One episode into The Suspect on ITV and we feel a bit like Dr Joe O’Loughlin’s impromptu rescue mission – left dangling with no real idea how we’ve got into such a ludicrous situation.
The Suspect boasts an impeccable cast, with Aidan Turner, Anjli Mohindra (as DS Riya Devi) and Shaun Parkes all putting in compellingly watchable performances.
But are they – particularly Aidan – finessing characters that are poorly sketched out, rather than layered? Time will tell.
In the meantime, here are six questions bothering us after episode one.
1. Will Joe do anything asked of him?
He’s got a book deal, a media profile – although no hint of social media follower count, tsk – and his own private practice with a curiously spooky receptionist.
And a seemingly wonderful and loving family, of course. So why is Joe (played by Poldark star Aidan) so easily induced to put himself in danger’s way needlessly?
Viewers’ introduction to Joe as he talked down a terminally ill 18-year-old standing on a ledge framed him as a hero.
Indeed, several of Joe’s various friends and associates subsequently hailed him that way.
But for a very clever bloke, Joe’s role as an all-action understudy negotiator seemed a bit daft. He’s got early onset Parkinson’s, so we’re told, for one matter.
And he looks like he can barely be bothered to comb his hair. But overall, he just didn’t think – or allow himself the time to think – before being shoved out onto the ledge.
Sure, he has a professional edge when it comes to communication and understanding. But not in regards to wrangling harnesses and more safety equipment than would be needed for an expedition up Mount Everest.
Wouldn’t anyone, particularly a person of such deep thought, pause for a moment before going all Die Hard before the opening credits rolled?
The same overall principle applies with being casually invited to profile potential suspects during a murder investigation.
And agreeing to it.
Imagine what kind of soft touch Joe must be when he tries to renew his phone contract.
Hey, Joe – if somebody told you to jump off a cliff (rather than a ledge), would you do that, too?
2. What does the number 21 mean to Bobby Moran?
Joe’s patient Bobby (player by Bobby Schofield) scares people as he whispers to himself. But he does more than that when it comes to physical intimidation. He’s recently been nicked for assaulting a woman at a bus stop.
Asked whether the number 21 – which he scrawled many times on a piece of paper – is associated with good or bad memories for him, Bobby teases his dad used to drive a number 21 bus.
But when a murder victim is found with 21 stab wounds, Joe seems determined to link Bobby to the killing. He also mulls the possibility over with his pal Dr Jack Owens (Adam James).
Maybe the question should be: does the number 21 mean anything to Joe?
3. Will DI Vince Ruiz just laugh in Joe’s face at some point?
Shaun Parkes’ line in barely-concealed exasperation as DI Ruiz is a joy to watch.
His murder-weary copper has seen it all during his career. And has no doubt had to keep a cap on it when presented with the foulest and most bizarre situations. However, Joe’s odd behaviour seemed to test his professional diplomacy.
The move from guarded surprise as Joe claimed he didn’t recognise the body of a woman – who we later learned had previously levelled sexual assault charges at him – in the mortuary, to Ruiz’s strained incredulity at the doc being at the cemetery at the same time as him as the corpse was discovered was a delight.
It was a particularly fitting reaction to the dense, dense exposition surrounding the death of Joe’s mum in a house fire and the weird leaves ritual which may or not be cover for why Joe’s fingerprints are on a spade.
A lot of heavy lifting for the actors, there. But Shaun (who you will have seen in these shows before) offers an incredibly light touch to Ruiz’s doubtfulness in the face of such absurd developments.
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4. What is Joe’s relationship with Dr Rachel Fenwick?
Dr Rachel (played by Sian Clifford) was only in a couple of scenes in the opening instalment of The Suspect. However, she’s clearly close to Joe, and not just in a professional sense.
Although there is that connection, too. Their offices are in the same building, and it seems she prefers to offer her patients a pill rather than the talking cure.
Joe also shares his view that Bobby is “unsettling” with her and doesn’t dismiss her appraisal, even though she doesn’t work with Bobby.
But their relationship goes beyond work. She confides – seemingly in jest – that her wedding plans are “ongoing, irritating and expensive” before asking Joe if he’ll walk her down the aisle.
So how long have they known each other, will any of their history be revealed and what relevance does that past have to Joe’s present?
5. Is Dr Jack jealous of Joe?
Every utterance from neurologist Dr Jack to Joe seems like a jab, testing his range.
From the way he asks after Joe’s wife Julianne, to suggesting Joe receives “special treatment” to constantly referring to Joe as “my friend”.
Don’t forget the arm wrestling, too. It’s the kind of tedious passive-aggression that would get Dr Jack muted in the virtual world.
But is it more of an unfriendly rivalry, rather than established competitive banter between friends?
They go back to university and Dr Jack was the person to diagnose and break Joe’s condition to him. So he has quite a lot of influence over his pal and patient.
However, it isn’t long before viewers are presented with the possibility Dr Jack undermines Joe. He expresses doubt about Joe’s ponderings about Bobby Moran.
But rather than consider his friend’s concerns, he then suggests Joe’s ambition with profiling could bring him grief.
Dr Jack might also be a bit wounded that is was Joe who married Julianne, despite his bantering boast about his “dominance of the last 20 years remains supreme”.
Will Dr Jack prove more foe than friend in these testing times for Joe?
What’s with the beard?
We’re at least a decade past Peak Beard times, yet Joe still sports Mr Twit-style facial fuzz.
Actor Aidan has explained he had a beard IRL when the part was offered. And so the decision was made to keep it as it “felt right” for the part.
Thing is, with a beard that lustrous, it seems inconceivable he’d have any time for any murders, leaf fights or any of it. That’s because it probably requires five hours of maintenance a day. And another five hours dedicated purely to stroking it.
Some hazy flashbacks – including Catherine (Tara Lee) smiling at Joe while alive, but is that a moment of recollection, or pure fantasy? – suggest a beard pay off may be in the reckoning.
As any fella who’s every grown a whopping beard will testify, the real fun is in trying out wacky looks while shaving it off. Could a future flashback include a reveal of a bare-faced Joe?
Read more: The Suspect on ITV: Is the psychological drama based on a book? Who wrote it?
The second episode of The Suspect airs on ITV, Monday September 5, at 9pm.
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