Years and Years fans took to Twitter to express their shock after the events of episode five saw Stephen Lyons' character take a dark turn, and essentially give the death sentence to his late brother's partner, Viktor, who he blames for Daniel's death. In episode four, Daniel attempted to get Viktor into the UK by travelling in a boat across the Channel, drowning in the process. While episode five deals with the family in deep mourning for their loss, Stephen visits Viktor to make it clear that he blames him for Daniel's death.
Stephen is played by Rory Kinnear
Later in the episode, Stephen gets a job working at new concentration camps set up in the UK, and arranges to have Viktor sent there. Fans were quick to discuss the horrifying turn of events on social media, with one person writing: "Never have I hated a fictional character as much as I despise Stephen Lyons right now. Including Joffrey Baratheon." Another person added: "A true lesson in what truly hateful human behaviour, but also truly human behaviour looks like in Rory Kinnear's character. And the complexity of feeling his grief and loathing him on every level. It's visceral."
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Bethany saw what her dad did
They were also quick to discuss the fallout caused by his actions, as his daughter, the technologically enhanced Bethany, saw what he did to Daniel's partner. One person wrote: "Stephen is gonna feel so guilty after Bethany tells everyone what he's done to Viktor. His guilt will eat him up and he will be the one to get Vic out but will probably die too to redeem himself. Two Lyons brothers dying to save Viktor." Speaking about his role to Bradford Zone, Rory Kinnear said: "There's a set of twists and turns that Stephen and his whole family go through… fundamentally, despite the wrong choices he makes at times, you hope that [the audience] can continue to understand and empathise with his situation."
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