WRITER: Neil Cross[SPOILERS] Luther's finale was as overblown and insane as we've come to expect from this series, feeling more like an episode of Spooks (which writer Neil Cross wrote for) than a cop show. The way this show has embraced its genre's clichés, then sutured them to crazy storylines and characters has been a lure for me, simply because there are plenty of American shows that put free-wheeling entertainment above somber realism, so why sneer when a British show attempts to do the same?
DIRECTOR: Stefan Schwartz
GUEST CAST: Ruth Wilson, Steven Mackintosh, Indira Varma, Paul McGann, Saskia Reeves, Warren Brown, Dermot Crowley & Matthew Marsh
That said, this conclusion to last week's story suffered from the lack of a story you could truly believe in. Instead it was an hour of wild set-pieces (some better than others), building towards a climax that was great fun but rather silly in the harsh light of day. Picking up from episode 5, Luther (Idris Elba) found himself framed for the murder of his wife by partner Reed (Steven Mackintosh) and forced to go on the run, turning to serial-killer Alice (Ruth Wilson) for help proving his innocence. To do this, cop-n'-killer first had to prevent a gun (the retrieved "murder weapon" Reed had plied with Luther's fingerprints) arriving at a lab for forensic tests, before bringing Zoe's grieving boyfriend Mark (Paul McGann) into their confidence with a plan to expose Reed's crimes with the stolen diamonds.Meanwhile, SCU's workforce were in shock that Luther's apparently cracked and his psychosis is making him blame Reed for Zoe's death, with Teller (Saskia Reeves) angry for ever letting the troubled Luther return to work. And throughout the unit's attempts to find and arrest Luther, Reed had to try and keep his composure to convinced everyone that he's the innocent party, while receiving taunting calls from Luther who was determined to ensure the truth came out. Fortunately, inside help later came from Ripley (Warren Brown), who started noticing discrepancies at the crime scene to made him doubt Luther's guilt.
Credit where it's due, I never thought Luther's finale would resemble this back when the first episode debuted. The show has twisted and contorted very nicely over six weeks; retaining the clichés that caused eye-rolls and head-slaps early on, but rising above it through pure force of will, some good performances, and uniqueness in a crowded genre. Luther's odd friendship with the deliciously creepy Alice doesn't make much rational sense, but it's pulp comic-book fun that's been very enjoyable to see develop, and having them join forces as a Bonnie & Clyde-esque duo was satisfying. The Luther/Reed antagonism also played very well, with Steve Mackintosh giving a convincing performance as a good-cop-turned-bad to save his own skin. But I can't help thinking it's a shame earlier episodes didn't do a tidier job making the Luther/Reed partnership something prominent and involving, so his betrayal would hit harder emotionally, but that's perhaps to be expected with a brief six-part drama throwing so many balls in the air.
Overall, it all ended with mad dash after Mark had stolen Reed's diamonds from his locker, resulting in Luther once again having a life-or-death decision (a not entirely successful echo of his dilemma with the child-killer in the premiere), before being knifed when he let his guard slip, allowing crazy Alice to satisfy her bloodlust by blasting Reed in the chest with a shotgun. A moment almost cheered on by Mark; the inference being that Luther has learned to control his temper and emotions (knowing the damage they can cause), whereas Mark's first taste of life's horrors has turned him into someone who allows vigilante justice. And with that we leave the injured Luther shuffling away from the crime scene, hopefully to return in a second series.I know this show remains divisive, but was its unruly temperament and knowing silliness enough to counteract its flaws, or was this just a soulless cop show turned into a gritty pantomime?
8 JUNE 2010: BBC1/HD, 9PM
