Done right, a soap partnership has the potential to be hilarious, heart-warming, and all-round excellent. The best of them will be able to have a laugh, rip each other to shreds, fall out over trivial things and make it up again over a hotpot. It's also worth noting that the actors must have exceptional on-screen chemistry to tie all this together.
Friendship is at the heart of Coronation Street, and I believe they have struck gold with the latest duo: Todd Grimshaw and George Shuttleworth.
An unlikely pair, the friendship of Todd and George snuck up on us, but that's where the best erupts from, isn't it? The most unexpected are usually the most wonderful.
As soon as I read that Todd would be working in the undertakers with George, I knew we were in line for some great comedy. However, while we have undoubtedly had comedic scenes, especially with Eileen thrown in, we've also had some truly heartfelt and wonderful conversations between the two.
A notable scene which comes to mind is from a few months ago. George had sacked Todd for taking advantage of the bereaved and besmirching the Shuttleworth name. To give Todd some hindsight, George orchestrated a meeting where Todd would have to accompany a parent visiting their young child in the chapel of rest. However, George was unaware of Todd's own loss, and thus ended with Todd opening up to George about his son.
I loved this scene because for starters, Todd doesn't talk about his son very often, so it's a nod to his history, and nice to see that his past hasn't been forgotten. On top of this, Todd doesn't like to show vulnerability, so when we do see him pull his walls down occasionally, it's like a gut-punch, and an essential reminder that he is capable of human emotion. Still, this scene created a bond between George and Todd, and they vowed to not only be colleagues, but friends.
Most recently, after his psychopathic behaviour was revealed to the world, Todd was ready to pack it all in and flee Weatherfield (again). George offered him his wages and an ultimatum: take the money and run, or stay and try to make amends with everybody he's hurt.
I'm not being dramatic when I say this was one of my favourite scenes in Corrie for a long time. Gareth Pierce and Tony Maudsley, paired with a wonderful script, created a superb, character driven scene that was full of gut-wrenching emotion. Despite everything he'd done, my heart broke for Todd, and I loved George for not kicking him to the curb like everybody else, even if he did deserve it. George's ability to see through Todd's forcefield, made up of sarcastic quips and hurtful comments, is so interesting. Paired with his comment about not always being an "upstanding gent", I can't help but wonder what on earth did George do in his past?
A part of me now believes that George once used to be like Todd, and that's why he's always challenged his behaviour and doesn't take any rubbish from him. It could also explain why George is quick to be sympathetic. He's under no illusion the seriousness of Todd's actions, but he knows it comes from a place of pain and unhappiness.
I really hope this means we'll learn more about George's past, and who he is. It doesn't need to be anything deeply traumatic, but it's a wonderful thing to understand a character on a deeper level and learn about their lives pre-Weatherfield. Tony plays George with such heart and great comedy, and he has so much potential for a long and rich life on the cobbles.
With a character like Todd, there must always be a character who calls out their questionable behaviour, but who is also in their corner, even when nobody else is. George, on more than one occasion, has been this person for him.
A two-hander episode with Todd and George would go down brilliantly, in my opinion. Imagine it: they spend the day working at the funeral parlour, and they talk a bit about George's past, a bit about Todd's past, as well as squeezing in some high-camp, high-comedy scenes. The idea of Todd Grimshaw working in a funeral parlour is still comical to me, so even some scenes of George training Todd up would've been well-received.
I can't believe it's taken 17 years, but I'm so happy that Todd now has somebody like George to bounce off. In previous interviews, Gareth has explained how George has become a somewhat fatherly figure for Todd, and I can definitely see that. I also expect some high-comedy scenes if George and Eileen do eventually get together and George literally becomes Todd's stepdad.
We're still in the early stages of Todd and George's friendship, but I absolutely adore them together. Now that Todd is crashing on George's sofa, I expect regular updates on how they tolerate each other in a social capacity.
There's unlimited potential with Todd and George, and I'm looking forward to seeing how they continue to interact with each other.
Sophie Williams
I'm on Twitter @sophie_writer1
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2 comments:
Jeanie (anon): Some friendship. Todd stole 5K from him!
Exactly what Jeanie said. The show only have him bouncing off George because the character has alienated himself from everyone else. The scene didn't have the same reaction for me because we've not seen Todd particularly care for his job or George before now. Stealing from him and using his van whilst it had a dead body inside shows he actually has very little respect for the man he works for.
This is the second time now they've used a scene between these two to try and get audience sympathy for Todd. What the viewers actually need to see is the character showing those soft sides to other characters. I did however feel for George in their latest scene, it would be interesting to see more of his past come to light to explain some of the things he said. But Todd just needed someone to fall back on and George was there, I don't feel it's anything more than that from his side. Certainly not a friendship on his part.
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