*Spoilers*
Last night's Line of Duty threw some big old plot twists into the works. The two biggies: it looks like Roz's husband Nick is Balaclava Man (like 'Eric IS Bananaman!' but far more sinister) and DS Steve might have just been murdered by him (though we sincerely hope not). The episode also saw Roz continue her All Time Worst Week At Work by attempting to engineer the investigation into the murder she committed, forcing square pegs into round holes all over the shop. Particularly troublesome to watch was her pressing an already-vulnerable Hana into the suspect spot with some fairly unethical lines of questioning.
With three episodes down, three still to come, here are some questions we want answered:
Is Steve dead?
The last few moments of episode 3 showed Steve being thrown down a stairwell by Balaclava Man (who we now assume is Roz's husband Nick) and lying unconscious with a serious head injury. It's not clear whether the series regular is dead, but even if he is alive will he regain consciousness in time to warn his colleagues about Balaclava Man? Superintendent Hastings did know he was on his way to confront Nick (and tried to warn him not to) so hopefully they'll be able to pick up the trail fairly quickly.
If Nick is Balaclava Man, how did he manage to change clothes so quickly?
This could be a continuity error, but did anyone else wonder how Nick managed to change out of a full suit and tie into a bomber jacket, jeans, workman's boots and a balaclava in the time it took Steve to ride up to his floor in the lift? The speed suggests Nick has either a) an accomplice or b) access to a Stars In Their Eyes smoke machine that changes him from suited corporate lawyer to off-duty murderer in a puff of dry ice. (Seriously though, this writer wondered for years as a child how the Stars In Their Eyes contestants managed to get changed so quickly, before working out in her adulthood that the whole thing was pre-recorded 'tonight, singing "live"').
Will it now look like Roz was covering for Nick? And what's the deal with the CCTV footage of Nick's car?
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Roz said she was at home all evening sick on the night of Tim's murder. Her phone was switched off and left at home so there was no opportunity for Steve to use GPS to track her movements. But, there was a call from one of Roz's kids made from the home phone asking if they could order a Domino's pizza. Obviously if Roz was home as she said she was there'd be no need for them to call her. And it seems Nick was out too, with police finding CCTV images of his car driving towards and away from Tim's flat (though did Roz borrow his car? We can't actually remember if we ever saw her mode of transport - answers on a postcard please). In any case, the car and her woolly alibi will surely now make it look like Roz was covering up for a murder Nick committed as Balaclava Man. It's already been noted as suspicious that Roz happened to be ill the morning after Tim went missing. What will happen to Hana now?
'We just need to find a link between Farmer and Tim and we've cracked the case' said Roz cheerfully after Hana's home had been searched. But this theory is surely about to tumble like a pack of cards once Steve's *apparent* discovery that Balaclava Man is her husband Nick gets out. This is all pretty unfortunate for Roz, since DNA evidence showing Tim had visited Hana's home as a 'client' was really working in her favour.
What did we learn from Melanie's identification of Farmer?
From the beginning Roz has been determined to prove Farmer's guilt in any way possible, and she barely conceals her delight when a woman named Melanie comes in and picks Farmer out from a line-up after claiming a man who fitted his description harassed her on the street some time before the murders. Melanie's suggestion that 'he looks nervous' when the footage of Farmer flashes up suggests she picks him him in error because he looks right and because she feels pressure to choose someone - a noted flaw in real police line-ups. Having previously denied the incident happened, Farmer then says he did harass the woman but didn't mean to hurt her. 'I was lonely' he says. The allegation against him might be true, but since Melanie wasn't physically harmed it suggests he's more of a disturbed loner rather than a calculating serial killer. 'If there's one reason why we do this job it's this. We protect life' says Roz after Melanie picks out Farmer. Oh the irony.
Is the loyal Jodie going to wise up to Roz's B.S?
Come on, Jodie!
