World on Fire, episode 5 review - it's not just the bombs that shake you to the core, it's the emotions, too
What’s that phrase about comforting the afflicted, and afflicting the comfortable? It originally applied to newspapers, but could also be said of World on Fire (BBC One). Received wisdom is that Sunday night drama should be cosy and cardigan-y, leaving sofa-bound viewers with a rosy glow.
World on Fire hasn’t been doing this for me. Peter Bowker’s multi-stranded drama following the lives of ordinary people across Europe in the Second World War has me hooked, but I have always come away feeling absolutely afflicted and shaken every week. This never happened with Poldark.
Bowker’s writing deeply involves us with his fictional families in Britain, Germany and Poland, and makes us feel a very deep empathy with them as they try to survive wartime Europe – we feel their fears and hope for their safety in terrible circumstances.
This fifth episode was the best so far. Technically, it drew lots of storylines together; emotionally it delivered a massive punch. The big event was Army officer Harry Chase (Jonah Hauer-King) leading the remnants of his troops to the beaches of Dunkirk, whilst trying to protect a lorry of shell-shocked servicemen and some north African soldiers, too. All the pyrotechnics were on show, including explosions and strafing by Nazi planes, but the moment when a bloodied, shell-shocked pilot rested his head on Chase’s shoulder in a simple act of human connection was as breathtaking as the special effects.
In a week where streaming services will make the headlines, World on Fire is a reminder that the Beeb does this kind of thing better than anyone else.
