Lovejoy (TV Series) The Axeman Cometh (1986) User Reviews

The Axeman Cometh

[Prismark10 · 7/10 · 17 July 2018]

Lovejoy illuminates Eric further in the roguish world of the antiques dealer. Lovejoy also shows him how to evade the tax woman who is demanding the last three years of back tax.

With Gimbert also after Lovejoy for money he really needs to lands on his feet. Luckily at an auction in a farmhouse, Lovejoy diverts French interest in a dresser by switching tags. Lovejoy gets the dresser at a bargain price and then discovers that hidden inside it is an Arab wedding headdress with Venetian gold coins.

However the dresser was not Gimbert to auction off and its owner arrives after just being released from prison. Lovejoy meanwhile finds that getting a good price for the headdress is not easy as someone else is out to steal it from him.

You cannot trust anyone in the antiques game and it is another enjoyable episode. Grit and fun, no wonder Ian McShane was tempted from Hollywood to accept the role.

Tricky

[keysam-02610 · 8/10 · 28 April 2024]

Awkward one this. It includes some stereotyping that would generally be thought not to pass muster these days.

I think it can be allowed the benefit of the doubt though.

The 'frummer' , Froebel, turns out to be someone who is himself *pretending* to be an Orthodox Jew on the basis of 'respect for uniforms, so they know what they're dealing with', so any stereotyping is arguably down to him.

Where the episode really loses stars is because it takes Lovejoy out of Suffolk, to London. The regulars (yes, we're only on episode two, but still) only really make brief appearances and the meat of the story involves people we haven't seen before and won't see again (IIRC).

So this is only an average episode.

The Axeman vs The Taxman

[bensonmum2 · 6/10 · 2 October 2019]

Lovejoy uses some underhanded tactics to get hold of a valuable Welsh dresser. But what he discovers in one of the struck drawers is worth much more than he could have ever originally imagined. Good thing, because he's got the taxman breathing down his neck. If that weren't bad enough, Lovejoy's got a bigger problem when the original owner of the Welsh dresser is let out of prison and, armed with an ax, comes looking for his belongings.

Overall, I find The Axeman Cometh a good, but not spectacular episode. The auction bits are fun, Lovejoy's dealings with the tax agent are entertaining enough, and the final showdown with the titular Axeman is a real hoot, but it's not enough to make this an outstanding episode. The problem is that I've never cared for the scenes involving either the Jewish gold merchant or the French antique dealer. And, unfortunately for me, Lovejoy spends about half the episode with these two characters. The actors are fine, I just find the characters unappealing. One character I did find appealing and enjoy, however, was Miss Taylor (Zienia Merton) - the taxman (or woman). She and Ian McShane seemed to have some nice chemistry. It's too bad she doesn't come back. I would have loved to see her as a reoccurring character, constantly tracking down Lovejoy, trying to collect his next payment. I'm sure it would have been fun.

6/10