User Reviews

Early episodes like this are the reason the show is so huge now, commanding audience figures most other shows can only dream of.

The concluding episode to series one is a delicious, complicated game of chess, with opposing sides cautiously moving their pieces out into the open. We get a resolution for Gates, but series one leaves us with plenty of unanswered questions, most of them not being answers until later series.

Lennie James was outstanding throughout, but Compston is genuinely as good, he is awesome in this episode.

I liked the final scenes, not all smiles and tears of joy, we're given a more realistic outcome.

This was exceptional, 9/10.

It was Lennie James performance as the conflicted DCI Tony Gates that was the highlight of series one.

Gates was not a bent cop but circumstances deviated him away and now he wants to make amends.

Gates saves Arnott from being tortured and then tells him that he will bag the kingpin. Gates knows there is no way out for him and it is Gates who makes the statement where the Line of Duty gets the name of the series from.

Writer Jed Mercurio serves a thrilling series finale and also leaves a few hanging threads that will be revisited some years later. Such as Jackie Laverty's body still being in a freezer or the fate of the young tearaway on the bike.

Gates is on the run whilst Arnott has a change of heart.

This is a strong and eventful finish to the first series.

There is little I can say about the plot without spoiling, but it's safe to say that some aspects of the storytelling developed throughout the series come together superbly at the end. A high level of tension builds throughout the plot and reaches an impactful crescendo.

Some viewers complain about plausibility. Whilst I agree the plot is very sensationalist, but if you do not take fictional storytelling more seriously than you should, there is no reason why it should not provide strong entertainment.

Some characters have very memorable moments and all actors are on great form, especially Lennie James.

I am consistently amazed at the writing talents and the acting talents that come out of England. Jed Mercurio's creation of this suspenseful police drama is top notch. There are tons of twists and turns and just when you think the action is going one way, a new idea or situation is placed in front of us to ponder. The premise is that a young DS, who won't lie in court for his fellow police officers is ostracized and gets transferred to the anti-corruption unit. His new unit specifically investigates potentially corrupt cops and that's where D.C. Gates comes into the picture. A cat and mouse game starts between the seasoned and decorated D.C. Gates, played brilliantly by the under utilized actor in Lennie James and D.S. Arnott, played by Martin Compston (Ewin Brodie in Monach of the Glen) Within the story is another mystery that is going on and all roads eventually collide. I would love to compare this show with another and I cannot. It has the camera feeling of Law and Order (UK) so there is a gritty quality to it. The scenery is drab and gray and the police office and what they wear blends in. Its the acting and the writing that stands out. Adrian Dunbar is brilliant as usual as D.S. Arnott's boss, a man whose seen a lot more in his lifetime than any of us ever will. I am putting out to the Universe that there will be a Season 2.

The part where they failed to cut Steve's finger with a massive chain cutter despite trying several times was absolutely hilarious and made me laugh so hard I had to stop watching the show. It was one of the funniest things I've ever seen in my life and I've seen hundreds of movies and TV shows. That guy's finger must have been made of steel or something.

Other than that, the episode was pretty slow, boring and a huge letdown overall.

I loved this season and, especially, this episode. Lennie James did a phenomenal job as DCI Tony Gates. Actually, all the actors/actresses are top-notch. I read through all the low ratings - meehhhh....nevermind what they say. It's a great show. British crime show at it's best. Some of the best actors available.

Gates was the best character of season 1. I was rooting for him.

Having now finished all of season one I wanted to update my review of the series. It's a poorly conceived plot line and continues to have an "amateur" feel which may be partly due to the decision to shoot it "reality tv style". Sometimes the constantly moving camera worked and other times it was just annoying and detracting. Characters have no real depth except for Gates and his character is not consistent. Sometimes he's "the good guy" the guy who earned his commendation and then he'll flip and act like an idiot who's scared or rude or arrogant. It goes beyond "keeping us in suspense" to be just poor craft for the sake of a twist in the storyline. Michael Compton is a very poor choice of lead. Unlike Richard Madden, he has little presence on camera and his age and affected English accent don't help. I haven't particularly liked him in the shows I've seen hi in to date but here his character is a mess of inconsistencies too. He seems to be allowed to be rude to everyone and extremely hot-headed in spite of his background, age and lack of rank. It's ridiculous and totally unbelievable although he is definite representative of many millenniums in the workforce I'm afraid to say. Hastings (Adrian Dunbar) was a disappointment only due to his poor script and lack of solid character development. He's a stellar actor but it shows how important the material you are working with is. And what was the way they handled the ending about?? I don't want to give anything away but if that was an attempt to make the show appear to be more "real" it didn't work for me. It felt like we needed one more episode for explanations and to tie everything up. I was left with a lot of unanswered questions. Let's hope the other reviewers are correct and that season 2 is better.

Series starts well, then major characters often reverse their behaviours adversely without reason. Graphic violence, language. Filmed with low colour delineation which is consistent with storyline. Even the protagonist is frequently nasty and/or self-destructive and I cannot identify with him; only one character in the first season appears virtuous. Portrays an evil, corrupt police culture that I have no desire of revisiting by watching any further after the bad endings of Season 1.

Maybe it's cos the first season is now a little dated in 2021 but the acting in this is awful, the plot, the situation everything is just horrid