Kevin Darling



Captain Kevin Darling is the secondary antagonist, who appeared in the final season of the Blackadder Television Saga, titled Blackadder Goes Forth, which aired in 1989. He was played by long-running Blackadder star and actor, Tim McInnerny, who had previously played the role of Lord Percy in the first two seasons of the show. Sharing the same rank as the series main protagonist, Captain Edmund Blackadder, Darling is his intellectual rival and also one of the few people in the entire series that recognises the full-scale horror of the war. As the assistant to the series main antagonist General Melchett,  and his blatant loathing of Blackadder, Darling's villainous (although arguably anti-heroic) actions are made very clear from early on. As such he can be considered Captain Blackadder's archenemy for the majority of the series. His name was of course, used to great comedy effect.

Biography
Unlike the rest of the main cast, who were descended from the characters of previous seasons, Darling was a stand-alone character who had no known relation to anyone before the events of Blackadder Goes Forth. This is was amended in future projects such as Blackadder Back and Forth, which showed Darlings ancestors working alongside those of his associates. It is possible, though unconfirmed that he may be a descendant of Lord Percy Percy (since both were played by McInnerny). If this is the case then the Percy's gained intelligence through the generations and the name change is most likely due to an absence of male heirs to carry on their surname.

Apparently, from a working-class background, it is not known how or when Kevin Darling joined the British Army but he had enough credence to be promoted to the rank of Captain in the British army. In the last two episodes of the show, it is revealed that he originally worked for a company called "Prat & Son's" and that he has a girlfriend called Doris, whom he hopes to marry one-day. Darling's role in the series is as the long-suffering assistant to the incompetent General Melchett, who is clearly not on Darling's intellectual level.

Despite constantly being on the receiving end of Melchett's scolding, it is clear that Darling is very good at his job. It is not known how he obtained this position thirty-five miles behind the line but Darling is very grateful for it, and therefore totally devoted/loyal to Melchett, as demonstrated by the fact he rarely ever complains about his work. His worst fear is being sent forth to the front lines.

Due to a lack of screen time, his relationship with George and Baldrick is never explored. From the get-go, however, it is made very clear that Darling shares a mutual hatred with his archenemy, Captain Edmund Blackadder. Whilst the two share the same rank, intellectual level and understanding about the wasteful tactics used to try and win the war, Blackadder is jealous of Darlings position behind the lines, whereas Darling hates the way Blackadder is always trying to manipulate Melchett in order to escape the trenches. Prior to their final scenes together (see below), nothing would have pleased Darling more than to see Captain Blackadder getting killed in action.

Role in the Episodes
Darling featured in all six episodes of the series and was usually (but not always) seen in the company of General Melchett. Aside from assisting the General, Darling's usual antics involved trying to foil Blackadder's attempts to escape from the trenches, to which he was usually successful. Blackadder though always found a way to get even with him.

In 'Captain Cook' Blackadder is called to Staff HQ, for a debriefing by Melchett. The General wants Blackadder to find an artist, which he originally declares will publish the front page of the next issue of 'King & Country' the famous war magazine. Recognising an opportunity Blackadder manipulates the events in the trenches, to make it seem like he is the best candidate. Although Darling tries to call Blackadder out on this, he quickly changes his tune upon discovering that the real purpose was to find someone who would be able to accurately draw representations of the German's defensive positions. That person, Blackadder, is ordered to go over the top that very night and carry out his orders. With the help of George, Blackadder manages to cheat death and produce fake pictures in a bid to fool Melchett, but the General still orders the advance anyway. Darling can barely contain his glee as he sarcastically wishes Blackadder luck. Thanks to a helpful comment from Baldrick, Blackadder manages to escape death a second time and returns to the Chateau that very evening where he, George and Baldrick serve the General and Darling a sickening meal of Baldricks composition.

In 'Corporal Punishment' Darling acting on orders from the General tries contacting Blackadder in order to get him and his men to advance on the enemy position. Blackadder ignores all these orders and even shoots the carrier pigeon sent to deliver orders. He learns far too late that shooting carrier pigeons is now a court-martial offence and worse still, the pigeon he just shot, was General Melchett's favourite pet. When Darling and Melchett, venture to the front lines to find out what is going on Darling quickly (in no small part due to Baldrick and George) quickly unearths Blackadders actions. He stops the General from beating Blackadder to death, arguing that they should do things by the book but is clearly delighted to arrest Blackadder, and tells him that if convicted Blackadder will immediately be executed by firing squad. At the said trial, Darling serves as the Council for Prosecution and despite George calling him as a defence witness, is quick to offer up enough evidence to ensure Blackadders conviction. It is unknown how he felt when Blackadder escaped his execution due to the intervention of higher powers, but he was most likely very disappointed.

In 'Major Star' Darling helps Melchett prepare for his date with 'Georgina', (with some great comedy in the process). He is delighted when Blackadder's cabaret is pulled from a potential tour but receives his comeuppance when Blackadder feeds him a dead slug, claiming its a liquorice all-sorts.

'Private Plane' showed Darling trying to prevent Blackadder from transferring to the Royal Flying Corp, to which he was unsuccessful. He was jubilant, however, to learn that the average life expectancy is twenty minutes, and sniggered audibly when Baldrick was revealed to be Blackadder's navigator having argued that 'As long as you've got a good navigator, I'm sure you will be fine'. When Blackadder later crashed behind enemy lines, George tried to ask Darling for help but was refused. This resulted in a heated argument between the two, in which George insulted Darling's position, prompting Darling to threaten him with a charge of insubordination. Melchett showed up and stopped the bickering before things could escalate further. With the help of George, and Squadron commander Lord Flashheart, Blackadder and Baldrick managed to escape. The former returned to HQ where he and Flashheart confronted Darling for refusing to help Blackadder in his hour of need. Though Darling tried to fob his way out of it, Flashheart ended up head-butting him, leaving Darling lying unconscious across his the desk.

Things got serious in 'General Hospital', where it appeared that the British army had been infiltrated by a German spy. Sources traced the leak as it was called to a nearby field hospital and Melchett wanted Blackadder to figure out who this spy was. Darling made sure to deliberately limit Blackadder's time to three weeks (instead of the six months originally asked for) but still did not trust Blackadder to fulfil his duty. He asked to go to the hospital himself and keep an eye on him, which Melchett agreed to. To make sure things looked convincing, the General shot Darling in the foot, much to Blackadders delight. When Darling threatened that Blackadder would not be laughing if he did not find the spy, Blackadder proceeded to interrogate Darling, following the General's earlier suggestion. These events reduced Darling to a hysterical wreck, much to Blackadders delight. At the end of the episode, Darling tried to apprehend the man he perceived to be the real spy, only to find out that the man in question was, in fact, a British spy, and the one who tipped Melchett off as to the security leak in the first place. When the General left, however, the two Captains quickly discovered that it was George who had in fact been leaking the information to one of his German uncles. Darling and Blackadder quickly raced after the General.

In the season finale, 'Goodbyeee', Kevin Darling telephoned Blackadder and told his adversary that he and his men were to advance on the enemy the following morning. He later visited the trenches alongside Melchett after being informed by George that Blackadder had gone insane. This was, of course, Blackadder's latest attempt to escape from the trenches and Darling was quick to insult Blackadder. Edmund got revenge by having Baldrick serve Darling a foul cup of coffee (made from mud, dandruff and saliva), which promptly made Darling vomit when he drank it. Later that evening Melchett found Darling in his office, unable to sleep. The two had a heart to heart moment, in which Melchett said he regarded Darling as his 'illegitimate' and unfavourite son. Grateful for all the work Darling had done, Melchett who thought he was holding Darling back had arranged what he believed to be a real treat and gift for Kevin, which turned out to be a commission that would put Darling on the front line on the charge that very morning. A look of horror spread across Darling's face as he realised that this was no mistake and that he had just been handed an informal death sentence. He pleaded desperately with Melchett to reconsider but unfortunately, for Darling, Melchett misinterpreted this desperation as enthusiasm and a desire not to leave him. Revealing that he had made all the arrangements, Melchett dismissed Darling without a second thought. A distressed and terrified Darling arrived at the trenches the next morning, where he and Captain Blackadder (who had been unable to escape the trenches either) addressed each other very formally. Finding themselves in the same predicament, the two men put their hostilities aside as they, George and Baldrick realised that there was a very real likelihood that they weren't going to make it out of this situation alive. Darling told the others that he had hoped he would get through the whole war, and return to England where he hoped to marry Doris and that he had made a note in his diary, in which he cursed his fate. Despite a faint moment of hope as the four men lined up for the charge, Darling and his comrades sallied forth under Edmunds command and were presumably killed by the ensuing gunfire.

Personality
A hard-working man, Darling was none the less very arrogant and a coward at heart, who took delight in his position since his primary interest revolved around self-preservation. Despite knowing about the full severity and pointless sacrifices of the war, Darling seemed to have little to no problem about ordering other men over the top of the trenches to their deaths whilst he remained behind his comfy desk, though he may have just been putting on a brave face whilst carrying out his orders. This was especially true for Edmund Blackadder, who Darling shared a mutual rivalry and hatred for. Throughout the course of the series, Darling did everything in his power to try and get Blackadder killed or at the very least stay in the trenches, and took particular delight whenever things looked especially bad in Edmunds case. This hostility seemingly ended when the two men found themselves in the same boat in the final scenes of 'Goodbyeee', in which they addressed and treated each other as brothers in arms.