{"id":43813,"date":"2024-01-15T12:44:30","date_gmt":"2024-01-15T11:44:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1960134"},"modified":"2024-01-15T15:35:35","modified_gmt":"2024-01-15T14:35:35","slug":"big-boys-most-surprising-season-2-moment-is-also-its-most-important","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/big-boys-most-surprising-season-2-moment-is-also-its-most-important\/","title":{"rendered":"Big Boys\u2019 most surprising season 2 moment is also its most important"},"content":{"rendered":"

“Let’s go home.” ***CONTAINS MAJOR SPOILERS FOR BIG BOYS SEASON 2*** <\/p>

By David Opie\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Monday, 15 January 2024 at 11:44 AM<\/p>

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Warning: contains major spoilers for Big Boys season 2.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Big Boys<\/span> is a kind of homecoming for creator Jack Rooke. The show<\/a> \u2014 based on his Edinburgh Fringe special Happy Hour \u2014 is a journey into Jack\u2019s most formative years, where he first explored life as an adult gay man at Brent Uni.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Yet, amid the butt plugs and glory holes, Jack\u2019s early sexcapades came at a painful time. His father, Laurie, had died not long before, and a new friendship with Danny, his straight best friend, would also teach Jack a great deal about mental health struggles, even though the friendship itself is a kind, deeply loving one.<\/span><\/p>\n

This connection is the backbone of the show in so many ways, and the fourth episode of season 2 drives this home when Jack tries to plan the perfect birthday party for his mate. <\/span><\/p>\n

Things inevitably go wrong, though, sitcom-style, except <\/span>Big Boys<\/span> isn\u2019t just a typical sitcom that prioritises laughs above all else.<\/span><\/p>\n

Although Jack chose not to play himself in his story, he\u2019s always present as the narrator, looking back at what happened all those years ago. That instantly makes the show feel more personal, not just because it\u2019s his memories, but also because of the way Jack\u2019s narration directly addresses both Danny and us as \u201cyou\u201d, as if we\u2019re a friend there in the moment, being confided in.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Jack\u2019s voice is heard at the periphery of every episode, nostalgically recalling events with the benefit of time and hindsight, but Surprise, Surprise! is a little different. <\/span><\/p>\n

Fittingly enough, the episode takes a surprise turn around two-thirds of the way in, when Danny discovers that his father only came back to take Nan\u2019s house away from him.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Well, that wasn\u2019t particularly surprising. The man is clearly a scumbag, but it\u2019s what happens next that shocks most (and hits even harder as a result).<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Jack\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Jack (Dylan Llewellyn) and Danny (Jon Pointing) in Big Boys.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

\u201cYou\u2019d often leave parties without saying goodbye,\u201d says Jack as Danny finds a bench to sit on alone in the cold night air. \u201cWe\u2019d pretend it was because you pulled some fit girl, but we\u2019d all know it\u2019s because something in your head\u2019s gone on.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s when Danny looks up, exasperated, and says, \u201cCan we just not?\u201d as if he\u2019s heard Jack\u2019s narration first-hand. And that\u2019s because he has.<\/span><\/p>\n

This break in reality jolts, because the show is incredibly realistic for the most part, aside perhaps from that Tesco Meal Deal sex scene from season 1. <\/span><\/p>\n

The jolt is deliberate, though. It reminds us that the Danny we see before us isn\u2019t actually the real Danny that Jack once knew. It\u2019s his memory of a friend long gone, a construct created in his mind to help Jack reckon with past traumas in his life.<\/span><\/p>\n

So begins a conversation between Fictional Danny and Real Jack, where the narrator apologises for intruding. Danny needs his space, and omniscient commentary about his life isn\u2019t helping.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more:<\/strong><\/p>\n