John Luther, the protagonist of BBC One’s crime drama Luther, is a troubled man. You might be scared to walk past a bush alone if watch this show, but the show is addictive enough to make you always come back for more.
Luther comes with a lot of fascinating characters and throws us into the dark, twisted world of the most horrific crimes imaginable. The layered personalities of its characters, especially that of John Luther, makes it all the more intriguing. Played by the charismatic Idris Elba, DCI Luther is a brilliant police detective and a man who frequently runs into scrapes with the law himself, and manages to get away with, until he doesn’t.
John Luther Is Manipulative
Luther is extremely manipulative when it comes to interrogating his suspects. In the very first episode, we see him interrogating Alice Morgan and his instincts as a detective are demonstrated when he is able to discern her acute narcissism and the fact that she herself is the killer.
Manipulation is a chief part of Luther’s job description and he is a master manipulator. Had he been less impulsive, and kept a cool head, he might have got into less trouble with the law himself.
John Is Good With Psychology
Following on from the last point, Luther might have made a very good shrink; he is an expert at getting into the suspect’s psychology. Given that this is a psychological thriller, and most of the crimes depicted require keen insight into the dark side of human psychology, it’s natural that the protagonist will have an excellent grasp of psychology.
Luther is often seen to be thinking like the criminals he is after, which is how he knows where to look and when. He is able to put himself in the criminal’s shoes and makes impulsive decisions, the rest is left to fate.
DCI Luther Has A Death Wish
Luther is suicidal. And this is not just an assumption. He is actually shown standing at the edge of the roof of a very tall building and discussing falling off it with a dead Justin Ripley.
Above everything else, Luther throws himself impulsively into the most dangerous situations, ignoring protocol and more importantly, not taking into account the extent of danger involved. In season 4, he is shown barging through the doors of a suspected cannibal—yes, that’s right, a cannibal —who had previously booby-trapped a refrigerator and had Luther’s colleague Theo Bloom blow up, against the express wishes of his boss.
Luther Is Drawn To Dangerous People
This is again a follow up of the last point. Luther is drawn to the most dangerous people. And it’s not just the fact that he is a cop; in his personal life as well, he seems to be putting himself, voluntarily or involuntarily, in danger.
Luther’s strange relationship and his seeming infatuation with the psychopathic killer Alice Morgan is a prime example of his fascination with the dangers of the unknown. On top of that, he got himself involved in the murky affair of Jenny Jones and Baba, or with the gangster George Cornelius.
John Is A Closeted Sentimentalist
This might not seem obvious, off the top of the head, when it comes to John Luther, but he does get sentimental. He might come across as this tall, dark and handsome man, reticent, and obsessed with his job, but he is also a man who loves deeply and feels things profoundly.
We see him completely broken up over Zoe’s death. Luther is a sentimentalist when it comes to it, which might get lost underneath his apparent tough-guy image. He might not be much of a family man, but he is not devoid of emotions.
Luther Is A Bond-Esque Character
The dark and twisted world of Luther might make it difficult to see the parallels between DCI John Luther and James Bond. Like Bond, Luther is phenomenal at what he does, yet he mostly is a lone wolf and has a reputation for his escapades with the law that he tries to protect.
Bond, despite being difficult to handle, is often given the benefit of doubt by his superior—M, for instance—simply because he is the best MI5 agent. Luther, too, has his bosses looking the other way because they know that he is unmatched, there is no one quite as good as him. Just as Bond doesn’t always follow orders to the tee, neither does Luther. In fact, he tends to get into trouble with all the wrong sorts more often than not.
Being A Cop Keeps John Alive
Being a copper is not just a profession, but more like a calling for Luther. He is a born detective, his instincts for knowing when someone is lying, or picking up things like when someone’s effect is off, are superb.
But it’s not just that he is great at his job, the job is also what he lives for, his passion. Even when he is seen taking time off with Alice Morgan, he is absorbed by the crimes that are taking place in the city, that he is not able to solve. That is all he can think of. We also know that when he was married to Zoe he became distant from her and more and more obsessed with his work, finally leading to their separation.
Luther Is Quite Familiar With Pop Culture
In spite of the gloomy environment he works in and the gruesome crimes he solves, Luther is not ignorant or unfamiliar with some light-hearted stuff. He is a fan of David Bowie, who is mentioned more than once, especially in the first two seasons.
Luther even uses Bowie’s cut-up technique to discern patterns in a serial killing case in season 1, episode 4. From the reaction of his colleague, it’s clear that he uses this method frequently. Afterward, Jenny Jones expresses her gratitude towards him by gifting him a framed photograph of David Bowie. There are also references to Basil Brush’s Boom Boom.
Luther Has An Intellectual Bent Of Mind
A common stereotype on popular television is the depiction of cops as the brawny, tough guys, good-hearted, and with good instincts, in case they are detectives, but not very well-read otherwise.
Luther shatters those stereotypes as the protagonist is shown to be an educated man who is able to initiate and participate in intellectually stimulating conversations. He is aware of concepts like Occam’s Razor and often demonstrates an intellectual bent of mind.
Luther Seeks Challenge In The Crimes He Solves
The crimes that Luther solves and the macabre criminals he chases act as a kind of release for the brilliant detective. He is impulsive by nature and is faced daily by the most heinous of crimes. One of the ways he is able to release all his pent up emotions is by immersing himself in darker crimes.
The violent crimes challenge Luther’s genius and as he loses himself in them, he strives to prove himself better than the depraved criminals he is after. His obsession to fight injustice is also somewhat therapeutic for him, as he gets to release a bit more emotion and negative energy with each new crime and each new challenge.
