El Ministerio del Tiempo/The Ministry of Time — Series 3: Episode 4—Tiempo de ilustrados/Time of the Enlightened — A Review.

24th May, 2019

Yes: Theresa May, Britain’s PM, has officially announced that’s she’s going to be stepping down from the post: and that her resignation goes into effect from the 7th June.

To an extent?

I feel sorry for her.   After all, she repeatedly tried to get a Brexit deal through that she felt would work for the UK.

Only to see it repeatedly thrown out by a House of Commons set against her.

Frankly?

I’m sympathetic.



Not that I’d be voting Tory because of it.

Not that I actually ever voted Tory.

But I am sympathetic, none the less.

My only question?

Will her successor call a general election when he or she gets into office?

I’d rather my Prime Minister be elected by the people of the UK: rather than a small group of MPs.

~≈§≈~

At any rate … ?

At any rate, I have an excuse.

No, wait, not an excuse: an opt out … !

Yes: I can watch something that’s been sitting around in the collection for a while.

You’re right: another episode of El Ministerio del Tiempo/The Ministry of Time’s third series.

~≈§≈~

Episode 4 — Tiempo de ilustrados /Time of the Enlightened — opens in the Prado museum: showing us a group of tourists admiring Goya’s La Maja desnuda.

One tourist lingers to photograph the painting … only to see it slashed … 

By something unseen … in the modern day.

In a flashback to 1799, when Goya (Pedro Casablanc) painted it … ?

See what what happens: La Maja desnuda is getting itself attacked by unknown attackers … 

~≈§≈~

Back in the present … ?

Back in today, the Ministry’s been alerted to the fact La Maja desnuda’s been vandalised: and are determined to either stop the damaged.

Or to fix time the easy way.

Simply by asking Goya … to paint another copy … 

Whilst wading through 18th century Spain’s court intrigues.

Betrayal, broken hearts, high drama … 

And that’s just from the Ministry’s facial reconstruction expert, Diego Velázquez* (Julián Villagrán): when he finds out he isn’t going to meet Spain’s second best artist.

Are you getting the feeling there’s going to be issues … ?

You betcha!

~≈§≈~

I swear, right now?

That my bed’s a calling.

But, right now?

I’ve come away from an episode of El Ministerio del Tiempo that’s both funny† and tense: creating both a sympathetic guest character — Goya, himself — and introducing the ultra conservative the Exterminating Angels‡ as intriguing set of villains.

Whether they’ll recur?   I don’t know.

I’d like to see more, though.

Just as I’ll be lining up another episode of El Ministerio del Tiempo

*        Velázquez is convinced he’s the only person capable of dealing with Spain’s second best artist.   Spain’s second best artist, according to Velázquez?   Is Dalí … Picasso … Goya … Is anyone other than Velázquez.   Temperamental?   Yep!

†        Salvador’s line — “Whatever can go wrong, will get worse” — tickled me.

‡        They’re based on a real world order of Catholic fanatics.