As someone who barely remembers anything about Oliver Twist other than the names of the characters and half of the lyrics to ‘Consider Yourself’ from Oliver! I wasn’t really sure what to expect going into the Disney+ show The Artful Dodger.

This is a sequel to Charles Dickens’ classic novel Oliver Twist, set around 15 years after the events of the novel.

It stars Thomas Brodie-Sangster as the titular character, The Artful Dodger or Jack Dawkins, David Thewlis as Fagin, and Maia Mitchell as a new character, Lady Belle Fox.

15 years after being abandoned in jail by Fagin, Jack Dawkins has made a life for himself as a surgeon in Australia, but his life is turned upside down when Fagin turns up and becomes Jack’s convict servant. After Jack lands himself in considerable debt, Fagin wastes no time in trying to entice Jack back into a life of crime.

Lady Belle Fox is the daughter of the governor who spends her days reading medical literature and dreaming of becoming a doctor. So, when she sees Fagin and Jack committing a crime, she blackmails Jack into training her to become the first ever female surgeon.

The casting for this show is fantastic. Thomas Brodie-Sangster has made a name for himself in a number of projects now and this one is definitely a stand-out. He’s a very charismatic lead who is convincing as a man caught between two different lives. Maia Mitchell is also fantastic as the wealthy daughter of a governor with a mystery illness.

David Thewlis as Fagin is one of the best things about the show. He steals every scene he’s in and while he proves to be a person with incredibly loose morals willing to do whatever he can for a bit of cash, he still has you genuinely caring about him by the end of the show. You’ll spend the show wondering what his true intentions are and what his true feelings are. He also provides a lot of comedic relief.

One of the best things about this show is the very complicated relationship between Jack and his psuedo-father, Fagin. Fagin found Jack as a baby and raised him as his own until Jack was caught at age 12 and abandoned in jail. However, Jack managed to save himself and become a talented surgeon which Fagin attempts to use to his advantage due to Jack’s connections to wealthy people. Jack spends the show struggling to stay an upstanding citizen while also missing the thrill of petty crime, as well as attemping to keep his criminal past a secret or risk losing the job he loves.

Another standout relationship from the show is the one between Jack and Lady Belle. Belle initially blackmails Jack into letting her train as a surgeon but they quickly become close. Their relationship is lovely and they have great chemistry but their relationship definitely could’ve benefited from being a bit more of a slow burner. However, it’s hard to expect relationships like that in shows these days when they struggle to get past 8-10 episodes per season. I’m confident that a second season could create enough drama for them to keep the relationship fun and interesting. 

The show has a lot of fantastic side characters, including Fagin’s new sidekicks that are always there to help with his criminal plans. Red, an Aboriginal Australian, is a stand-out when it comes to the many criminals that Fagin interacts with. 

Since the show focuses on surgery and early innovations, it can get quite gruesome. The surgical scenes will often show bloody body parts and open wounds but the shots are usually quite short. Definitely not for the faint of heart though!

The Artful Dodger is currently streaming on Disney+.