It's a question the whole nation isn't asking. Apart from me that is. In the next few weeks we are about to witness, Street style, a complete character change as Karl Munro turns nasty. Yes nasty! Which got me thinking. Who was that other well-loved (Ok, possibly not) Weatherfield character who morphed from being a relatively jolly, dependable middle-aged bloke into a raving loon. Step forward Don Brennan.
Don, you may recall, was the Street's everyman for a while. He was a hard-working cabbie, liked a few laughs and had enough resolve to take on God-bothering Ivy Tilsley and her devotion to all things dead. Before long, Don became a drudge, a bore, a shadow of his former ebullient self. What followed was disaster heaped upon tragedy. There was the seedy stalking of Denise Hairdresser, a bitter feud with Mike Baldwin, Ivy's 'get me to a nunnery' exit, his liaison with the staggeringly dull, gruff-voiced Josie, the hounding of lovely Alma, the 'foot' incident, living with Ashley, more Baldwin and a welcome death.
Poor old Karl seems to be yet another member of the cast who seems to be without purpose. Weaving across the cobbles like Liam Gallagher's dad, he was originally an intriguing addition to the Street. The stomach-churning affair with Sunita turned him into a snide, nasty piece of work. Loveless and seemingly friendly, he now makes for uneasy viewing in the same way that Dead Don did back in the 1990s.
If history decides to repeat itself we can look forward to Karl delivering pervy phone calls to Maria, packing St Ella off to a convent (hurrah), attacking Jason with a chair leg whilst over-acting and then plunging Sunita into Weatherfield Quays whilst she yells 'no....." in an echo chamber.
Seriously though, it does feel as though Karl is about to tread that well-worn path of normal blokes who suddenly go bad. It doesn't make for particularly believable drama and can only end with Karl as a bitter, cynical and hollow version of his original self. Here's hoping this prophesy of doom comes to nothing but I have a feeling that we may be witnessing the beginning of the end for Mr Munro. Now - has anyone got the phone number for the nearest convent? Would they show pity on a beige nun?
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A very accurate summation of the 'Road to Nowhere' that this initially promising character has been sent down. Although I think perhaps you meant to say 'seemingly friendless' not 'seemingly friendly'?
ReplyDeleteAnd they're both cabbies! :D
ReplyDeleteHow original for the Corrie writers..a complete personality change for one of the characters...like they've never done this before.
ReplyDeleteSunita
Owen
Anna
Gary W.
Gail
David
etc etc.
It's a real shame, because Karl began so well. The street really needs some blokey, credible working class characters who are attractive, but can keep it in their pants more than five minutes. The Street used to get such mileage from husbands who drove their wives to despair, but were still likeable.
ReplyDeleteThey drew Stella and Karl completely wrongly. Stella should have been the snobby landlady who only deigned to come to Weatherfield to find her daughter. Karl could have been the down to earth, Alf-type bloke who kept the peace with everyone. Karl would have been great as a Alf/Jack hybrid. Another wasted opportunity.
ReplyDeleteI love Karl and the character is brilliant but it's a shame they're writing him into the daft corner from whence there'll probably be no return.
ReplyDeleteA slap on the back for a very amusing and hitting the nail on the head post David C! Frosty has been very vocal in the wasted opportunity of the imbecile production team in bagging an actor like John Michie - also eye candy for laydees of a certain age that saw him grow through Taggart and turn him into a nasty creepy sleazeball that has unfortunatey nowhere else to go bar HM Prison Weatherfield or the canal.
ReplyDeleteThat's definitely one Corrie doppelganger.
ReplyDelete