Vicious Finale

Following on from one of my first ever reviews on this blog, and from 2015 when I reviewed the second series, once more I turn to all time acting legends Sirs Derek Jacobi and Ian McKellen who delighted by hurling pithy, fierce and ever so camp insults as Freddie and Stuart one more time.

Back in 2015 I said that whilst I enjoyed Vicious for their two proper series runs, I was a bit wary of how far the show could go in terms of developing further. What's more, it is very rare that I am actually content with a show I have enjoyed coming to an end; normally I keep hoping for more and more ad infinitum.
However, it brought a smile to my face to see ITV's Vicious bow out gracefully with a final Christmas special recently.

As we knew we were not getting another attempted series of longevity, that the comedy would not be stretched much further and the formula would not be too weathered for much longer, to me this enabled true enjoyment of this Vicious special; with a tad more of the novelty and wit replenished.
In all honestly to me it was a great and fitting opportunity to witness the end of these characters' stories, but also a chance to enjoy what are essentially the best bits of Vicious, all wrapped up in an hour-long special of 4 seasonal "segments", or scenelets which I actually felt worked better than several individual episodes.
Yes Frances de la Tour as Violet wasn't too cringe-worthy, Philip Voss and Marcia Warren as Mason and Penny actually added their own element of charm (Marcia Warren as Penny always being a simple yet joyous outlet for snippets of comedy and killer lines) and we had Iwan Rheon rounding things off as the slightly lacklustre at times, but also lovable Ash.


But as I've said whenever I've reviewed Vicious, there's a reason McKellen and Jacobi are the leads. They are superb individual acting powerhouses and together their chemistry and compatibility are electric, even when the script or setting does not match up to their talent.
Indeed, I would wager that in the hands of other actors this series would have fallen flat years ago and possibly would not have made it past the pilot. But Derek Jacobi and Ian McKellen are so joyously and effortlessly brilliant, charming and watchable that their own particular brand of comedic interaction is still free-flowing, and on the occasion when true emotion is called for, they deliver with ease (the farewell to Ash in this final episode was actually and genuinely heartbreaking).

So yes, I am in a way sad we won't see Freddie and Stuart in their little flat again. However I do feel Vicious has had a good run and on reflection, has appropriately run its course. That is not to say I haven't enjoyed it and laughed out loud several times, and I attribute that to the sterling cast, led by the brilliant Ian McKellen and Derek Jacobi, and the brilliant on screen pair they make.