Line of Duty #6

[bubbadabut]

Series 2 and 3 were peerless drama. S4 started stretching it a bit, but still enjoyable.

S5 was where it started to wane. I found it harder to follow and wondered if Jed had too much on his plate with writing Bodyguard at a similar time.

S6 started well, I was enjoying it more than S5, but the ending let it down. The last 2 episodes were particularly dull.

 

[G+T]

my mum’s questions (she’s 80 odd and never listened to a pod cast in her life):
how many people does it take to forge a transfer thingy? (what happens if the corrupt guards aren’t on duty or available?)
is Kate working for AC-12 … how could she be such a big part of the investigation/interviews if not.
why did she go on the run with Jo
did Jo get her roses round the door, rather lovely looking witness protection on the back of out of date/wrong intelligence

By the looks of the transfer paperwork it just takes two faked signatures. They just make sure they are working like swap a shift or do some over time or they would have just waited till the bent prison officers where at work. Just goes through the correct protocol. It was a joint investigation lighthouse operation and the AC12 investigation that was said in episode 6 so that's why Kate was still involved she was letting Chris lomax do the majority of the lighthouse operation work and sticking with Steve mostly. Kate and Jo went on the run because it wasn't safe to stay incase more OCG gang people showed up. someone did a timeline from all the calls, texts and times mentioned during the Ryan killing and figured it was about an hour before Kate and Jo got found and arrested.
What wrong/out of date info do u mean? Her info would still be able to prove a line of institutional police corruption which Osborne wants to be kept buried.

 

[Columbo]

I think ultimately there isn’t one top dog / H / fourth man in the police force. There’s a number of separate OCGs that use high ranking police officers to help organise and cover up their activity, and if/when that officer is exposed, they move onto the next one, hence Buckells after Dot and Hilton and so on. There’s no one person pulling all the strings and it will keep happening because they’re always infiltrating OCG members into the police force that will rise over time. Carmichael/Osborne/Wise don’t want to admit there’s an institutional problem so ultimately nothing will stop these officers from rising as they just look at smaller individual corruption cases rather than the bigger network.

And that ending is fine. But why did the final episode still feel so flat and disappointing? They should have given us more explosive scenes like the shoot out earlier on. They should have made Buckells expose more of a sinister character at the end, or not included him in this series at all until the final episode so it was more of a shock, because when they held out from showing us who was going into the interview room... who else could it have been really? It wasn’t tense at all because we all knew it was him. They shouldn’t left so many loose ends... What did Carmichael do with Ted’s admission, was Kate working for AC12 all this time, is Lomax bent (although arguably I don’t mind that one being left open, as it backs up the point that officers working for the OCG will continue to rise).

The more I think about it, the more I’m OK with the ending, but it was so poorly executed that it almost makes it even more frustrating and disappointing than it should be?

They totally should've made more of that scene with the OCG, maybe Ted getting shot and wounded and then rising like a phoenix from the flames to take down H and then being recognised for his bravery by having his enforced retirement overturned
It was all just too rushed. Especially after 30 mins of "no comment" from Jo last week that felt never-ending

 

[Fairypop]

Did anyone else wonder when they searched that cell and it was clean, Hastings smiled ...why was he happy?

The only assumption I can make is that Hastings and Fairbank were (are?) both masons. Fairbank was friendly with Hastings in previous series. I don’t feel like the friendliness was reciprocated much but maybe a weight was lifted in some way?

 

[Maggie Moggy]

Will Steve get his willy sorted?

Not if it means he gets together with drippy Steph! I don't think I could have taken much more of her wandering accent.

 

[CabalofBolorneaise]

I think Jo got her protection because she’d genuinely told them everything she knew and she’d clearly been manipulated and coerced both in and out of the police force for basically her whole life.

AC12 also treated her absolutely terribly (even if it was for the greater good) which is probably why she got a much nicer house than Gill.

Quoting myself like a knob as editing isn’t working for some reason and I’m lazy Jo had also covered for Kate on Ryan - which obviously would have been fine in the end for Kate either way, it was a lawful shooting, but meant they had their chance with Kate out to find the box under the floor and ultimately unravel everything.

 

[Fifi999]

Do you reckon Jed has been so pissed off with police handling of Sarah everard case, BLM, lockdown protestors - he thought duck it I’m gonna hit this as close to come as I can. No dramatics just real tit so people realise all of this happens in everyday life and it’s real. I feel the season has been more an indictment on complacency than anything else

 

[bellinibobble]

There’s no one person pulling all the strings and it will keep happening because they’re always infiltrating OCG members into the police force that will rise over time. Carmichael/Osborne/Wise don’t want to admit there’s an institutional problem so ultimately nothing will stop these officers from rising as they just look at smaller individual corruption cases rather than the bigger network.

Totally agree with everything you just said

It’s very clear at the end that they’re suggesting the problem will never go away. What would the point in S7 be then? It all seems so hopeless

 

[Carrie2019]

Who forged Kates signature on the documents for the prison releasing Jo for interview?

 

[Fifi999]

Who forged Kates signature on the documents for the prison releasing Jo for interview?

The two prison witches. I’m sure Steve explains this when they were arrested after the ambush

 

[Carrie2019]

The two prison witches. I’m sure Steve explains this when they were arrested after the ambush

oooh yes!

 

[H AC12]

So which was your fav series? I think mine was 1 with Gates in.

Series 1,2 and 3 for me . I really can’t just pick one.

 

[rainonme]

Didn’t Carmichael tell Kate to get her written statement about the shooting done but said she’s not gullible, suggesting she was going to go after Kate about that. Why wasn’t that followed up? Carmichael barely said a word that episode! Christ, another loose end.

Maybe there is still the possibility that Kate is bent... Maybe the signature wasn’t forged... For a split second I did think she was going to turn evil in that car when Chloe said she was the one that signed it off. Ah, what could have been!

 

[Base2019]

Buckells was on this morning there ... I’d say he felt like a lemon going on to speak about it after the backlash online

 

[If i told you …]

I felt that the last ten minutes was rushed … so many questions unanswered.
what was the point of Jimmy Nesbit character? The Christopher Lawrence case was thrown in and didn’t go anywhere. Who buried that box. Was it’s only use to provide dna. What at the end was the point of Carmichael? Strange ending

 

[LinaLamont]

Not adding anything new but wanted to add how disappointed I was with not just the ending, but the whole narrative structure of this series. It was all over the place. Kate/Jos relationship was random, unearned and disjointed with no pay off. Kate/Steves interactions were all over the place from being distant and hostile to having keys to each others getaway cars and googly eyes in pub at end? Kelly Macdonald was woefully underused generally for such a boring, one dimensional role compared to prev guest actors. TH was reduced to parody level one liners.Why tf was steph involved so much? Why did we waste so much time with the old copper (cant remember his name - ironic) if nothing came of it???

I could PERHAPS see the idea in having Buckells pull a keyzer soze at the end and turn in a really scary, evil performance in the last interview with ac12 as H with the previous acting being a cover but... no? nothing? the same blank faced incompetent?

I understand prev reasoning re institutional corruption and JM making a point but that has never been the remit of LOD before, its always been a bit of entertainment with great writing/acting and twists and turns.

wont watch another season IDT

 

[SootySweepAndSoo]

Do you reckon Jed has been so pissed off with police handling of Sarah everard case, BLM, lockdown protestors - he thought duck it I’m gonna hit this as close to come as I can. No dramatics just real tit so people realise all of this happens in everyday life and it’s real. I feel the season has been more an indictment on complacency than anything else

I totally think this! Plus the racism, paedophilia etc etc… surprised the BBC allowed it

 

[Woody2832]

I think ultimately there isn’t one top dog / H / fourth man in the police force. There’s a number of separate OCGs that use high ranking police officers to help organise and cover up their activity, and if/when that officer is exposed, they move onto the next one, hence Buckells after Dot and Hilton and so on. There’s no one person pulling all the strings and it will keep happening because they’re always infiltrating OCG members into the police force that will rise over time. Carmichael/Osborne/Wise don’t want to admit there’s an institutional problem so ultimately nothing will stop these officers from rising as they just look at smaller individual corruption cases rather than the bigger network.

And that ending is fine. But why did the final episode still feel so flat and disappointing? They should have given us more explosive scenes like the shoot out earlier on. They should have made Buckells expose more of a sinister character at the end, or not included him in this series at all until the final episode so it was more of a shock, because when they held out from showing us who was going into the interview room... who else could it have been really? It wasn’t tense at all because we all knew it was him. They shouldn’t left so many loose ends... What did Carmichael do with Ted’s admission, was Kate working for AC12 all this time, is Lomax bent (although arguably I don’t mind that one being left open, as it backs up the point that officers working for the OCG will continue to rise).

The more I think about it, the more I’m OK with the ending, but it was so poorly executed that it almost makes it even more frustrating and disappointing than it should be?

I feel like they sacrificed good execution to pave the way for another series. I do think that is a mistake though. I think it’s ran its course and it would have been a good place to end with the overarching message if they tied up these loose ends too.

I’d have liked to see the audience learning a little more about the corruption of Carmichael, Osborne etc. but AC-12 still knowing but not having the evidence to do anything about it

 

[electricmallows]

Maybe there is still the possibility that Kate is bent... Maybe the signature wasn’t forged... For a split second I did think she was going to turn evil in that car when Chloe said she was the one that signed it off. Ah, what could have been!

Buckles interview could have been written so much better, I think. It seemed like he was really going to lead them to Osborne, only they stopped him right at the end. If he would have lead them to Osborne and he was interrupted, it would have been better if there was a reason for that-like Kate (or one of the other 2) secretly being bent and trying to stop him snitching. Kate (the most) would have been a good option since it really didn’t make sense for her to be interviewing him anyway so that would have been a good cover, on top of what you said.
The ending really wasn’t what I hoped for but I do think they could have maybe had the same type of ending if they’d just thrown up something a little more dramatic like that

 

[Fifi999]

Does anyone think maybe Osborne and Carmichael aren’t bent. From the outside in don’t you think ac 12 could very easily be perceived as nasty. Yes coppers make mistakes but the vast majority are good so why should a few rotten apples ruin it for everybody. If I was Osborne I would stick my mates into ac 12 at least I could trust them. Steve fucks witnesses, Hastings has made so many mistakes and put undercover officers in harms way to prove police are bent. Can two of these narratives exist in the same world- that there are a few rotten apples that the institutional culture allows to flourish but ultimately there is no systematic institutional corruption

am I crazy????