This episode is a very sad story of the murder of a young girl, those who prey on her and other victims along the way. The young woman came from a family whose father was an alcoholic and whose mother left him years before. Her best friend's father taught her and used his position to take advantage of her. Another teacher was also romantically involved. Then there are dance television show hosts who use girls for their own purposes.
All are suspects from different walks of life, showing how murder does not discriminate by rank or status or even family relationship. It does appear that sick people seek victims wherever they can be found, although poor areas are much more vulnerable to criminality. The discovery of who actually committed the murder is a shock that does not exonerate the others from guilt. We see that victims have been sacrificed leading up to this murder, although none are ever brought to justice.
George Gently and his assistant John Bacchus pursue the nasty group of suspects. The two are well paired with Gently a mentor to the young Bacchus, who is a fierce bulldog trying to pin down the guilty party. Gently is just as fervent but much smoother and more in tune with human nature. Taking place in the 1960's with a generation gap that put youthful idealists against their conservative elders, Gently and Bacchus go against the grain. Gently is the compassionate one and Bacchus wants a return to the noose. The two different characters work well together and get along well. It takes time to nail this one down. However, towards the end, Gently had a notion that the case was not complete and he then proceeded to clinch the complete truth and its full extent.