Inspector George Gently - Series 5

This was a great series, set in 1968 and among an atmosphere of change, and feels very different to other detective dramas.

Focusing on Inspector George Gently, played by Martin Shaw, and Sergeant John Bacchus, played by Lee Ingleby, the two characters work well together and even though Gently might be seen as a dinosaur, he is instead quite progressive and helps to mentor Bacchus. The mysteries in this series were very thought through and kept me guessing, especially in the third episodes where a baby was snatched.

Each episode, 4 in total, worked very well as individual stories, but they also had underlying elements of questions about social change and society. For instance, the first had suggestions of attitudes towards immigrants and racism, the second looked at the association of different classes and the third explored gender roles and perceptions on women. Meanwhile, the fourth had thoughts on corruption in the police force and within society. These elements are used effectively as they were hidden by the murder mysteries that acted as the stories foundations.

The series finale was a very dramatic and tense thriller. It saw Gently being accused of corruption and framed for two murders and story worked well to show the level of corruption that is easily manipulated against a clean officer. Also I was surprised by the dramatic final scenes where, as well as most of the guest cast being killed, the fates of Gently and Bacchus are left in the balance after both being shot in a showdown with the remaining criminal in a cathedral. I also think that Shaw and Ingleby gave great performances throughout the series but especially in these scenes.