Line of Duty series 1 to 3
I can't watch everything. In this modern era there are too many TV shows. Too many choices. So I have to pick and choose my viewing according to personal genre interests, catching a trailer that piques my interest, or word of mouth from friends, family or the minimal number of websites that I trust. But the question still is - how the hell did I miss "Line of Duty" on first transmission?
It's only because of the publicity and glowing recommendations regarding series 4 that I became aware that the show existed at all. Looking back, these same websites had reviewed and commented on all seventeen previous episodes, but it was like I had experienced a televisual blindspot, not seeing what was right in front of me. Perhaps I had been too focused on other things like "Doctor Who" or something like that, and had dismissed it as 'just another police procedural'. The thing is I *do* like police / detective dramas. I love all the incarnations of Sherlock Holmes."Luther" is one of my favourite TV shows. "Happy Valley" is another. The BBC does this kind of contained, limited-run thing better than almost anyone else in the world. I've got no excuse really.
The one thing that did make me sit up and take notice above everything else though was the name of the creator and writer - Jed Mercurio. I first came across him with the 2004-2006 medical series "Bodies" starring Max Beesley, which concerned the highs and lows of medical registrar Rob Lake as he worked in the obstetrics and gynaecology department of a major hospital. It was graphically explicit, very dark, dealt with negligence, cover-ups and frequent death - and was frankly astounding television. If Mercurio was involved my hopes were high. Looking for something new for my wife and I to share (she doesn't enjoy much of the SF / fantasy genre television I watch) we decided to give "Line of Duty" a go, and using our streaming service, started at the beginning, not realising that this programme would soon consume our lives for the next week and a half...
The core of "Line of Duty" is the work of an elite police anti-corruption unit designated AC-12. These are the men and women who search out officers who have crossed the line and committed a crime themselves - whether it be murder, cover-ups, falsifying or with-holding evidence, taking bribes - you get the idea. Each series starts with the investigation of a specific person and shows how AC-12 build their case and the events, twists and turns that result. Sounds a pretty normal show doesn't it? The kind of thing we may have seen a hundred times before. But "Line of Duty" is far from your typical drama. Minor spoilers from this point on...
But alongside the roller coaster thrill ride of action , this is also a programme that is not afraid to take it's time. Mercurio has clearly done his research and the procedural elements feel real and as plausible as if you were watching a fly-on-the-wall documentary. AC-12's interview and interrogation scenes are lengthy and detailed, with each new piece of evidence that is revealed helping to move the plot along and slotting another section of the puzzle into place. In the final extended episode of series three there are two interview sequences which are twenty minutes long - each! Forty minutes of characters sitting in a room talking and presenting details on a screen. Far from being dull, these are nail-biting, edge of your seat moments, the ebb and flow of who has the upper hand shifting between AC-12 on one side and the accused on the other. I was holding my breath, tense with anticipation. It's masterful stuff.
At it's core though "Line of Duty" is about character. None of the main leads (Martin Compton as DS Steve Arnott, Vicky McClure as DS Kate Fleming and Adrian Dunbar as Superintendent Ted Hastings) are whiter-than-white. They all make mistakes, have complicated personal lives and at times both help progress or hinder the investigations. They are real, flawed human beings. Mercurio's skill as a writer also extends to his "villains" - there are no "black hats" here, only varying shades of grey, and their motives may be in the right place even if their actions are not. In series two AC-12 investigate Detective Inspector Lindsay Denton, following the ambush of a convoy carrying someone in witness protection. As a viewer, your belief of whether she is guilty or innocent changes several times just in the one episode - let alone through the entire arc. It's a sign of quality that even the cops under scrutiny are sympathetic at times.
I'm not one for "binge-watching" of television shows, preferring to enjoy them week by week (I'm currently watching seven different shows in rotation, one a day). But with "Line of Duty", at the end of each sixty minutes my wife and I turned to each other and both said "Put the next one one, now!". It's proof of how much the brilliant drama and superb performances envelope you. Goodness knows what the anticipation must have been like after each cliffhanger on original transmission.
In just a few short days we have gorged ourselves on the first three series and are now ready for the fourth, which concluded just this weekend past. Avoiding spoilers has been hard (with a lot of swift channel changing when trailers came on) but we know it will be worth it. Thandie Newton awaits, which is doubly exciting after her bravura performance in "Westworld" recently.
I simply cannot recommend this television programme highly enough.
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