Love it or hate it, everyone's been talking about ITV's latest drama, 'Playing Nice.' Written by Grace Ofori-Attah and staring James Norton, Niamh Algar, Jessica Brown Findlay and James McArdle, this compelling story blend’s themes of parenthood, family, identity and tough moral choices drawing viewers into a deep reflection on what being a parent truly means.
Synopsis
At its heart, “Playing Nice” revolves around two families whose lives become unexpectedly interconnected when the hospital informs them their three-year-old sons had mistakenly been swapped at birth.
Episode One opens on Pete (played by James Norton) frantically running down onto a beach, where we see a young boy’s yellow coat floating in the sea. Fearing the worst, Pete reaches the beach, jumps into the sea frantically shouting for 'Theo.'
We then cut to three months earlier, where we're introduced to the rather idyllic life of Pete, Madelyn and Theo. Whilst we're immediately made aware of their money worries and the fact that Theo might not have had the easiest birth, this tight-nit family have a beautiful home, set in the most idyllic and serene coastal town.
The plot takes a dark twist when the hospital summons them to explain that their three-year-old son Theo is not their biological son. On first glance, it seems this momentous error is down to an administrative error, whereby their son was swapped at birth. Meanwhile, their biological son who left the hospital with another family, has been raised by complete strangers. Whilst in denial at first, DNA tests soon confirm that Theo is not theirs.
What happens when the child you have nursed, read stories to, comforted at night and adored is actually someone else's son? And your real son, who you conceived and birthed lives just a few miles away with complete strangers? This is the moral dilemma at the heart of the series.
The other family, Miles and Lucy Lambert (played by James McArdle and Jessica Brown-Findlay) whilst seem intense at first, agree to play nice. Both families agree to keep the child they have loved and raised, whilst allowing access to see the other child as often as they want. And of course, they want to sue the hospital. Both set of parent’s bond with each child, with the inevitable likeliness apparent between both Theo and Miles, and the other child David and his biological mum, Madelyn.
However, things don't stay nice for very long. The 'other dad' Miles bombards his way into their life; showing up at their house uninvited and buying Theo gifts - overstepping his mark before deciding that he wants full custody of both boys.
Miles is clearly an entrepreneurial bigwig, living in a large, modernist mansion overlooking the sea, compared to Pete and Madelyn's humbler abode. Clearly, the Lambert's have the resources to fight both the hospital and the other couple for full custody.
The narrative unravels and things quickly spiral. Miles' behaviour becomes increasingly controlling, abusive and aggressive, accusing Pete and Madelyn of being inadequate parents, drawing on Madelyn's post-natal depression after the birth of their child. He's manipulative and deceiving, getting a thrill twisting the knife into Pete and Madelyn's insecurities. When Miles teaches young Theo to call him ‘Daddy Miles’, enough is enough for Pete and Madelyn.
As the court case grows closer, Pete and Madelyn's relationship breaks down, sending Pete on a wild goose chase to Scotland to find some dirt from Miles’s past. It's then revealed that Miles lost his brother in a house fire when they were younger. His Mother (who Miles had everyone believe was dead) is well and truly alive and hints that Miles was responsible for his brother's death, who also happens to be named David.
The drama escalates when Theo gets admitted into hospital, having taken some cannabis gummies, used by Pete's Dad for his health issues. How Theo got hold of them, no one knows. This gives Miles even more ammunition to use against Pete and Madelyn, who have now been given full temporary custody of Theo.
The court case arrives and it's not looking good for Pete and Madelyn. That is until an anonymous person sends CCTV footage of inside the Lamberts home, showing Miles feeding poor Theo the cannabis gummies.
Removed from the home, Miles is now more dangerous than ever. Showing up at the family home, he forces Lucy and David to a cliff-side picnic, threatening to throw himself and David off unless she admits it was her who sent the footage to the courts. Forced to admit what she had done; they grapple as it becomes clear - it's either her or him. She picks up a rock and knocks him out as he plunges to his death.
We then witness flashbacks from Lucy that uncovers the truth behind the baby swap Lucy swapped the babies within the neonatal unit in a desperate attempt to keep her beloved baby away from abusive husband Miles. At least then, he'll be safe.
Lucy, Pete and Madelyn all back up each other's statements, telling the police that Miles had gone missing, never to be seen again. The series closes where it started; on a beach, with all three parents and their two children living harmoniously together.
Thoughts
Playing Nice makes for a compelling drama. However, there’s heavy use of dramatic license and a few flaws in the narrative. The biggest being the final - surely the police would look into Mile's disappearance, find his body, and see that Lucy sent Madelyn a location pin at the same site Mile's body was found? However, it’s not just Playing Nice or Delaney's other work to fall victim to these quite obviously narrative flaws, but that of other work such as Fool Me Once, Big Little Lies and most recently, Missing You.
Mile's mother could have played more of a pivotal role in his demise. Although she did make an appearance at court, we're not given much insight into their backstory, so it would have been great to see her testify and challenge Miles in front of the court. If anything, she could have given us more reasons to despise the man.
Playing Nice is a story about what we're willing to do for the people we love the most. As the narrative takes hold, the couples are left with an unimaginable dilemma, and the true nature of each character comes to light. The show does well not to shy away from difficult topics such as postpartum depression and societal expectations of both motherhood and fatherhood, with Pete out of work and Madelyn a full time working mum - something they both get ridiculed for by Miles.
Playing Nice will have you question what you would do in their situation and presents you with no easy answer. It will tug at your heart strings, keep you watching right till the end weigh on your chest long after the credits have rolled.
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