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"Spanning just three hours, the first series of In The Flesh was - by necessity - rather short but sweet. This second run has been unfolding on a grander scale and, this week, the series arc starts coming to fruition. Diverse story strands - Simon&amp;#039;s motivation, talk of a second rising, the hunt for the first risen - begin to converge, but while 2.5 is a huge mythology episode, it&amp;#039;s also a deeply heartfelt and personal drama that recalls last year&amp;#039;s 3-parter.  Simon (Emmett Scanlan) has been a dark and brooding presence this series, so it&amp;#039;s fascinating to see him transformed into an almost child-like figure in this week&amp;#039;s opening scenes - anxious and excited in the &amp;#039;presence&amp;#039; of the Undead Prophet. For all his apparent self-assurance, it has become increasingly clear that Simon is really just a lost soul looking for guidance - whether it&amp;#039;s from the Prophet, John Weston (Steven Robertson) or his own Pa, played by noted character actor Francis Magee. Simon is tasked with eliminating the first risen - which the Undead Prophet believes will bring about the second rising - and his pained reaction appears to resolve the issue of whether or not his feelings for Kieren are genuine. But was Kieren really the first to rise? Maxine (Wunmi Mosaku) later learns the mysterious figure&amp;#039;s true identity and, given that this information is not shared with the viewer, it would appear that &amp;#039;Ren is in fact not our man.  Dominic Mitchell&amp;#039;s script also delves into Simon&amp;#039;s past, and in so doing deals out a number of key reveals - Mr Monroe was the first of the undead hordes to respond to Neurotriptyline and, ironically given his present-day stance, the first to don contacts and cover-up mousse. This episode demands far more of Emmett Scanlan than the show has thus far required - with a broken Simon at his lowest ebb - but the actor rises (no pun intended) to the challenge and is phenomenal throughout. It&amp;#039;s appropriate that Mitchell takes this opportunity to remind us of the harrowing horrors of the Norfolk treatment centre, since Kieren (Luke Newberry) now faces a return to its unpleasantries. Under Simon&amp;#039;s tutelage, Kieren has grown more forthright and rebellious - refusing to live by other people&amp;#039;s rules, he ditches his cover-up mousse. His actions place further strain on his relationship with his father - Steve Walker&amp;#039;s not a malicious or wicked character, but he is confused, conflicted and weak, and often times a lack of conviction can be a crime in itself.  Accused of crimes committed by Simon&amp;#039;s followers, Kieren finds himself the subject of a small mock trial. In The Flesh has always been terrific at capturing and picking apart small-town living, and this week the &amp;#039;trial&amp;#039; scenes see the show at its most Wicker Man-esque, with the residents of Roarton a law unto themselves. With Simon tortured in past and present, and Kieren facing a return to solitude, it looks like grim times are ahead - but is there a glimmer of hope for our PDS sufferers? Having developed an apparent aversion to Neurotriptyline, Amy (Emily Bevan) begins to fear that she is reverting to a rabid state. But instead, In The Flesh could be about to embark on a radical and game-changing twist, with the first hints that she is reclaiming something of her humanity. This shift would seem to present the possibility of a happy ending - not just for Amy, but for Kieren and all the others - but this being In The Flesh, I&amp;#039;m convinced it won&amp;#039;t be as simple as all that. If next week&amp;#039;s finale doesn&amp;#039;t deliver more twists, a little bloodshed and maybe some heartbreak, I&amp;#039;ll eat a pig&amp;#039;s brain. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/in-the-flesh/review/a574334/in-the-flesh-series-2-episode-5-simons-origins-and-a-stunning-twist/>