count me a be one who be happy to see no hastings in this episode . the poor man dr. watson do nothing for me and a he simply drag down every scene he in . japp be often necessary to the story a the representative of officialdom and and a little miss lemon be fine for season and but hastings swing from painfully dim to over mannered in different episode . if i have to sit through one more vacuous oh and i say there . i will take the gas pipe . a a general rule and the more poirot you get in a poirot story and the good . every line for hastings be one take away from poirot . and i have never read the book and so i really do not care about fidelity to christie character . a lot of viewer or reviewer seem to have a problem with separate the movie from the book . if you want the book a write and then read it . i do not see the point of watch the television version if you know what will come next at every stage . theatre be not prose do not expect a transcription .