Hey guys! Only two small Ben scenes to discuss, both set on the same day, in the same place. As well as reminding us of the ongoing plot regarding Simon, it also served to highlight the other things that are influencing Ben’s state of mind.
Screenshots for the 12th can be found here and the 13th can be found here.
Monday’s episode sees Ben sitting in the cafe and catching sight of his mum talking to Ash across the room. Ash is just informing Kathy about the length of time it’s taken for the prison to release Jags’ body for the funeral, and that the investigation into how it happened is still to come. Clearly the guilt is still weighing heavily on an eavesdropping Ben, especially with him now thinking the situation with Paul’s killer is a form of karma for his actions, that he’s being punished.
I think he also feels responsible for correcting this injustice, because he didn’t do it his way at the time and now the guy is walking free 25 years too early. Jags being dead and Simon being alive seems like too much of an imbalance in the universe for Ben to handle, which is why he’s so desperate to correct it.
Cue Ben getting on the phone to Callum, and apparently not for the first time. Whatever Callum’s saying on the other end of the phone, it doesn’t do enough to placate Ben, who’s wondering how long it takes to access a system. I reckon Callum was maybe trying to explain that he has to do it when no one’s watching, or something. Puts to bed my theory that he’s not back at work yet in any case!
Ben’s obviously running out of patience fast, and reminds Callum that he promised to get him the number of Paul’s murderer; they can’t hang around now that he’s out. The urgency Ben has probably doesn’t do much to reassure Callum that he’s onboard with the plan to just talk to Simon and then walk away. Not to mention the way Ben spoke to Callum – not that Callum would be particularly fazed by it, he knows the reason behind it – but because it’s a sign that Ben’s agitated, and not yet in the right headspace to make good decisions. Which may of course make Callum more hesitant about giving Ben the info he wants.
Onto Tuesday, a continuation of the day, and Ben hasn’t moved from that spot as he’s now watching a skeptical Kathy oversee Peter’s attempts at doing the accounts – something he’s apparently insisting on despite not being asked. It probably did sound more appealing than unblocking the toilet, which is what Kathy had in mind for him.
Turns out the accounts was meant to be Ben’s job, as he leans over to enquire about it to Kathy – just as Phil walks in the door. She acknowledges she did want Ben to do them – and still does – but at the explanation that Peter is a Beale, Ben gets it. Kathy mockingly refers to the cafe as the Beale empire, presumably quoting Peter and mocking him for saying it. Which is fair. She’s not exactly confident in Peter’s work ethic (also fair), suggesting he’ll get bored soon and start doodling and playing on his phone. So yes, she does still need Ben. Which is nice; just a shame Ben has to wait because it would probably be a good distraction for him.
Phil then pipes up from the counter with a dig at Callum, claiming PC Plod will be on the case if Kathy’s got Peter fiddling the books. After Ben stood him up last week, he’s clearly back to digging his heels in over any sort of reconciliation. Ben elects to ignore the comment (though his “dad” was a little sharp in tone), and we learn he’s been trying to get hold of Phil. He asks if Phil still wants the number of the solicitor, and Phil predictably says no, he doesn’t.
Ben winds up apologising, again, and tries to explain that he had some news. Something that he had apparently even said in a text to Phil, but Phil’s still refusing to consider anything other than the idea that Ben stood him up to make him look like a mug. He doesn’t let Ben say anything more, informing him he’s got to get going because Tommy’s got a football trial for Apsley Town (I mean, it sounded like he said Epsley, but that’s way up north, and Apsley is near Watford – or maybe it’s made up and doesn’t even matter!)
I feel like what Ben sees in that moment is Phil not wanting to hear about his news, and instead focusing on the life of one of his rent-a-sons – a football trial is the very epitome of ‘nice, normal lad’ that Ben knows Phil wishes he had been. Instead Ben’s contending with the release of a man who killed his boyfriend and nearly killed him in a homophobic hate crime. I think at that point he presumes Phil won’t be interested – and it might have even brought back those memories of how Phil regarded Paul and how much he struggled with Ben having a boyfriend. So if he had been planning to tell Phil about Simon, he’s not doing it now, deciding to let Phil go and have his 53rd chance at having a son to be proud of.
So there you go. Ben’s being worked up into a bit of a state, with the guilt of Jags’ death, yet another perceived rejection from Phil, and the fact that a major source of his trauma is currently out walking around and he hasn’t put it right yet. Hug him.
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