The Buccaneers Recap ‘Failed Betrayal’: Where Nan initiates kisses in love triangle confusion

The Buccaneers Season 1 Episode 5

Summary:

The annual Bonfire Night at Guy’s house turned into an intimate party, for Guy no longer had servants and indeed was losing his very house. Amidst all his financial and emotional turmoil, he found out that Nan never received the telegram he sent declaring his love for her. Theo, who did receive it, arranged for Jean Hopeleigh to join their party, in a bid to match her to Guy.

Full recap and review:

The party of the episode was Bonfire Night at the Thwarte residence, that no longer had servants and had nearly been stripped of all valuable paintings. Guy went to New York to find a rich American bride. He lost his heart in the process, and was unable to save his fortune. When he doused the simmering embers of the bonfire from the night before, after seeing Nan and Theo kiss at a distance, it was almost as though he was dousing his own ardour for the American heiress. He would not take Theo’s money as help, but perhaps he would take Theo’s suggestion (manipulation) of marrying the perfectly suitable Jean Hopeleigh. 

Guy was in a particularly trying phase. He so recently lost his mother. He was in the  process of losing his house; the party was to say goodbye to it. He sent a telegram expressing his love for Nan, only, she returned to England with her relationship with Theo seemingly on more solid footing. When they finally had it out about the telegram that Nan never received and Guy leaving (fleeing) Runnymede after Nan told him her secret, their bickering doubled as their declarations of love and expressions of pain. It was Nan who initiated their kiss and Nan who broke it.

Guy mostly flailed through this episode (he had a shining moment which we will discuss later) whilst Theo manipulated events in his own quietly wounded aristocratic way. He was the one who received Guy’s telegram; he knew his best friend was in love with his betrothed. He also knew that Guy needed a wealthy wife, indeed, that was the reason behind his trip to New York, where he met Nan. And so he invited Jean Hopeleigh who, upon arrival, immediately knew the invitation did not come from Guy. When he proposed a poker match where he had a 15-year winning streak, it was almost as though he meant to lose, so Guy would have the money he so desperately needed. He didn’t, anyway, because Nan won, but the plan was evident – give Guy both a wife and some money, so he would turn his attention away from Nan.

Perhaps Theo did not yet comprehend the depth of the feelings between Nan and Guy. Or perhaps he did, for he came to his senses and apologised to Nan for how he had been behaving. He confessed that he had been jealous of Guy, who was effortlessly likeable. ‘My life is entirely power, no control. And this love, the way I feel about you, its power, its strength, is overwhelming. I’m out of control of it and utterly terrified of losing you.’ That was a pretty good declaration to make after Nan found out that Guy (initially) meant to marry her for money, and she kissed him. That was a notable choice, to have Nan initiate both kisses to the boys she cared for. She was free. She had choices. 

Much of ‘Failed Betrayal’ was devoted to this love triangle of Nan, Theo, and Guy, but the episode found its strong beating heart in Lizzy. Lizzy once more had to draw from her reserves of strength following another encounter with Seadown. Jinny’s abusive husband was very good with these mental tortures. He purposely violated Lizzy’s space when he went to wash his finger at the sink whilst Lizzy cleaned a pot, then loudly clapped by her ear. His words were carefully chosen to put her down for being around, a friend to his wife when he wanted her isolated, a reminder that she could speak out about his abuse at any time. 

Later, and now alone in the kitchen, Lizzy was slumped on the floor eating off a bowl. It was there that Guy, who was seeking his own refuge, found her, and took his place on the floor beside her. Matthew Broome and Aubri Ibrag had easy chemistry, and Ms Ibrag’s performance in particular was very good here. Lizzy began by talking about food, about how since she stopped trying to attract a husband, she had felt such relief and enjoyed her sweets. Then she mentioned how someone had made her feel afraid and ashamed, and she did not know how to change that.

Lizzy was careful in the words she chose to describe, even a little, her trauma, and was quick to deny when asked if that someone was in England. Guy was a good listener, and he did much better here than when Nan told him her secret. He did not reach out for Lizzy to touch her, even to comfort her. There was no clumsy attempt to fix things. He sat there and he listened, which was exactly what she needed. This was a well-written, well-acted, well-directed scene. 

Guy pointed out that as Lizzy said, she did not do something shameful, only that he made her feel ashamed. Lizzy confirmed this and said that she had been carrying that shame with her ever since. But the shame belonged to him and it was her choice to let it go. It was not that a single conversation suddenly made Lizzy feel braver, she had already shown her bravery and her determination to be there for her friend whom she knew was married to a cruel man. But that was a conversation that she needed, and Guy met the moment for her. 

Guy may not have had servants anymore, but it looked like his gardeners did their work one last time, because that was a very well maintained hedge maze. Seadown, per usual, wanted to take Jinny away from her friends, and instructed her to raise a white handkerchief over the hedge so he could see her and come get her. Since the women were allowed to go into the maze first, Lizzy was able to talk to Jinny without Seadown hovering nearby, and persuaded her to ‘accidentally’ drop the handkerchief and hang out with her. They found a way out of the maze and spent what must have been hours just chatting and reconnecting on a boat floating on a calm lake. 

It was not until it had gotten dark and the bonfire was already lit that Jinny returned to her husband. She apologised to him in tears, and he was all comfort and understanding, the solicitous husband. However, when Jinny went to join him in their bedroom, she found that he had locked the door on her. He made her wait outside, seated on the floor, before he finally allowed her in. Jerk. 

Honoria and Mabel, too, had their brief moment of happiness. They, too, escaped the maze and walked around the property, fantasising about their life as a married couple. They found a boathouse where they went to consummate their relationship. It was all new to Honoria, but not to Mabel, who left afterwards. Mabel was upset because she knew that the life they dreamed together, with children of their own, would not happen.

And there was Conchita, who with her daughter Minnie had moved out of Richard’s family home. Conchita was clearly still very much in love with her husband, but being away from his toxic family had given her her light back. She actually noticed when Nan was upset, and listened to her when she needed to vent. Conchita was reclaiming emotional spaces that she has had to shutter when she was just trying to survive being part of Richard’s family. Richard, for his part, watched his beautiful wife from afar, happy to see her cheery, but with not yet enough strength to join her in the sun. 

‘Failed Betrayal’ had echoes of ‘Women or Wives’, where our main characters were together in a stately home, but their stories diverged as they occupied their select pockets of privacy. As much as we root for our New York It Girls, Jean Hopeleigh had her own small moment of poignance. She told Honoria how the arrival of the Americans changed the rules. ‘My whole life, I’ve been told to make less noise. And now everyone’s wondering why they can’t hear me.’ Aw Jean. I hope you get your happy ending, too. 

Rating: B

Strays

🌸If you’d like to read up on Guy Fawkes, here’s the link.

🌸Of course Seadown was the one who asked frankly where the servants were, whilst everyone else was politely trying to pretend they didn’t notice.

🌸Nan knew how to chop wood and had to teach Guy. When Guy described his mother, it was almost as though he was describing Nan.

🌸Honoria told Jean that she could not bear the American girls when they first arrived. She thought they needed to be taught how to behave but now, she wondered if they were the ones who needed to learn how to live. ‘But when was the last time you laughed like they do?’

🌸Nan: ‘No, love is calm. Love is stability.’ Conchita: ‘Love is a heart attack. Love is the best and worst of everything. Love is hating someone with every inch of your soul, yet spending even a minute without them is the worst pain you’ve ever known.’ I am writing this whilst keeping an eye on the news, and I would really pick calm and stability right now.

🌸Things were so bad for Guy financially that they had to sell his mother’s portrait. 

🌸Honoria to Mabel: ‘You make me brave.’

You can access Recap Lab's full coverage of The Buccaneers via this link.

Writers: Roanne Bardsley, Emma Jane Unsworth

Director: Richard Senior

Original Air Date: November 22, 2023

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