the last episode of Poirot

[newmoonstar]

Let me preface this by saying that I've watched Poirot my whole life, and I'm very emotionally attached to the characters after knowing them for 25 years. This will be very, very serious and angsty. And long. I'm still trying to process how I feel about this all, so it will be a bit rambly. Bear with me on this one!

Comments

[laurose8]

I'm sorry it was such a bad note to end the series. I wouldn't rec the book, either. Partly because the daughter is rather horrible there, too; though she's not meant to be. The villain is also definitely a let-down.

In the book, it helps that Poirot arranges for Hastings to have a happy second marriage. Does that happen in the adaption?

[newmoonstar]

No, there's nothing at all about what happens to Hastings afterward. We see a brief scene of him four months later, in what looks to be a London club, reading Poirot's last letter, but we don't get any kind of aftermath of Poirot's death at all. We see a headline on a newspaper that he's dead, and Hastings has a heartbreaking little speech about how he looked up to Poirot so much, but that's it. Part of me kind of hoped for some scene with Hastings closing up Poirot's flat, or making up with his daughter and saying goodbye to her before she left for Africa, or something, but it just ends leaving all that hanging.

I definitely would have felt better if I'd have known Hastings would be happy, and that Poirot wanted to make sure he was okay, which I do think he would have. Poirot has never been one of those cold detectives with no heart, he cares about people, especially his friends, which is why I think this last one didn't work for me. It ignored all that important stuff too much.

[scw1842]

For Hastings, of all people, to try to murder that guy? No. How could he? Doing something unfairly or underhandedly is entirely opposite his nature, and we just spent a whole scene where Poirot berates him for this very fact.

I don't find this implausible. Why? Because I remember a certain message that has been prevalent in many of Christie novels . . . especially her Miss Marple stories that just about anyone is capable of attempting murder given the right emotional motivation and push.