Inside No. 9 | 3 by 3 (2023) Series 8 Episode 5 Honest Review

🍿 Inside No. 9 | 3 by 3
🎬 Hop on the replacement bus service for this massive swerve! Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith's promotional material for "Hold On Tight!" never came to fruition! Instead, Inside No. 9 fans received this brand new gameshow hosted by Lee Mack!

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#InsideNo9 #LeeMack #HonestReview

[UnleashTheGhouls]

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[kellyrocheleau]

I respectfully disagree. The fact that it felt so real and so much like a run of the mill game show for most of its running time is what sold me on the episode. I showed my wife, who has seen a couple of Inside No. 9 episodes with me but isn't a massive fan, this episode and just told her it was a game show. She was trying to figure out the answers like you would if you were just watching a normal game show, she laughed at some of Lee Mack's jokes, she mentioned a couple times that she got a bad vibe from the mom, etc. She enjoyed the twist with the exploding head and when it turned out to be an Inside No. 9 episode.

But even beyond it feeling incredibly authentic to an a real-life game show, there is an actual story here seeded throughout. It seems pretty clear Margaret, a research scientist, was experimenting on Catherine and those experiments gave her telekinetic and telepathic powers. When they talk about "unfreezing" the dad and Catherine asks her mom what she thinks, Margaret responds with "You know what I'm thinking." At one point Margaret says they need to "put our minds together." At a different point, Margaret says something along the lines of "Say whatever pops out of your end." And Catherine mentions at different points that she doesn't get out much and they aren't allowed music at home. When TikTok comes up, Margaret said she has "heard the girls in my lab talk about it" - which, to me, had a double meaning implying that Margaret has been studying and experimenting on multiple girls. Margaret talks about using the money to expand their basement for Catherine, which I took to imply that she would just expand the underground lab\prison Catherine has been placed in.

In terms of your point about not seeing any fantastic performances on the second watch beyond the actors feeling like actual game show contestants, I respectfully disagree. The actress who plays Catherine is fantastic and her performance is enhanced once you know the twist. She often subtly winces when her mom looks in her direction or speaks to her. When Margaret remarks that the Article Monkeys sound like a project she was once involved in, the actress playing Catherine shoots her a look of fear and rage. When the other team is trying to name Eddie Murphy for the donkey question, you can see Catherine staring at them the entire time, her gaze unwavering, implying that Catherine is actively suppressing the answer from their minds. To me, all of the facial tics and body language the actress playing Catherine employs implies a life time of abuse until she decides to finally turn the screws on her horrible mom. I got the sense that maybe Margaret wanted to try a live test on her experiment and it backfired horribly on her. It's a tragic story camouflaged by an incredibly realistic game show setting. I can see why someone might not like the dry game show gimmick, but I personally loved this episode.

[lottiemccallum]

i think this episode is incredible- the fact that it’s a slow burn is more of an homage to the fans since they are constantly looking for clues and guessing the twists. and it’s definitely the most memorable episode yet, it’s got everybody talking. we all knew that there would be a twist- i didn’t watch it live so i knew it was a number 9 episode but the only criticism being ‘it’s not no9 enough’ or being too normal is exactly what they intended to do- the fact steve and reece didn’t even appear showed that they didn’t want this to be a more conventional show. i thought it was incredible

[benwillis]

Something that I noticed was that there were several questions in the quiz that could be related to the plot: Matilda (a girl with telekenetic powers), Harry Potter/Shrek/Frozen (films featuring magic), Matthew Hopkins (witchfinder general). Then you've got references to being controlled: Taming of the Shrew (where Katherina is tormented into becoming an obedient woman), Sandie Shaw "Puppet on a string" and a question about an (Tiktok) influencer. Finally, a couple of questions regarding influential/powerful women (Queen Victoria and Margaret Thatcher).

It's not every question/answer and could just be coincidence.

[Neil_TheShiningMile]

Having just rewatched this, there’s a narrative I did initially miss. That the daughter has been pressured into competing in the game to win them money, and is planting the answers into the mothers head. Then, when the mother mentions she will use the money to build a basement cell, the daughter kills the mother. Maybe I am dumb but hadn’t quite up on everything first time.

[elliotttalksf]

The fact we expected a completely different episode to what we got is still so surprising to me. I always get pranked by Pemberton and Shearsmith.

[krgkrg]

I thought the key was her answering the Matthew Hopkins question so quickly and with a smile; therefore she’s not only telekinetic but is also a witch. I also felt she didn’t ‘push her abilities too far’ but deliberately decided to kill her Mother after the ‘over my dead body’ remark. I also loved the fan trolling with the fake ‘On the Buses’ idea. But you’re right, I don’t think there’s enough story beyond the few minutes at the end to make this one a true classic. Never fail to surprise though.

[brobs]

I especially loved when the bus crashed through the wall at the end

[Symon]

For me, this was the best (and most rewatchable) episode of IN9 since much of season 6. Even taking into account the increasing predictability - and if I'm being brutally honest, laziness - of some of this year's twists, a good episode of IN9 is obviously more than just its ending. Unfortunately though, this year in-particular that's been something of a rarity, with episodes serving as little more than a basic set up for said obvious twists. None more so than last week's Lonely Hearts episode.

With 3x3 though, this was the first time in a long time that an episode did more than just service the twist. It reminded me of what I always loved about IN9, that sense of normality being just slightly... off. Which was a tone that pervaded the entire episode.

Last week, I guessed the outcome of the Lonely Hearts episode as soon as the radio report mentioned a serial killer in the opening minute. This week, I'd actually had the incident at the end of the episode spoiled by a post on Twitter. And yet I still didn't suss out exactly what was going on (and how said ending would transpire) until just a few moments before it happened. And whereas Love is Stranger just felt like a plod through obvious tropes to get to an inevitable conclusion, 3x3 has so much going on under the surface, it had me utterly engaged throughout.

[laurengourley]

i too had to google if 3 by 3 was a real thing, and i think that's what i really liked about this episode! i like that i was left questionning whether it was real or not

[davidpattie]

Nope: this one was one of the greats. Started light, got eerier and eerier, and managed to tell two contrasting stories at once. Absoulte genius.

[rebeccacalledalice]

Sadly I didn't get to see this live, but I was hoping they'd do an episode like Dead Line again. Honestly, I think this was the best episode of series 8. There were clear references to Carrie and Stephen King with Catherine sounding similar and the parents being named Margaret (Carrie White's mother) and Stephen (the author). I think there were references to Eleven and Sydney from I Am Not Okay with This with the whole head-exploding thing too. I just have an appreciation for these kinds of stories.

[Comic]

while I wish I'd caught this episode live, it was still so effective

[LovelyRuthie]

I've rewatched the episode twice! So I guess I'm in the minority...having seen it live, there was the impact of having the story switched out from under us, but I immediately knew 3 by 3 was not an actual game show but the real episode. Because of "Dead Line" I then watched attentively with heightened anxiety, waiting for something terrible to unfold. And it was a car crash in slow motion, in the best possible sense.

I felt the performances were absolutely spot on, connecting that there was something not right about the Oakwoods from the off, then specifically Catherine. It's her mother's dialogue that is worth listening to - 'we just need to put our minds together' - she was being literal. There are a few instances of this. She also appears to have the ability to affect technology when the answer reveal glitches. This might have been planted to explain the hare when it turns up...

Then the reveal of David Jason being an answer Catherine had planted onto "Christopher Bigwins" (that gag is so Shearsmith & Pemberton!) when she does the same to her mother. And the question mark as to whether her mother just happens to have a gifted child or if perhaps she is the product of one of her 'research projects.' There is a back story to dig into, which I think also gives it rewatch value.

Fur-Q was the pivotal moment. Catherine's barely concealed triumph & her mother's open disgust when she realises her plans have been scuppered. She is used to being in control, but her experiment has got the better of her. Just as she is about to go bye-bye a la "Scanners, " she says, "I should have destroyed you when you were born!" Even knowing where the episode was headed, it was still a shocking moment. I do wonder if there were viewers who hadn't twigged what they were watching or who had tuned in partway through that were far MORE shocked. It'd be interesting to see how many complaints OfCOM received ;)

Best Bus Replacement Service if you ask me. I thoroughly enjoyed being taken for a ride.

[rockbandny]

I really liked it, episodes like this weren't designed to rewatch but to troll the audience, it makes me think where there any quiz shows with abusive families. To be honest there probably are. It makes me rethink the idea of a perfect family

[archiermanilo]

Definitely, my FAVOURITE episode. It nailed the terrible post-covid british gameshow feel.

[JohnSimpson]

This is the only episode from this season that I've rewatched. Loved all the foreshadowing and the climax felt super rewarding. That was the daughter actress' first ever credit and what a way to make an intro. One of my favourite and most memorable No.9 episodes in a long time.

[kieranmoore]

Usually I'm in broad agreement with your Inside No.9 reviews, but this week we obviously had very different experiences. This is the first episode this series I've rewatched. I knew straight away that this was Inside No.9 from the name of the show if nothing else so I enjoyed looking for clues and watching the clock get nearer and nearer to 10:30 without a reveal. I actually found that part quite exciting - trying to work out how they would wrap it up so quickly. On rewatch I was able to spot even more things and start to put together subplots that were only hinted at. Conjecture on my part, but fun all the same. This is the kind of thing I want from Inside No.9 at least once a series to keep me on my toes.

[GoldenAgeGeek]

The one theory I had in my head is that all this was going to be a Squid Game type event; all the contestants who lost would unfortunately have their life taken from them but the winner got to live. What made me think this is when Catherine's dad gets frozen out and they put a lot of emphasis on the "goodbye dad" almost as if they knew they weren't going to see each other again.

[elliotstedman]

I think this is one of those episodes that is more interesting to talk about and interesting by what it does in a meta sense than by what the actual episode is itself