Original Airdate: 2 January 2000 Written by: Clive Exton Directed by: Andrew Grieve Recurring cast: Inspector Japp Based on:The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
Tropes
Adaptational Angst Upgrade: The episode replaces the twist ending nature of the book's conclusion with a darker and more misanthropic finale which sours Poirot's dream of retiring peacefully to the countryside as the case proves that evil can exist just about anywhere. Even reading the killer's journal to get a better grasp on how and why the murder happened fails to get him much in the way of closure.
Adaptational Jerkass: Dr Sheppard comes across as a much less sympathetic character than in the original novel: his journal entries are entirely callous and his loving relationship with his sister is downplayed. It also doesn't help that the role he played as Poirot's assistant in the narrative is in this version largely taken by Inspector Japp. Which also means that it's less of a surprise when he turns out to be the killer, as he's now just another suspect.
Adaptational Villainy: Caroline is another downplayed example. Near the end of the episode she discovers her brother's journal. While she's clearly shocked by what she reads, she's desperate to keep James from confessing to his crimes and even hands him the gun he uses to attempt his escape from Japp and Poirot.
Adapted Out: Major Blunt, Miss Russell and Charles Kent are missing in this version.
Better to Die than Be Killed: In the end, Dr. James Sheppard refuses to surrender to the police, culminating in a Chase Scene at the factory in which he blindly shoots at Poirot and Japp before deciding to end it all with a pistol to the head. In the original novel, he simply poisons himself after being privately unmasked by Poirot.
Big "NO!": Poirot shouts out a big "NOOO!!!" before Dr. Sheppard shoots himself in the head.
"Blackmail" Is Such an Ugly Word: Sheppard reveals himself as the blackmailer, but insists the word is inappropriate for what he was doing.
Counting Bullets: During the Chase Scene at the factory, Dr. James Sheppard refuses to surrender and shoots blindly at Poirot and Japp, who counts how many bullets Sheppard has fired. This leaves only one bullet for suicide, and we know how it turns out...
Death by Adaptation: Parker the Butler becomes a second victim in this version, with the killer repeatedly running him over with their car.
Demoted to Extra: While Inspector Raglan didn't have a particularly huge role in the original novel to begin with, his role in the adaptation was sidelined even further in favour of Chief Inspector Japp (who did not appear in the book).
Dies Differently in Adaptation: In the novel, Doctor Sheppard takes Poirot's advice and decides to kill himself with sleeping powder, a form of deliberate irony as his blackmail of Mrs Ferras led to her suicide by that method. In the adaptation he shoots himself as part of an action-packed Chase Scene.
Haunted House: Poirot and Japp return to Whitehaven Mansions to find that his old apartment has been abandoned and become a house of ghosts since he retired as a detective.
It's Personal: The adaptation introduces a long-standing friendship between Poirot and Roger Ackroyd, thus introducing a personal element for Poirot in taking the case and identifying the murderer. In the novel, Poirot and Ackroyd knew each other from when Poirot lived in London but didn't seem to be close friends, and Poirot didn't seem particularly interested in the murder until Flora Ackroyd asked him to investigate.
Karma Houdini: Caroline Sheppard. She hands the murderer a pistol which he uses to attempt to escape Japp and Hercule, but it is implied that she is not arrested for obstruction. In fact, Poirot explicitly states that James' crimes were kept secret for her sake.
Look Both Ways: Exaggerated to the point of There Is No Kill Like Overkill, as Parker the Butler is run over by Dr. Sheppard's car; then, to make sure he is dead, the car moves backward and forward again, turning Parker into mulch before moving on again. So sickening.
Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping: During one of the times that Poirot reads Sheppard's journal, the detective's Belgian-French accent suddenly slips closer to a British accent, which may have been a mistake on the actor's part.
Pragmatic Adaptation: Many of the changes in this adaptation, for better or worse, appear to stem from the fact that the original twist of the novel is difficult (albeit not necessarily impossible) to reproduce on screen, being a function of the literary narrative.
So sickening.