I don't share the intense loathing that we are expected to feel for anyone who sells arms. It's a living - and the morality of selling them really depends on whether the customers use the arms to stop nations/groups from terrorizing them, imprisoning, raping, massacring. That's what determines whether the arms should be sold. Well, LeCarre just wants us frothing at the mouth over someone who would sell weapons. Why? Nation states can make them - why can't those who seek to oppose the monsters of the world buy arms to resist? No answer is given. We never learn what would be the use of the arms sold in this series, so don't know whether to subscribe to the hatred we must feel to share the series' values.
I find implausible the intensity of years and years' hatred by the central character for someone whom he assumes is behind the beating up of a woman he knew as a customer of his hotel for a few days. She was presumably beaten up and died from the boyfriend she had used for years - perhaps to please the boyfriend's wealthy customer - perhaps even ordered by that customer. And this would cause our protagonist to move from country to country for years and devote his life to kill that boyfriend's customer? Hard to believe!
Le Carre has unfortunately a terrible habit of creating black and white characters of everyone aside from the protagonist. We see it again here - we must believe the Hugh Laurie character and all the males around him are evil personified - all the male characters at the central intelligence in London are despicable - and those who are poor, female or non-white are deeply deeply good. It's really a sign that LeCarre was slipping when he wrote this - decades ago, his characters would have been far more interesting and mixed of motive.
Still, the production is well done - the principal stars Laurie, Hiddleston and Colman are all fine, the production values are top level. It is sometimes gripping in its suspense. The problem's the book. S.
I find implausible the intensity of years and years' hatred by the central character for someone whom he assumes is behind the beating up of a woman he knew as a customer of his hotel for a few days. She was presumably beaten up and died from the boyfriend she had used for years - perhaps to please the boyfriend's wealthy customer - perhaps even ordered by that customer. And this would cause our protagonist to move from country to country for years and devote his life to kill that boyfriend's customer? Hard to believe!
Le Carre has unfortunately a terrible habit of creating black and white characters of everyone aside from the protagonist. We see it again here - we must believe the Hugh Laurie character and all the males around him are evil personified - all the male characters at the central intelligence in London are despicable - and those who are poor, female or non-white are deeply deeply good. It's really a sign that LeCarre was slipping when he wrote this - decades ago, his characters would have been far more interesting and mixed of motive.
Still, the production is well done - the principal stars Laurie, Hiddleston and Colman are all fine, the production values are top level. It is sometimes gripping in its suspense. The problem's the book. S.