Reggie
Episode 1 of The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey starts with an old man named Ptolemy Grey leaving a message for Robyn, apologizing for what he’s about to do. Something big is about to go down and rapping at the door hints that this is it. However, we then jump back several months to March 7th 2021. Ptolemy Grey is a broken man. He’s got the news on, his house is a cluttered mess and he’s hallucinating, seeing visions of the past while wrestling with debilitating Alzheimer’s. Reggie shows up at Ptolemy’s, gently encouraging his uncle and guiding him in the right direction. He takes the alarm clock out the freezer and even helps Ptolemy get dressed. The thing is, Reggie is on his way down to Texas and as such, a new carer is going to take over. After a check-up with the doctor, Ptolemy heads out to a diner but on the way, he sees a woman named Sensia outside. It’s not her though, but this woman is his beloved from the past. Ptolemy is starting to suffer from dementia, typified by the old man commenting how he’s starting to forget things, struggling to remember crucial details about his life. When Reggie leaves, Ptolemy sinks back into his seat by the TV, keeping up the same routine – eating tins of beans, watching TV and waiting for Reggie to come back. When he runs out of food, Ptolemy starts to panic. Eventually though, a shady guy called Hilly shows up at the door. This is his other nephew. Hilly nonchalantly claims Reggie couldn’t make it, although Hilly is under instructions to head back to his mum’s house, Niecie’s, with Ptolemy. Hilly clearly doesn’t have the same patience or light touch that Reggie has. Unfortunately, he also pockets some of Ptolemy’s money too after an incident at the bank. When Ptolemy heads over to Niecie’s, he’s introduced to Robyn, who’s going to be looking after him from time to time. She’s not exactly happy about it though and after whipping him up a plate of food, he accidentally drops it on the floor. Ptolemy’s family are in mourning and it’s soon revealed why. It turns out Reggie has passed away, and no one bothered to tell Ptolemy. Or they did and he never picked up the phone. Either way, Ptolemy is shocked and as he looks upon Reggie’s body he breaks down crying. After this, he regains some clarity and remains determined to find out who killed Reggie.
The Episode Review
Wow, what a performance from Samuel L Jackson! The man is a powerhouse of an actor and this episode showcases why. Jackson is almost unrecognisable in this role and he plays a senile old man perfectly. The mannerisms and the ideas are going to resonate with anyone who has witnessed a loved one succumb to the horrific nature of Alzheimer’s. The story is quite simple but it remains to b seen whether Ptolemy Grey can justify its 6 hour run-time for the story that’s about to be told. As we’ve seen from these shows on Apple time and again, an overlong run-time is always the Achille’s heel for this platform. Still, this is a decent start and it sets things up nicely for the season ahead.
