Spoiler alert: this blog is for people watching series four of Line of Duty (it also contains spoilers from earlier series). Don’t read on unless you have watched episode four. Catch up on the episode one, two and three recaps here.
That’s more like it. Line of Duty is always at its best when it forgoes the attempts to make your jaw drop in favour of lengthy, jargon-loaded interrogations. This week featured one of the best yet, as a confident Ted Hastings called Roz Huntley back in for questioning, certain that this time he had his woman bang to rights, only to see the tables well and truly turned thanks to some help from slimy ACC Hilton and from within his own department. (Oh Maneet, that sound you hear is my heart breaking into tiny pieces.)
The bad guys
Plaudits all round for Huntley this week – I may not like the woman, but I’m in awe of her ability to be ice-cold despite the fact she’s running a raging fever and increasingly appears to be bearing the mark of Cain on her arm thanks to Tim Ifield and his nails of potential infection. Her showdown with Hastings was expertly played, allowing Ted and “Jamie not James” to lay all their cards on the table before nailing the superintendent over his old-school sexism and accusing AC-12 of perverting the course of justice and deliberately targeting high-flying female officers.
What was so clever about this scene was that we know that for Hastings, all women are “wee girls” or “darling” and all men “fella” or “son” – but Huntley was sharp enough to use that casual bonhomie against him. Is he deliberately targeting women officers? Of course not. But does he in some small part think male officers are better equipped to take risks under pressure? Quite possibly. Huntley was able to exploit that, just as she was able to exploit Kate’s presence on her team, making it look like AC-12 are the ones tampering with evidence, coercing statements and fitting up innocent cleaners.
Hastings wasn’t the only one to find the rug pulled out from under him by Roz the ruthless. She also masterfully manipulated ACC Hilton into giving her the information she needed about AC-12 by hinting she would sleep with him, before delivering the devastating lines: “I love my husband and I love my children. I won’t betray their trust. It’s a moral question. I’m sorry.” By this point, I was dazzled by her chutzpah. If the last few weeks have taught us anything, it’s that Roz Huntley and morals are on nodding acquaintance at best.
But the biggest question remains: why exactly is she doing this? We got a further glimpse into the Huntley marriage this week, and it threw up more questions than answers. Is Nick as he claims – a worried husband who thought his wife was having an affair? It was hard to escape the feeling that he’s still hiding something, although what I’m unsure. Then there’s the dynamic of their relationship, which came across as decidedly abusive. Roz shouted at Nick, slapped him, dismissed and berated him – if the roles were the other way, it would be clear that this was neither healthy nor right. Is Roz simply trying to save their marriage, or are we witnessing a woman who has spent years terrorising her husband? And if so, doesn’t that make more sense of his actions when Arnott called – that in situations of violence, he freezes, unsure how to respond? Whatever the truth, it seems certain there is far more going on here than Roz simply making a bad call in visiting Ifield and having to cover up ever since.
The good guys
Steve Arnott lives! And will no doubt be wielding his eyebrows of surprising potency on some unsuspecting woman in the future. Unfortunately, that was the only bit of good news our gang got this week as Huntley ran rings around them, leaving them thoroughly isolated by episode’s end. Still if there’s one thing we know it’s that AC-12 work best when their backs are against the wall: the pushback starts next week.
Or does it? Hastings may find the sexism charges hard to fight; Roz has cleverly needled Kate where it really hurts, using her estrangement from her family and her failure to win promotion against her; Steve is in hospital and unsure what happened prior to that; Maneet is working for the opposition on the sly; and Jamie, for all his enthusiasm, is clearly easily provoked and a little sloppy. Plus, they’re facing an opponent who is not only quick-witted but well versed in speaking corporate speak to those who need it. I’d say they will have to crack Roz’s young disciple Jodie if they’re going to stand any chance.
Case notes
• Speaking of Jodie, she really does have great lurking skills. Is there any part of that building she hasn’t spied something important happening in?
• I enjoyed Patrick Baladi’s turn as Nick’s solicitor Jimmy Lakewell, a public school smoothy given to making Ian Paisley gags. It rang smugly and horribly true.
• What are the pills Roz is knocking back like candy? Were they just for the suppurating arm, or something more?
• I was very amused by Ted’s inability to hide his disappointment that Jamie (sorry James) isn’t Steve.
• I’m impressed despite myself by Roz’s ability to throw everything under the bus to save herself. Admitting to an imaginary affair to hide the fact you killed someone is a stone-cold move.
• I knew we hadn’t heard the last of Ted and those Masonic connections. (Although every time it comes up I wonder if Jed Mercurio has forgotten that he explicitly labelled Hastings as Catholic in series one).
• “Masons are the mafia of the mediocre.” Nice bit of alliteration there, Roz. Should all this come crumbling down, a career in headline writing awaits.
• Is it possible that the three different pictures of Balaclava Man are in fact three different people? Or is that too silly for words?
Weasel of the week
Despite a late bid for attention from the over-smooth Jimmy, this week can only go to ACC Hilton with his dimly lit hotel bar and perpetually wandering hands.
Quote of the week
“I am unable to exclude you, DC Desford, DS Arnott and DS Flynn from a conspiracy to pervert the course of justice in the actions you’ve brought against me – actions which I believe are unfounded, vexatious and intended to obstruct my inquires.” Roz lays down the law to AC-12, and pretty successfully too.
So what did you think? Can AC-12 still get their woman, or will Roz win the day? What exactly is going on in the Huntley marriage? And how upset were you when Maneet turned out to be behind the leak?
