My overall rating of "Happy Valley"'s Season 1: 6/10
While there are some rougher-around-the-edges moments (Catherine fails to take a shortcut in the beginning by hopping the railing and running across the lawn - she could've gotten them then and there, or at least made them abandon the vehicle by getting close before they could notice her and getaway), by and large here we have exceptionally sharp, keen drama, incredible acting and emotion (especially from Catherine herself), and plausible, thrilling, logical plot. The prior episode's unapproachable, opaque darkness of decease, lowlives and social decay recedes just the tiniest bit, and the gripping story takes the frontstage.
While there are some rougher-around-the-edges moments (Catherine fails to take a shortcut in the beginning by hopping the railing and running across the lawn - she could've gotten them then and there, or at least made them abandon the vehicle by getting close before they could notice her and getaway), by and large here we have exceptionally sharp, keen drama, incredible acting and emotion (especially from Catherine herself), and plausible, thrilling, logical plot. The prior episode's unapproachable, opaque darkness of decease, lowlives and social decay recedes just the tiniest bit, and the gripping story takes the frontstage.
