BBC One’s psychological crime drama Luther has seen five seasons to date, leaving plenty of scope for more. The bleak set up, the bizarre crimes and the dark, layered characters make for a fascinating watch.
Within the space of approximately 50 minutes in comparatively few episodes, Luther gives us a tour of the dark and twisted in a way that both creeps you out and makes you come back for more. However, maybe because of the short span of time wherein the makers have to tell their story, several storylines that have appeared throughout the series have not had very comprehensive, clear-cut resolutions.
How Does The Henry Madsen Story Pan Out?
Luther starts with Idris Elba, as John Luther, chasing a man who turns out to be a creep who has kidnapped a young girl. Luther gets the relevant information out of him, enough to save the child, and then he looks on as Madsen falls, presumably to his death.
Later, we learn that Madsen is not dead. He is, in fact, in a coma. And the inquiry committee has not found Luther, who had apparently been suspended earlier, guilty of any misconduct, thus paving the way for him to join the force once again. However, Madsen does wake up and is killed on the same day by Alice Morgan, the psychopathic killer from the first episode with Luther with whom John develops a strange relationship. However, while we see DSU Martin Schenk find the timing of Madsen’s death interesting, we never find out whether he acts on it.
Is Luther Ever Suspected of Zoe’s Murder?
We know that John was already in deep waters and even before the show started we are given to understand that he has an apparently dubious history of dealing with criminals in his own way. When the show starts the inquiry committee that had been investigating one such seemingly dubious event gives him the benefit of doubt, but his reputation is sealed as a possible dirty cop.
Then, when Zoe is murdered, the suspicion turns towards John as he is known to have been quarreling with her over a breakup. Although DCI Reid, who turns out to be actually dirty, is the one that killed Zoe and the gets killed by Alice Morgan, and we do see a follow up on the case at the beginning of the second season, we never quite know what the police, or at least Schenk makes of Luther’s involvement in the matter.
Does Rose Teller Take The Fall For Luther?
After season 1, John Luther goes back to work in a new unit, Serious and Serial, that deals with serious cases of serial killing. We no longer see Rose Teller who had been Luther’s boss in season 1 and had given Luther a second chance after the Henry Madsen affair. Teller is not ignorant of Luther’s possible transgressions but she knows that he is quite simply the best detective on the job.
There is a conversation where Schenk, Luther’s new boss, tells him that good cops take the fall at times, which could be an indication that the entire incident involving DCI Reid, might have caused Teller to step down. Are we to understand that Teller, as well, as her unit, went down because of Schenk’s investigation? Then, again, an investigation into what, really? Did Teller go down because of the suspicion on Luther himself?
What Happens To Jenny Jones?
Jenny Jones is the girl whom Luther saves from getting dragged into the murky world of necro-porn. Much of season 2 is about how Luther plays a cat and mouse game with a woman called Baba who runs the operation.
Fans would know that trying to do Jenny a good turn didn’t go exactly as planned for Luther. Rather, he got involved in the murder of Toby, the depraved grandson of Baba, whom Jenny kills accidentally as he forces himself on her, that too in Luther’s house. Hiding the body and keeping Jenny away from suspicion keeps Luther engaged for much of the season. However, Jenny disappears completely after this, and we never hear of her again. Does she go back to leading a shady life after all this? What happens to her?
What Was The Point Of The Mary Day Storyline?
Mary Day appears as Luther’s love interest in season 3 and gets caught up in a series of unfortunate events. When we last see her, she seems to say goodbye to Luther. But it’s never cleared up whether that’s for good or not.
It’s likely that Mary let Luther go because she understood Luther’s feelings for Alice, and also because she felt grateful to Alice for saving her life. Whatever it was, the ending to Luther and Mary’s relationship seemed hurried and ambiguous.
Where Does Erin’s Story Take Her?
DS Erin Gray was on Luther’s team in the Serious and Serial Unit and then gets kicked out when she raises suspicion on Luther himself. Next, she turns up as part of an exclusive team that works to cleanse the police force from within. However, she starts questioning her choices and then ends up injured during the vigilante killer rampage.
We last see Erin as she is taken away on a stretcher, and she and Luther exchange meaningful glances. It is unclear what happens to her after that. Does she leave the force? Presumably, she gives up pursuing Luther.
What’s The Backstory To Cornelius and Schenk?
Like several other storylines, Luther does not have the time or scope to address certain backstories or even provide resolution to certain storylines. That’s what happens with George Cornelius, a kind of Godfather, belonging to the old-school of crime.
It is hinted that Cornelius is familiar with Martin Schenk, Luther’s boss and that the two know each other pretty well. Now, whether that is due to some shady dealings between them in the past or not remains unclear.
The John-Alice Storyline Was Ambiguous At Best
John’s relationship with Alice remained as mysterious as Alice herself. They were definitely fond of each other, as Luther himself admits and as we find out later they were in a relationship of a sexual nature. But we also know that Alice disappeared soon after and after some mystery surrounding her apparent death, turned up just fine.
However, while John’s association with Alice gives his story that added layer of enigma, it is unclear what he was doing, seemingly all alone and away from civilization even after Alice was gone. Was it a self-imposed exile? Did the makers actually want to give their story a romantic angle?
The Macabre Killer In Season 5
As usual, season 5 gave us a spate of gruesome murders and more than one sinister psychopath. The case was confusing, to say the least, and Luther’s constant disappearance and engagement in other personal matters made matters worse.
When it is finally revealed who the killer is, there is still a level of ambiguity. Is the psychiatrist involved in the crimes of her husband, the psycho doctor? How guilty is she? Was she really going to kill the lady tied up in her basement? She seems to be thoroughly insane herself but there is no resolution to the case as such, except for the fact that both the husband and wife are caught in the end.
The DS Halliday Storyline
DS Catherine Halliday came and went in the 5th season but we might have liked to see more of her. Martin Schenk implies that Halliday has been picked off the public sector and given a rank in the force.
It might have been interesting to learn a bit more about her as we did about DS Erin Gray earlier. But all we see of Halliday is that she is left pretty much on her own as she puts together a case against a depraved criminal. And then she dies unceremoniously. Her story has a stunted arc that never quite gets anywhere. It’s as if the makers decided to put her in to make sure there was a case of the season.
