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A detective show that's more then just the usual bad guys and good guys.

DVD Review: George Gently: Series 4

When filming any period piece television and film makers take great pains to make everything as authentic as possible. Whether it’s ensuring the clothing people wear or the sets they act on are accurate representations of the period or they’re speaking in dialects appropriate to the age, the attention to detail is remarkable. Yet for all the care taken film makers will still slip up in one crucial area by allowing characters to react in a matter reflecting modern attitudes and sensibilities. Perhaps I’m the only who finds it jarring to see anachronisms in behaviour, but when a character in a movie set in the 1950s expresses opinions more in line with the 21st Century it can ruin the whole show for me.

In fact, the closer a piece is to being contemporary the harder it is to ensure characters stay consistent with the tenor of their times. Especially difficult are those eras when a society is going through a period of radical change as it’s tempting to allow characters to become caught up in events and ignore the reality of their situation.

Like everywhere else, the north of England in the second half of the 1960s was a society divided between those hell bent on preserving the comfortable world of their youth and those who weren’t going to be satisfied with the world of their parents. While this type of atmosphere could provide complications for a police force, the law stays the law, and no matter what’s going on it has to be enforced. While that might sound somewhat inflexible, in the hands of Inspector George Gently (Martin Shaw) in George Gently: Series 4, released on DVD July 3 2012 by Acorn Media, it provides a moral compass which helps him steer a smooth course in turbulent times.

Teamed up once again with his young Sergeant, John Bacchus, (Lee Ingleby) the two 90-minute episodes of Series 4 bring the two officers face to face with the shifting moral ground of the times. In the first the death of a female secondary school student takes them into the fantasy world of pop music and romantic poems. In episode two the officers have to deal with a case of local authorities wanting to not only maintain the status quo but turn the clock back in order to keep the peace. While each case is different, the two are forced to put their personal opinions and feelings aside and rely on the letter of the law in order to reach correct conclusions.

As viewers of previous series are aware, despite his youth and appreciation for some of the material changes occurring, flash cars and sharp suits, Bacchus is the more conservative of the two when it comes to social issues. However, this doesn’t make Gently some sort of advocate for change. It’s just that he’s seen more of life than his junior, but instead of it turning him cynical and bitter it has made him more compassionate and understanding of others and their situations. Yet no matter how sympathetic he might be towards a person and their circumstances, he’s firm in the belief that nobody is above the law. It was this belief which ran him afoul of his fellow officers when he served in London, he refused to turn a blind eye to police officers on the take, and continues to make him the bane of anyone who tries to obstruct or take the law into their own hands.

While the opinions and views of both Bacchus and Gently might seem a little dated or old fashioned to today’s viewers, and the object of some derision among those they end up dealing with in their cases, they are consistent with people in their line of work and background for the time period.

In the first episode their investigation takes them into the strange world of teenage girls on the verge of becoming women. Unlike earlier generations whose rebellion might have taken the form of illicit cigarettes, these girls are demanding independence and dreaming of being more than just dutiful wives and mothers. While this serves to muddy the waters of the circumstances surrounding the case of the girl who was murdered by introducing a number of potential suspects, including the host of a pop music show and one of the girl’s teachers, it also shows the strength of the series’ writing.

Some might look upon this type of setting as an opportunity to make some sort of statement or comment on society. However, in this series, they content themselves with depicting as accurately as possible what was happening during the time period and let the police get on with trying to solve the murder.

Although the plot does hinge on the overheated fantasy of a teenage girl, social conditions at the time have little or no bearing on who the guilty party is. Watching the two officers squirm,, especially Bacchus as they deal with a teenage girl’s burgeoning sexuality is both funny and consistent with what we’ve seen of the characters previously. It also makes perfect sense considering the time period. Sex was not something talked about easily by most people during this time, and discussing it in terms of young girls was just not done.

In episode two we are given an even clearer picture of Gently’s strict adherence to his own moral code. An informer Gently had used for many years both in London and in his new location turns up dead under mysterious circumstances. With the death occurring outside his jurisdiction he has to rely on another areas police force for information about the death. When he discovers an old colleague from his days in London is in charge he is initially hopeful, but he soon discovers discrepancies in the reports about the death that make him suspect something is being covered up. In spite of attempts to stonewall him, Gently eventually does end up solving the case.

However, while finding out how the victim died is of course the point of the episode, the circumstances surrounding the incident are such they offer a test to Gently’s “nobody’s above the law” credo. Not only does he pass the test once but twice in this episode. For aside from the coverup surrounding his informer’s death there are other abuses of the system going on in the small community. Some might have seen the extenuating circumstances which are revealed as justification for not pressing charges against those involved with both impeding investigations into the murder and the other activities. Bacchus raises the question with his superior only to be told, in no uncertain terms, nobody is above the law, for any reason.

When working on a series set in recent history it would be difficult not to allow contemporary views and opinions to colour either a character’s behaviour or their reactions to situations. One of the great strengths of the entire George Gently series is not only how well they manage to depict the way changes in society’s attitudes and beliefs have a way of trickling into all aspects of life, but the various character’s reactions to what’s happening. Whether it’s a teenage daughter refusing to conform to her parents’ expectations as to what’s proper behaviour or the larger issues of the day everything is presented in as realistic a fashion as possible. George Gently: Series 4, while living up to the standards set by the previous series as a police procedural television show a notch above others of its kind, is further proof, if any were needed, of how well the show’s creators have handled this task.

The two-disc DVD set not only contains both episodes from Series 4, it also includes a behind-the-scenes documentary on the filming of the previous episodes. It has the usual shots of the cast members joking around on set and some amusing chatter from each lead about the other. However, they each make a point of talking about the time period the show is set in and how interesting it is to do an almost contemporary period piece. As interesting as it is for them to act in, George Gently: Series 4 is as fascinating to watch. Not only is the show intelligent and well acted it’s also an unsentimental look at a time which is too often coloured by somebody’s personal opinion. For those wanting a detective show with more than just the usual bad guys and good guys, this will make a perfect fit.

About Richard Marcus

Richard Marcus is the author of three books commissioned by Ulysses Press, "What Will Happen In Eragon IV?" (2009) and "The Unofficial Heroes Of Olympus Companion" and "Introduction to Greek Mythology For Kids". Aside from Blogcritics he contributes to Qantara.de and his work has appeared in the German edition of Rolling Stone Magazine and has been translated into numerous languages in multiple publications.

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