The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Quandary Phase

The last two phases are shorter than the previous three - just four half-hour episodes where things start to get a little somber.  And where Douglas Adams introduces a little lovely romance.  Arthur Dent has had so much misfortune in his travels that it is nice for him to catch a break with his instant attraction to Fenchurch who is a little strange herself.  Of course in keeping with Arthur's life, things don't remain happy for too long.

This was such a different story to the previous phases because not only is there romance, but Zaphod and Trillian only tangentially appear, and Marvin has only one scene in the end (and believe me it's depressing).  Ford has more of a part to play, but this phase is really about Arthur and how he copes after his long sojourn into the universe.  He is more attuned to the oddities that go on around him - which means there are still things to poke fun at closer to home.  While there aren't as many conceptual comedy pieces in this phase, I do love how the absurdity of Arthur's unlikely life is the focus and there is still so much humor in that.

There is one idea in this that I found particularly eye opening - when we hear about Wonko the Sane, who's house is inside out - where framed photos and carpets and sofas are all on the outside, but the inside looks like a well-tended garden.  Because when you go outside the house you are now in the asylum where all the crazy people live.  Us.  And it started with a box of toothpicks.  Because the box of toothpicks had detailed instructions on it which explained how to use them, and if humanity needed instructions on how to use toothpicks then there is no hope for us.  Gosh, this phase really is quite depressing.

The way this phase ends sets up some great questions to be answered in the last phase (hence the "quandary" part I guess?), and then we will finally know what it was all for.  Or maybe we'll just get a few more laughs amid the tears...

My posts on:
The Primary Phase   |  The Secondary Phase   |   The Tertiary Phase   |   The Quandary Phase