Misfits has never been a show that is afraid of killing off important characters. In some ways, it's almost surprising that Curtis lasted this long when others didn't. Now on the outside of this new and changed group, his interactions with the mysterious Lola are at the centre of the drama this week. Things end with an unpredictable twist that means it's curtains for the last of the original cast members. Curtis's death is shocking, yet it makes sense and reminds us that these powers come with serious and deadly consequences.
Unsurprisingly, Lola isn't who she says she is at all. She was an actress, and Lola is the damaged and manipulative character that she was playing at the time of the storm. Since then, she's been stuck in character, constantly drawing people into her cycle of twisted stories. When she disappears after using Curtis to murder her ex, he decides to dig a little deeper and use his power to bring the man back to life.
As was made clear with Series Three's zombie cheerleader episode, however, resurrecting people never works out in the way it was intended. When Rudy asks Curtis at the end of the episode why they couldn't manufacture a happy ending, Curtis understands that it was never going to be the case, replying, "There ain't no happy endings. It's zombie noir, innit." He may be able to survive temporarily on adorable tiny animals but, once Curtis is bitten, he knows it's all over.
It's not like Curtis was ever the best written of the central characters, but Nathan Stewart-Jarrett always played a great straight man and proved himself very capable comedically too (even in this episode, his confrontation with the probation worker is hilarious). The real impact of his death is Rudy's reaction to it, as they talk over the phone and Rudy is hardly able to keep it together, trying to convince him that they should go for a pint and find some other way around it.
In almost every area, this is a top-notch episode of Misfits that proves there are still great stories to be told on this show. Lucy Gaskell's performance as Lola is also excellent, with the revelation that she's acting her way through life bringing a sense of tragedy to proceedings. My only criticism remains the character of Finn, somebody that I still find irksome every time he's onscreen. At least his pairing with Rudy means that the show's best character is around whenever he is.
So, that's it for Curtis. It's not a death that necessarily feels sad, but that doesn't mean that he's not a character that will be missed. The future is now even more uncertain and Misfits really has moved on from its original cast. This is a great episode that maintains the momentum gained by last week's terrific Rudy-focussed instalment and provides a thrilling and appropriate conclusion to the story of Curtis Donovan.