The Artful Dodger’s leads might literally come from a Charles Dickens novel, but there’s something more playful about the way it deals with its historical social issues. Where Oliver Twist would change his fortune with fairytale-like goodness, former pickpocket Jack Dawkins aims to carve it out through quick amputations, which give him some status, though no wealth, and gambling bets, which risks his limbs. While the narrative isn’t as complex as the social criticism Dickens is known for, the series is undeniably entertaining with its novel approach, even if it pokes fun a little too often at the actual horrific hygiene practices of the 1800s.
It's a tale of reinvention, betrayal, redemption, and love with a twist. Jack Dawkins is The Artful Dodger, whose pickpocketing fingers have become the skilled hands of a surgeon. He is torn between an impossible love and the criminal underworld he secretly craves. This will require Artfulness.
After being transported to Australia for pickpocketing, Jack Dawkins in the 1850s is a respected young surgeon. However, his old mentor Fagin resurfaces, dragging him back to his pickpocketing ways, but also into a connection with the governor’s daughter.
The Artful Dodger might not have the gravitas as Oliver Twist, but it makes some clever decisions with the character they’ve stolen. Jack Dawkins was a lying thief, yes, but he was a child, taken advantage of by adult criminals, and punished for it. He grew up too fast in London, but Australia gave him a chance for status through skills in surgery. In another person’s hands, this rendition of Dawkins could have felt like amateur fanfic, but Thomas Brodie-Sangster brings that mix of quick-witted brashness he displayed in The Queen’s Gambit and the precocious sweetness older viewers would remember from his child actor days. He’s truly the best choice for the Artful Dodger.
Whoever Thomas Brodie-Sangster's agent is... Thank you.
