Aired 05 November 2016

Following two strong episodes that explored grief with intense character studies and intriguing unearthly forces, Class returns to the events portrayed in its premiere as the Shadow Kin return and continue to try to find a way to end Corakinus’s unwilling interdependence on April. With the fierce attempts to sever that tie failing and April suddenly suffering from physical changes and moments of mental control, the benefits of a limited eight-run series with no time for filler become instantly apparent in this first half of a two-part story that again brings character to the forefront as strange petals slowly infest London.

‘Co-Owner of a Broken Heart’ notably introduces April’s father who has just been released from prison, and this sudden upheaval in April’s life given her tortured past only serves to further drive her closer to Ram emotionally and physically. In fact, with a parents’ evening as a fitting backdrop to events here, the contrasting relationships between April with her father and Ram with his own are presented effectively to fully develop the two leads’ conflicting backgrounds and why they have been brought together to find solace in one another. It’s all too common for shows targeted at young adults to show only fractured relationships between parents and children, and as such Ram’s familial support is arguably one of the strongest foundations of the programme to show others that all is not lost as their lives circle around impending darkness and despair. Nonetheless, as April flits between the frenzied wrath of the Shadow Kin and her more emotional and at times vulnerable humanity, Sophie Hopkins gives an immense performance that bodes incredibly well for the tortured journey her character finds herself on at this juncture.

Of course, much of the drama present in this episode will be intrinsically tied to the concluding half in which certain concepts will assuredly be fleshed out in more detail. At the same time, though, such a brief episode count means that the amount of drama that writer Patrick Ness is trying to include will have some narrative threads that feel somewhat rushed or ill-defined compared to others. April’s mother’s miraculous ability to walk once again is perhaps the biggest victim of this given how little is known about her or the circumstances surrounding her disability, but even Charlie’s treatment of Miss Quill with her freedom a unique motivational force feels like it requires a deeper exploration to fully resonate as so clearly intended. While there is certainly time for these to continue to develop, the character work for the leads nonetheless continues to impress, and Matteusz continues to develop into an engaging character in his own right as Charlie and he battle over political philosophies and clearly illustrate a darker and more resolute side to Charlie than his usual charm and demeanour suggest. With Charlie mentioning the morality of Earth as a whole during his own arguments, it’s clear that his alien nature will continue to fuel plenty of decisions and choices going forward.

The realm of the Shadow Kin comes to life quite believably as well even if it is a bit too stereotypically brimstone-and-fire evil, and the shared heart at the centre of the story that brings about such immense emotions in April is an incredibly strong visual and theme as Class heads into the second half of its premiere run of episodes with mysterious new headmistress Dorothea who clearly knows more about the school than her predecessor did firmly installed. Though the balance of humour, drama, and romance is a bit off at certain points throughout the episode compared to the more focused and intense dramatic pieces that comprised the previous two episodes, ‘Co-Owner of a Broken Heart’ as a whole is a powerful and strong opening half that shows just how varied and brave Class can be even this early on given the immense performances and ideas that have already become a staple for the franchise.