Robin Hood: Brothers In Arms

(S01E07) Well folks, this episode of Robin Hood may well have been called "Brothers In Arms" in tribute to the Dire Straits album (I've noticed the thread of song names for episodes in this series), but there was nothing mainstream of boring about this sixth part of thirteen.

Sure, we still had some of the corny dialogue and somewhat ham acting from Keith Allan (the Sheriff), not to mention the big stiff ironing board that is Guy of Gisborne -- but this episode will really stand out as a turning point in the show, mostly on account of the dramatic plot twist at the end.

So, allow me to spoil everything for you after the jump.

First, Robin and his men robbed Lucky George, a local conman who makes it his business to persuaded the villagers to part with their belongings to make some tax money -- which they end up giving to the Sheriff anyway.

Next, the gang stumbled across a trio of dodgy criminals about to be lashed by the locals for stealing, and when Robin intervened, we discovered that the ringleader of the gang was Alan A Dale's long-lost brother, who wished to join the group.

Three tearaways then tried to impress Robin with their stealing prowess, but unfortunately chose Marian and her father's house as Marian was about to head out for the evening as the Nightwatchman, and despite Robin's anger with them, he was persuaded by Alan to let them stay in the group.

Despite their claims to loyalty, the stupid trio headed off to rob a replenished Lucky George, only to find themselves arrested by the Sheriff's men and facing execution.

Meanwhile, Gisborne had taken a necklace from a young girl seeking his permission to marry, which he gave to an thankless Marian. However, Robin recognized the unusual design and persuaded Marian to return it to the young girl.

All the while, the Sheriff and Gisborne were planning a trap for Robin, in order to weed out who the mole at Nottingham Castle, by sending an unguarded casket of silver (which was actually a box of rocks). Marian overheard the plans being dictated to Gisborne's sergeant, and told Robin, but the poor sergeant ended up being tortured to death for not admitting his treachery.

Then, disaster of disasters struck - Gisborne happened across the young woman with her necklace and realised that the traitor in his midst was actually Marian. He then parted with the necklace to Lucky George, who encountered Alan's brother in the cells on his way out of Nottingham Castle.

However, when Robin's men arrived at the castle to reluctantly rescue Alan's brother and his friends from the gallows, they discovered they were too late -- the Sheriff had brought the hanging forward by an hour in order to thwart a rescue.

Of course, the whole scenario then placed Marian in grave danger as she struggled to track down the necklace in order to convince Gisborne that she was not a traitor, but the necklace miraculously turned up in Alan's brother's personal things (he had stolen it back from Lucky George) and then Robin faced a race to get it back into Marian's hands before Gisborne handed her over to the Sheriff.

He managed it, but Gisborne took some convincing, and with the Sheriff already aware of her treachery, the only way to guarantee her security was to accept Gisborne's hand in marriage - much to Robin's heartache.

Now, if that isn't a distinct improvement on the earlier episodes and a real turning point for the series, then I don't know what is.

We now have dimension of character, engaging plot, complex character conflict and a love interest with a bit of a twist.

It's hard to believe there's only six episodes left to go in this first series.