THE GOOD EGG (BACK TO LIFE, SERIES TWO)

 

And so to the potentially tricky second series of 'Back to Life'.

Great comedies build on the platform created in their first series - they develop the characters and play with their catchphrases and little foibles.

Occasionally, though, promising sitcoms stumble - falling short of expectations because they have either lost the run of their characters or, worse still, not even bothered to develop them.

That is not something you could accuse 'Back to Life' of.

After finding a new lease of life on Netflix two years after it slipped out with little or no fanfare on the BBC, the stakes have been raised for its second series.

However Daisy Haggard and Laura Solon's comedy drama continues to modestly take bold steps.

A sitcom/drama about a woman trying to recover her life after spending time in prison for the murder of a school friend, the show was an amusing discovery for many fans over lockdown - one of those best kept secrets we all like to stumble across.

The first series earned its spurs for bravely tackling a subject rarely depicted onscreen - society's attitude to those who get a second chance after spending time in prison - but it was also peppered with genuinely funny gags.

Haggard plays Miri, a woman jailed in her teens for the clifftop murder of her school friend Lara.

The first series saw its star deliver a disarming and kooky lead performance.

But there were also well judged supporting performances from Geraldine James and Richard Durden as her parents, Adeel Akhtar as her love interest Billy, Christine Bottomley as her former school friend Mandy, Jamie Michie as a sleazy ex-boyfriend Dom, Liam Williams as her chip shop boss Nathan, Jo Martin as her probation officer Janice and Juliet Cowan as an insecure, clueless police officer Tina. 

(SPOILERS ALERT!!!)

Series two finds Miri, however, coming to terms with the revelation that her surviving friend Mandy was at the time of Lara's death having a fling with their friend's police inspector father.

And with that revelation came the realisation that Lara's anger about the affair may have triggered the tragic events that led to her death which also resulted in Miri going to jail and becoming a tabloid pariah.

To say Mandy and Miri's relationship has gone cold as a result of this revelation would be an understatement but it is not the only strained relationship in Miri's life. 

At the start of series two she has also stopped speaking to her mother, Geraldine James' Caroline after learning she has been conducting an extra-marital affair with Dom.

Miri will only communicate via pre-recorded phrases on an audio cassette and she doesn't quite understand how Richard Durden's Oscar has forgiven his wife.

Despite these setbacks, things are looking slightly better, though, for Miri.

While tending to her Tamagochi, she has landed a job in the local supermarket and has crimped her hair - although her probation officer, Janice thinks this makes her look like an alpaca.

Her tentative relationship with Billy also starts to click into gear despite the recent death of his wife.

Janice encourages her to make her peace with Mandy which she starts to do.

Miri's world is imperfect but it seems to be slowly falling into place until it is quickly knocked off its axis by the return to Hythe by Lara's parents, Adrian Edmondson's John Boback and Lizzy McInerny's Norah.

Of the two, John harbours the biggest grudge about Miri being released back into the community.

And when Miri is knocked off her bike at night by a speeding car, John is the prime suspect - although Tina and her fellow police officers aren't all that interested in investigating the incident.

Bumping into Norah while she is stacking shelves, Miri is taken aback when Lara's mum tells her it is time to forgive her and move on.

John, however, isn't ready to do that and a confrontation seems inevitable but will it put Miri's continued liberty at risk?

Haggard and Solon's comedy drama again tips the balance slightly towards drama in its six half hour episodes but it still delivers plenty of laughs along the way.

Much of these are derived from Miri's struggle to adjust to a world that has moved on, Billy's nervousness about the relationship, her parents weird marriage and the town's general animosity towards her and her family.

Most of the humour is gentle and Akhtar, James, Durden, Bottomley and Michie all play their part, delivering nicely judged performances and well crafted gags.

While Nathan has gone from the show, Dom is still around. However his life has taken a downturn after his infidelity with Caroline was exposed.

Michie nevertheless manages to elicit our sympathy for a character who is a bit of an idiot. 

Mandy also continues to wrestle with an unhappy marriage to Keir Charles' Mark and a reluctance to face up to how she played a part in Lara's death and Miri's woes.

However, it is the fringe performances by Cowan and Martin that really set 'Back to Life' apart.

Cowan embraces the chance to play an inept, narrow minded police officer obsessed with arresting Miri on dodgy charges.

Martin's warmth and big personality as Janice suggests that with the right writing team behind her, her character could possibly carry off her own spin-off show about her adventures as a probation officer.

Meera Syal pops up as Billy's domineering mum in two episodes, including a very amusing sequence where Miri and her boyfriend attend her 60th birthday party.

While it is a measure of just how much Adrian Edmondson's career has changed that he is excellent in what is effectively a straight dramatic role, McInerny is every inch as good.

But by the time the show reaches its conclusion, you may well find yourself wondering if two series might just be the limit for Haggard and Solon's show.

Its climax is so neat, it begs the question: is it possible they could squeeze a third series out of it?

Or is it time to just park the show and dream up a new sitcom?

Haggard has hinted a third series is under consideration.

If they do go for it, Haggard and Solon will need to take 'Back to Life' in a new direction because by the time the credits roll, there is a sense that its premise about a small seaside town struggling with a tragedy has run its course.

Haggard and Solon undoubtedly have the ability to dream a new path for the show.

The question is: do they have the desire to make the changes required?

 ('Back to Life' was released for streaming on the BBC3 strand of the BBC iPlayer on August 31, 2021)

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