Stranded
Episode 6 of Around the World in 80 Days begins with Fogg, Passepartout and Abigail forced into a rowing boat and exiled from their vessel. To make matters worse, a storm is closing in. As Day 47 of this expedition arrives, our trio all wash up on shore, sputtering water and exhausted – but very much alive. Fogg deduces that they may well be in south-east Asia somewhere – potentially Japan. As they continue to walk along the shore, they realize they’re walking in circles. This definitely isn’t Japan. It’s a desert island – and a relatively small one at that. Passepartout luckily finds fresh water while Abigail finds foul-tasting fruit. With a makeshift shelter, another storm rolls in. As it does, Fogg apologizes for letting them all down and bringing them to this tropical prison. Fogg blames himself for all of this, unaware that it’s partly Passepartout who’s to blame for this occurring. Well, Passepartout soon reveals the truth about taking money from Kneedling to delay the journey. Fogg is irate and as the two fight it out, Passepartout remains determined to make things right with Fogg. The only trouble is, Fogg doesn’t want to even hear him out after the betrayal. Not even the temptation of fresh lobster deters him! Abigail soon talks Fogg around though, mentioning Passepartout’s brother being killed and how he shot a man in Africa. Both of these moments were footnotes in Fogg’s adventure, and barely acknowledged by either of them. As they talk, Abigail even points out that Passepartout’s earlier suggestion – that Bellamy is the puppet master behind setting Kneedling against him – seems to hold a lot of weight. In the morning, Passepartout takes a turn for the worst. After fixing up Fogg’s raft as a gesture of good will, he begins to shiver. He’s freezing cold too, prompting Abigail to snuggle up tight and help bring his body temperature up. They even burn the shelter to try and keep the fire going. With little other choice, they decide to burn the raft, determined to help Passepartout. It works too, and as their companion gains his strength back, Fogg opens up about his past. Specifically, he talks about Estella. Fogg was originally planning a similar trip to this one in the past. He and Estella were planning to marry in Paris before traveling the world together. Only, Bellamy was against it. He continuously told Fogg he wasn’t a suitable match. That poisoned doubt wormed its way into Fogg’s mind, giving him cold feet as he got off the boat bound for France. He pretended that he left a case behind. As it sailed away, she sailed out of his life. After telling this story, Abigail and Passepartout finally have more knowledge of Fogg and what he’s been through. It’s a nice way to develop his character, and it’s met by a dose of good news too. A ship passes by and sees their bonfire, rescuing the trio. Even better, this ship is bound for America and that allows them to continue their journey as scheduled. What luck!
The Episode Review
Stranded on a desert island, the latest episode of Around the World in 80 Days nicely fleshes out more of Fogg’s character and brings the betrayal Passepartout has been carrying with him to the forefront of the story. It’s a decent way to catch a breather from some of the drama this series, although one can’t help but feel it would have been nice to actually see some of the action on the ship, rather than just flinging us straight into the trio of a rowing boat. However, the island serves as a nice sunny prison, allowing our trio to hash out their issues and start to come to terms with what’s happened. It also brings the attention around to Bellamy, as they all become wise to his treachery and trying to sabotage this trip. Thankfully, Abigail, Passepartout and Fogg make a formidable team and this episode certainly does well to add to their group dynamic, with the faint wisps of romance in the air between Abigail and Passepartout.
