S3 E4 - Yesterday Never Comes

Del - I think she fancies me!
Rodney - Miranda? Don’t be stupid, Del, she’s an intelligent woman!

This episode, like others before it, pits the Trotters against an opposite in a binary sort of way. We have had them encounter rich people not long ago in ‘A Touch of Glass’ but this time it’s a high class antique merchant by the name of Miranda. Del makes the same mistake of thinking that he can wiggle his way into that world again, only to realise that he’s being used as a way of getting to a family heirloom with thousands of pounds. The binary opposites in terms of knowledge is epitomised by the scene when Miranda inspects the cabinet.

Rodney - Fyfes.

Del - Didn’t they used to make bananas? 

Miranda - That is correct. 

Rodney - What does that indicate? 

Miranda - It indicates banana boxes. 

Grandad - Maybe they were antique banana boxes?!

Love is very much blind with Del in these early episodes, but it’s very short-lived here and isn’t actually a relationship from both sides. Del taking on Rodney’s advice of “be yourself” and smacking Miranda’s bum following up with “fancy a curry?” is a great comedy moment in of itself, but it’s both Miranda and Rodney’s reaction that add to the hilarity of the situation. The writing again pulls this through with Rodney’s failed attempt at using the same tactic later in the episode - again proving Rodney has a lot to learn and should trust his instincts more than try ad emulate Del.

There’s another funny throwback to ‘Healthy Competition’ in the final scene at the auction. In that episode, Del explains to Mickey Pearce about auction etiquette explaining “you have to be very careful what you do with your hands in a place like this”. Del’s excitement in this episode shows that he’s not even following his own advice as he shakes the daffodils and puts in a £k bid.

Del’s actions in this episode put a strain on the family, with a woman once again threatening to be the wedge between their lives. Resolving this conflict peacefully takes a lot of care and time, but it’s not achieved here.

Tomorrow’s episode: May The Force Be With You