Slow Horses
Episode 2 Preview And Review
Episode 2 of Slow Horses begins with a look at our kidnappers. This group of men – the Sons of Albion – are up against an ex-serviceman who has killed his fair share of soldiers in his time. They keep the victim in the basement, promising to behead him in the morning, tie him up and gag him. Why? Well, there is still a lot of hostility around the war in Afghanistan. And this led to an increase in racially charged crimes.
Naturally, MI5 is abuzz with news of this as Diana shows up to brief the group. Our victim is a Birmingham-born man called Hasan Ahmed. He is nothing unusual, but the Sons of Albion clearly do not believe, they are motivated by racism. Interestingly, additional information from Diana (which she doesn’t share) hints that there may be more to it.
Back at the office, Lamb calls Catherine out on her alcoholism despite trying to stay sober at AA meetings. Catherine is also haunted by memories of her past that we see sprinkled throughout the episode.
Cartwright learns from Carl that there is nothing on the USB drive. While Hobden has no online presence, Roddy checks that angle to make sure. With that set up, Cartwright realizes the only solution here is to take Hobden’s laptop and go the old school way.
Diana meets with Mr. Moody, who informs him of Sid and Lamb’s operation. Moody had previously been at Slough House for 6 years, but when he left he planted a bug in Lamb’s office. He knows a lot about the disgraced boss, which prompts Diana to take advantage of it. He tells Moody to do some off-book work for him – and demands that he get rid of the bug as well.
Cartwright continues to focus on Hobden, eventually tracking him down the street using the stove to try a ring by an MP we hear is Peter Judd. River continues to follow him, grabs his lighter from a trash can, and finally tries to outdo Cartwright. He just happens to be on the same bus.
That night, Sid meets with Cartwright and the pair talk about why he’s after Hobden. After noting the suspicion he aroused, Cartwright reveals that he found steel wool and rusted coffee filters in the man’s trash. Iron oxide is one of the substances for termites.
We also learn what contributed to Roddy being put in Slough House. It turns out he once put someone on the sex offenders register because they took his seat on a bus. As they talk, Cartwright asks if he can use Roddy to find out why Lamb is there. There’s no chance to get an answer from Sid as the pair sit tight and wait for Hobden to fall asleep in his apartment. Someone called Aunt Zadie calls Sid and it soon becomes clear why.
It turns out that Syd was assigned to keep an eye on Cartwright, to watch his every move. But their conversation is interrupted by movement in Hobden.
Two agents break in and find Hobden at gunpoint in the hands of a masked assailant. The man sets off the detonator, runs past Cartwright, shoots Sid, and leaves the place inferno. It looks like he’s part of the Sons of Albion, but everything hangs on a dangerous knife edge for next week’s follow-up.
Episode Review
Unfortunately, the plot thickens. Slow Horses returns with another good episode, taking the time to flesh out the supporting characters and their various connections to Slough House. While seeing more of Roddy and Catherine is certainly appreciated, Cartwright’s ties to the case begin to lead him down a dangerous path.
It is now clear that Sid was sent to crack his case and monitor him at MI5, but to what end? Was this all staged from the beginning? There are a lot of question marks over this case, but it’s certainly been interesting how it’s played out so far.