[Contains spoilers]
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“There’s only one thing that’s worse than a bent copper and that’s a bent copper who pretends she isn’t.”
Line of Duty returned with a bang last night with a thrilling opening sequence that saw the return of the Balaclava Men in a dangerous heist involving the hijacking of a police consignment of drugs. The dramatic scenes involved the death of three police officers and PC Jane Cafferty’s life being spared by gang member Lisa McQueen, which ensured that AC-12 were quickly assigned to investigate the incident. Soon, it became apparent that a member of the OCG (Organised Crime Gang) was an undercover officer, but who? With all signs pointing to Lisa, the big twist was revealed in the final scenes and the UCO was actually gang leader John Corbett (played by Stephen Graham). The show also stayed true to its form of killing off cast members with the shock murder of corrupt PC Maneet Bindra.
In between all the dramatic events, the episode revealed how life had moved on for the AC-12 squad since Series 4. Superintendent Ted Hastings appears to be going through a divorce and staying in a hotel, where he is behind on paying his bill. DS Steve Arnott is slowly recovering from his accident in the previous series, but remains in physical pain. DI Kate Fleming appears to have reconciled with her family and yes, in a surprise twist, she is the officer who has been promoted to DI. With Steve having emerged as the likely candidate in Season 4, has the rise of the #metoo movement affected writer Jed Mercurio’s plans for Season 5? Or is it simply that Steve’s accident has derailed his career opportunities?
The unfolding of events throughout the episode raised a whole host of new questions. With no contact for months between the police and John Corbett, is the UCO really deep undercover or has he now gone rogue? Could Lisa McQueen still be another UCO? Could Ted Hastings really be a likely contender for the mysterious H? Who was he calling at the exact same time that Lisa McQueen’s phone rang? So many unanswered questions!
Last night’s episode has now become the most watched show of 2019, with 7.8 million viewers watching it live. Were you one of those viewers? What are your theories?
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