Director of Photography John McPherson
Written by Frank Dandridge; Produced by Chuck Bowman/Nicholas Corea
Directed by James D Parriot
Whilst working as a groundsman (gardener) at a school, David meets an emotional pupil who's exhibiting a large number of cuts and bruises on his arms. David takes him to the nurse who reveals that this is only one of a number of times that she's had to patch up Mark. He takes the boy home but despite the exhibition of an apparently normal suburban surface David suspects something is not quite right, and goes to speak to the mother (who he finds out works at a local store during the evenings). She is none too compliant, but David notices that she has a bruise on her arm too; enough evidence for him to realise that the father is beating the boy as well as his wife.
Surprisingly dark material for a family oriented TV show in the seventies, child abuse is widely spoken about now but was something the world was largely ignorant to at the time. In fact, deliberate ignorance is poignantly reflected in some of the characters here when David hears Mark being beaten: he rushes round to each of the neighbours to call the police, only to find that none of them want to get involved. Neither, indeed, does the school nurse for fear of losing her own job.
Written by Frank Dandridge; Produced by Chuck Bowman/Nicholas Corea
Directed by James D Parriot
Whilst working as a groundsman (gardener) at a school, David meets an emotional pupil who's exhibiting a large number of cuts and bruises on his arms. David takes him to the nurse who reveals that this is only one of a number of times that she's had to patch up Mark. He takes the boy home but despite the exhibition of an apparently normal suburban surface David suspects something is not quite right, and goes to speak to the mother (who he finds out works at a local store during the evenings). She is none too compliant, but David notices that she has a bruise on her arm too; enough evidence for him to realise that the father is beating the boy as well as his wife.
Surprisingly dark material for a family oriented TV show in the seventies, child abuse is widely spoken about now but was something the world was largely ignorant to at the time. In fact, deliberate ignorance is poignantly reflected in some of the characters here when David hears Mark being beaten: he rushes round to each of the neighbours to call the police, only to find that none of them want to get involved. Neither, indeed, does the school nurse for fear of losing her own job.
I think there are some great performances in this episode, most notably as usual from Bixby himself (whose persevering interference for once is completely understandable), Ferrigno's touching appearance as the force that puts the bully into line, and Sandy Kirkland as Mark's mother, who maintains her assertion of love for the aggressor whilst torn emotionally between the dilemmas she is faced with. Not only was this story a brave move but the writer goes one step further - it's the easiest option for all of us to assume that child-abusers are pure monsters, but the Hulk's own beating of the father by the final act brings about the revelation that the man himself was beaten as a child, laying down the unfortunate foundations for what he was to become. The conclusion is possibly slightly too rosy but this doesn't mar what is otherwise an excellent entry in the second series.
Number of Fists: *****
No comments:
Post a Comment