The highly anticipated Happy Valley ending aired last night, and some viewers have predictably been vocal about what disappointed them inthe series 3 finale.
While many fans were overjoyed to finally see the end of Tommy Lee Royce and a happy ending for Catherine Cawood, viewers made sure to point out everything that was missing from the final episode!
Here are the 8 things that disappointed some in the Happy Valley finale…
***WARNING: Spoilers ahead for the finale episode of Happy Valley series 3***
1. We never found out why Rob Hepworth’s daughter Poppy never takes off her coat
The final episode of Happy Valley did provide an answer for what happened to creepy PE teacher Rob Hepworth.
While he wasn’t jailed for murdering his wife Joanna, he was jailed for indecent images on his phone which he got after he “blackmailed a lad in school”.
But viewers were irked when they realised that we never got an answer for why his daughter Poppy never took off her coat!
One viewer shared: “I’m fuming we never found out why the PE teacher’s daughter never took her coat off!”
Another viewer agreed: “They never really explained that and it really bothered me because they kept drawing attention to it.”
The final episode did reveal that Poppy Hepworth and her sister would be taken care of by her grandparents.
And while the final episode never provided answers for why Poppy always wears her coat, Mollie Winnard, who plays Joanna, did.
She told The Mirror: “It’s actually a trauma thing, so it’s a [protective] layer.
“[The coat] is definitely to protect [herself] because of what she’s living in, the environment that she’s living in. She doesn’t want to take her coat off.”
She added that it was inspired by the character Sajit from East Is East, who never took his parka off living with his abusive father.
2. Happy Valley series 3 finale: Fans complain that Faisal’s ending was rushed
In the last couple of minutes of the series 3 finale, Catherine passed along information to her boss Andy Shepherd which we assume led to Faisal being arrested.
Alison told Catherine that a dodgy pharmacist was giving pills to her probation officer, and Catherine pieced together that Faisal must have been who was giving Joanna diazepam.
When she revealed that Faisal lived only “1oo feet” away from the Hepworths, we knew that Joanna got justice and Faisal would likely be jailed for her murder.
But many fans felt like Faisal’s ending was too rushed, considering how much screen time the story had in series 3.
One fan wrote: “The slight grumble I have is the end to the Faisal storyline. We deserved to see their justice served but it was handled as well as could be off camera.”
A second viewer added: “Did anyone else find the whole Hepworth/Faisal part of the storyline was crazily rushed at the end and basically as if they’d nearly forgotten about it?!”
3. What was the point of that Richard and Darius meeting?
In episode 5, there was a big plot point that revolved around Richard planning to meet Darius Knezevic, before the gangster cancelled.
Fans were even worried that it was a clue that Richard wouldn’t make it out of the finale alive, but he didn’t even appear in the final episode at all!
Viewers are now wondering what the point of that storyline was and why it was never tied up.
Tommy obviously ended up killing the rest of the Knezevics while Darius was jailed, but what was the point of that Richard and Darius meeting?
Plenty of fans complained about Richard’s absence: “Funny that nothing big happened with Neil or Richard #HappyValley.”
Another fan commented: “Richard’s side story was built up and then just dropped?”
4. Happy Valley series 3 finale: Viewers think Rob Hepworth’s ending felt rushed
As previously stated, Rob Hepworth was imprisoned for having indecent images of a young boy on his phone.
It obviously connected to the “rushed” ending for Faisal, but fans think Rob Hepworth’s ending was rushed.
And they wanted to see the creepy PE teacher suffer a little more!
Reverend Richard Coles even took to Twitter to complain about the storyline! He wrote: “I would have liked IDEALLY a two hour final episode of #HappyValley with more time to resolve the Rob/Joanna/Faisal sub-plot.
“It felt a bit like that moment in Shakespeare when a minor character comes on and says “the king hath just slain the queen, but what were you saying?”
Another fan added: “Honestly, I wanted Rob to get a harsher punishment than Tommy Lee Royce in the end.”
But one viewer explained that they loved how all the baddies’ storylines were tied up. They wrote: “I love that the evil men’s fates didn’t even need to be shown. Darius? Busted off-screen. Faisal? Arrested off-screen. That Hepworth [bleep]? Charged off-screen.
“And Tommy Lee Royce? Tried to die on-screen but ultimately bumped off via text. Glorious.”
5. Viewers think the Catherine and Tommy showdown could have been more violent
The showdown between Catherine and Tommy was intense as we watched Catherine realise Tommy was sitting at her kitchen table.
And watching Tommy douse himself in petrol and set himself on fire certainly provided a nice bit of action – not to mention a circle up on the opening of the very first episode of Happy Valley.
But fans can’t help but think that the interaction could have been a bit more violent.
Their entire showdown was pretty dialogue heavy, but we wouldn’t have complained if Catherine got at least one kick in!
One viewer wrote: “It didn’t have the big twist or huge action showdown I expected.”
Another fan added: “I would have loved to have seen Catherine kick Tommy’s arse one final time.”
A third fan pleaded: “Put the taser down and have a fistfight with him!”
6. Viewers wanted to see Ryan in the Catherine and Tommy showdown
Viewers also wished that Ryan was a part of the Catherine and Tommy showdown.
Ryan has been between the pair throughout the whole show, so fans wished that he had a part to play in the showdown.
While fans were obviously overjoyed that Ryan ultimately chose his grandmother, they wanted to see him really stand up to Tommy.
One fan ranted: “Ryan should’ve been involved in the showdown.”
Another fan added that they thought the showdown between Catherine and Tommy was “excellent” but “underwhelming without Ryan”.
A third fan complained: “Tommy died, they could’ve at least had Ryan pull the plug!”
7. Happy Valley series 3 finale: What was the point of Alison’s return?
Fans were disappointed that Alison’s return didn’t have a bigger meaning, as they had some big theories about it!
She obviously helped Catherine connect Faisal to Joanna’s murder, but fans wished she had a more significant part to play in the finale.
One fan ranted: “Alison could’ve been involved more!”
A second fan added: “Am I the only person that thought the ending of #HappyValley was an anti-climatic? What about Alison?!”
A third fan agreed: “Amazing finale – except I was convinced Alison’s dodgy clutch was going to be key somehow…”
Read more: Happy Valley what happened next: Catherine Cawood and grandson Ryan five years on…
Fans think too many characters were missing from the finale
You might have noticed quite a few characters were missing from the finale.
There was no appearance from Richard or Catherine’s son Daniel or Ann!
Fans wished that we could’ve at least seen Ann react to Tommy Lee Royce’s death after all he put her through in series one.
One fan wrote: “I have only one criticism: where the [bleep] was Ann!”
A second fan complained: “The #happyvalley finale was perfect and brilliant but I need to know if Ann is okay because she was *not* okay last episode.”
Hopefully, Ann can get peace now that Tommy Lee Royce really is gone…
Happy Valley series 1-3 are now available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
Were you disappointed in the Happy Valley series 3 finale? Leave us a comment on Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think.