The Night Manager Season 2 Episode 5 Review: It’s a Dog’s Life

Critic’s Rating: 5 / 5.0

5

The author of The Night Manager novel, John le Carré, is known for crafting amazing spy characters. They dally about with tinkers and tailors. They come in from the cold. They’re perfect.

One day, I’ll have to make the time to read his books and see if all his villains are as unapologetically and brilliantly evil as Richard “Dickie” Roper. In the penultimate episode of The Night Manager Season 2, we are reminded exactly how dangerous he is.

Loyalty reaps no rewards in the world of The Night Manager. You stay ahead to keep your head, and doing the right thing often slows you down. RIP, Basil.

Nemeses

Roper and Pine are so completely in each other’s heads that one wonders if one will cease to exist if the other ever dies. It’s been ten years, and neither can let go of the connection they formed during their time in Spain.

Pine’s dreams of Roper have haunted him for a decade. One can only assume from Roper’s reaction at the end of The Night Manager Season 2 Episode 4 that the nightmares are mutual.

He takes great satisfaction in educating Mayra, Teddy, and Juan about Pine, speaking of him like a creature of myth or legend.

“He’s not a Swiss banker. He’s not a Hong Kong investor. He doesn’t play the piccolo in a colliery band. He is a British Intelligence agent with an indecent habit of getting information people barely knew they had.” — Richard Roper, about Jonathan Pine

Meanwhile, Pine’s desperate to convince everyone he speaks with that Roper’s a vicious and devious force of nature. And just as concerned with shielding his team from that force of nature. He’s lost so many people. It’s clear he’s terrified of causing the deaths of more good people.

The Trouble with Roxy

Roxana Bolaños is a problematic character, both in the narrative and as a plot device. She walks like a femme fatale, talks like a wounded gazelle, and acts like a gangster’s moll. Now, we all contain multitudes, but Roxana is a battleground of contradictions, and none of them ring true.

She’s constantly angling for a personal advantage and while she has every right to be fearful of Teddy and “Gilberto” and the military powers she’s gotten mixed up with, her “they’re going to kill me” act got old around the time she called in Teddy’s men to kill Tony and spring her.

I’ll admit to being left pretty confused by whatever that was that happened between her and Pine in her childhood home. She puts on a show of being into getting intimate, but as weirdly engaged as Pine might be, he looks more awkward than anything.

Did she read it as rejection? Does she turn to Roper/Gilberto because she thinks he has more to offer than Pine? Even young Tavo’s not picking up what she’s putting down. Pine would be wise to pay attention.

Basil Karapetian

From the worst character to the best. Losing Basil Karapetian is a crime against humanity. I’d like to think even Mayra knows her soul is eternally damned for ordering his murder.

Recalling that Basil introduced himself to Pine on The Night Manager Season 2 Episode 2 as a “long-time fan,” the unassuming identity craftsman probably knew more about Pine than anyone and never even blipped on “Alex Goodwin’s” radar.

To be clear, le Carré’s spies are usually cut more from a Basil cloth than a Jonathan one. Pine sparkles and entrances. Roper fell so deeply for him that he assumes everyone is as vulnerable to the “blue-eyed boy’s” charms.

Basil is the poster boy for good espionage work because he’d never be found on a poster. Or noticed if he was.

In my heart of hearts, I dream that Basil broke out some Jason Bourne-like moves in those final moments in the Holland Park house and took out Mayra’s goon. However, I recognize the parallel with Roper slaughtering his dogs, and my hope dies a thousand deaths.

A Villainous Tale

As we careen towards the Season 2 finale, it’s Roper’s energy driving the momentum. Pine is left to be reactive, knowing the only way to stop Roper is to get ahead of the plan.

But after Cairo, he’s determined not to lose more good people to the conflict. With Mayra cutting off his London support and Sally somewhat stymied by Alessandro’s murder, he must go it alone.

The wild cards in the hand are Teddy and Roxy. Teddy’s unstable mental health and Roxy’s generally unreliability could pull either way in the finale.

In the bullpen, Angela remains in play. We don’t know whether Mayra knows that yet. Angela’s proven herself less than noble but redemption is always on the table.

Also, there’s Roper’s son, Danny. I’d like to know more about what’s happened to him in the last ten years. Could he be turned to betray his father?

Tricky Dickie

Richard Roper’s villainy has heat to it. Despite his cold, calculating approach, he has a passionate rage when crossed. As he tells Teddy, it’s not about the plan moving forward at all costs, it’s about the plan moving forward with “no mistakes.”

Seeing his salvation plan fall to pieces on Pine’s watch would be a triumph of good over evil. Cutting his head off the organization may not slow Mayra’s ascent, but Sandy would need to pivot to something new and hopefully less despicable.

However, returning to how Pine and Roper exist for each other, what would happen to Pine once he’s taken Roper down for real? Where does an agent go when his agency no longer supports him? Who does he become? Hit our comments with your theories!

The Season 2 finale of The Night Manager drops February 1 on Prime Video.

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