Episode Title: “Episode 1”
Writer: Neil Cross
Director: Sam Miller
Previously on “Luther:”
“Luther” returns for another quick-hit miniseries run, reminding us just how good Neil Cross and his contentious detective are at delivering a chilling murder mystery with plenty of character-driven story in just four hours.
It’s been some time since the show’s last run, but the opening episode of the third series asks little of our memory of Luther’s (Idris Elba) troubled past. All we really need to know is that DS Erin Gray (Nikki Amuka-Bird) is out for vengeance after her failed attempt at exposing Luther’s questionable tactics ended up costing Gray her job with the Series and Serial Unit. Gray is now working in the Anti-Corruption Unit and she’s taking her job very, very seriously. That’s because DS Gray isn’t the only one itching to take Luther down; she’s working alongside DSU George Stark (David O’Hara), who has made a career out of exposing “coppers” like John Luther.
What’s interesting about Stark is that the veteran detective appears to be just as unorthodox as the “dirty cop” he’s trying to nail. Gray is clearly uncomfortable watching Stark strangle DS Ripley (Warren Brown) into compliance with their investigation into Luther. It’ll be interesting to see how far down the road with Stark Gray’s willing to go to see her brand of justice served.
Outfitted with a wire by Stark and Gray, the loyal Ripley is put in the position of trying to prove Luther is indeed a good detective. Unfortunately for him, Luther makes it pretty hard when he dangles a suspect over the side of a balcony and talks about doing the job “quickly” rather than “right.” By the end of the episode, Ripley is on board with Gray and Stark’s plan, proving that Luther just might be his own worst enemy
Ripley comes to this conclusion as he works with Luther on two very disturbing murder cases. The first involves what appears to be the fetish murder of a woman the killer adorns with a mask and a wig, which post-punk ‘80s music fan, Luther astutely likens to Siouxsie and the Banshees. Youngin’ Ripley doesn’t get the comparison, already putting him on my bad side.
Luther’s other case comes courtesy of Stark, who orders Luther’s boss, DSU Martin Schenk (Dermot Crowley) to put him on it. Stark’s plan is to watch Luther work a case from start to finish and catch all the dirty moves he makes in between. When a sexually deviant hermit named Jared Cass is found dead in his flat, Luther and Ripley question his loan shark neighbor. The man denies any involvement in the murder, so Luther tosses him over the side of a balcony, all while Gray and Stark listen to the man’s screams via Ripley’s wire. Gray races to the scene, but she’s too late to see the man dangling from the side of the building.
Further investigation leads Luther and Ripley to the home of Ken Barnaby. Barnaby and his wife were the victims of cruel online taunts related to the death of their daughter. Ripley suspects Barnaby killed Cass, whose computer contained evidence of the harassment. Luther is reluctant to pursue the lead, but Gray urges Ripley to move forward. He finds a phone Barnaby used to record the murder and then threw away. He tells Luther about the evidence and asks to bring Barnaby in, but Luther says it can wait until the morning. Luther then calls Barnaby and requests that he come to the station the next morning for fingerprinting, essentially warning the grieving father of what’s to come.
It’s a case tailor-made to test Luther’s murky ethics, which dictate that a man who just lost his daughter is justified in killing the online predator who viciously defaced her memory. After Luther warns him, Barnaby sticks his hand in a blender in order to avoid being fingerprinted. At the bloody scene in Barnaby’s kitchen, Gray tells Ripley the case is tanked and that a jury will likely sympathize with Barnaby.
It’s hard to say what’s more disturbing: Barnaby pureeing his own hand or Gray’s inability to sympathize with why he did what he did. Her own ego seems to have trumped whatever morals made weary of Luther to begin with. And the humiliating fool’s errand of proving Luther innocent, which Ripley set himself upon, has made him rethink his allegiance.
The irony is Gray, Stark and now presumably Ripley’s plight against Luther has already cost an innocent life. While attempting to call a woman connected to the fetish killer from a thirty-year-old cold case, Luther is interrupted by Ripley demanding to arrest Barnaby. Moments later, the woman and her husband are murdered by the killer in their own home.
It’s a lot to pack into four episodes: a vendetta disguised as a police corruption investigation, a potential romance resulting from a fender bender and a truly frightening murder mystery but Neil Cross’ writing and Idris Elba’s performance always seem to deliver. What’s nice about this third series is that despite all that’s going on, so far it feels much less tangled up in complex relationships and secrets than the last one. And the fact that BBC America is running all four episodes in the same week should make this installment especially satisfying for “Luther” fans who’ve been eagerly awaiting their favorite detective’s stateside arrival.
