiveness and vulnerability to which he allows viewers to still emit sympathy towards the character, Cumberbatch delivers one of the greatest performances in television history.
The show deserves the utmost praise for the way it cleverly encompasses multiple themes throughout that were present at the time of its setting. Racism is explored as Cecile pushes Letroit to continue pursuing Marlon’s disappearance which results in the discovery of his murder, tying in with the theme of police and political corruption. Homophobia is explored as we see Letroit struggle with his closeted homosexuality, particularly having to secretly deal with the death of his partner from AIDS, as well as the tragic events that were a result of Costello’s hidden sexual orientation. However, the theme that is arguably the most prevalent throughout is homelessness. It is interesting how Edgar chooses to seek refuge in the dangerous underground village over the safety of his home and how the show intelligently links this to Eric’s narrative about being underground when the team is pitching the character. Furthermore, it is genius how Vincent’s speech in Central Park focusing on Edgar deserving a safe home, unintentionally by the character, draws parallels with the homelessness situation and strikes a chord with the protestors.
Potentially the most heartwarming part of the series is that, despite being held back by his substance abuse and the imaginary Eric as well as everyone thinking he is going crazy, Vincent’s bizarre plan works. He realises Edgar’s drawings on George’s wall is a map and he follows it to the subway, leading to Edgar’s location which no-one else was able to do. He also manages to get Eric on TV to be seen by Edgar, albeit on the news rather than his TV show, and the plan is successful, reuniting the two following the tearjerking moment in which Vincent says into the camera “Edgar, buddy. If you're watching this, I'll race you home”.
Rarely is a show this layered and with Benedict Cumberbatch at the helm portraying such a complex and iconic character, Eric is a truly unique show.
9/10