Series Round Up: The Fall.

BBC Two's psychological crime thriller had me hooked from the start, and two days after watching the finale of series one, I am still in awe at the script and acting of the show, and unbelievably excited for series two!

The Fall followed Paul Spector, a grief counsellor, husband and father, as he planned and carried out disturbing crimes for sexual gratification. The main difference between The Fall and any other crime thriller of late is the fact you are confronted with the murderer from the very opening scene. Seeing Spector as a father is particularly shocking as you realise he is not a two dimensional monster, but a complex, twisted individual.

There were numerous occasions when I thought Spector was going to get caught; most notably, his final murder, which was unsuccessful, could have easily been interrupted by the violent locals. It was obvious that this murder wasn't as thought through as the others; it seems Spector rushed it as he needed to commit the 'perfect crime' after discovering his last victim was pregnant, tainting her desirability.
The revelation that Sarah Kay was pregnant when he murdered her also revealed a conscience in Spector, as he wrote a letter to Kay's father apologising and admitting he would never have killed someone who was pregnant.
This letter provided key information for the police; not only were they given the killer's handwriting, but also they discovered a child's drawing engraved on the paper, deducing that the killer was the father to a young girl. This information, along with a photofit provided by a former lover of Spector, rendered it highly irritating that Spector wasn't caught by Gibson! In the finale episode, Spector voluntarily visited the police station after seeing himself on CCTV footage concerning the murders. Obviously, he wasn't going to confess, but rather rule himself out of the investigations, rather arrogant and risky don't you agree? Through these routine interviews, however, he revealed he had a young girl and also provided his handwriting, so I was disappointed when the police didn't put two and two together.
Throughout the whole series, I was terrified that Spector was going to make Gibson his next victim; yes, she didn't fit his 'type', but he seemed to be increasingly obsessed with her and it would be a pretty big statement.  I was literally hiding my face behind cushions every time he came into contact with her! Another possibility of this obsession towards Gibson would be that Spector is attracted to her; let's be honest, she's good looking and a lot stronger than Spector's wife, who was a bit of a pushover, really.
Yes, his wife lied to the police about his whereabouts on the nights of the murders. And still no one suspects him of murder! Instead, he falsely confesses to having an affair with their 15 year old babysitter, who is infatuated with him. What would you rather be, a serial killer or paedophile?
Despite discovering her husband has had "an affair", Spector's wife agrees to run away with him (again, no suspicion?!). Even whilst watching the car drive away, I was expecting police cars to arrive and trap him. But no, he got away.
If this was the end of the story, I would be extremely disappointed. But thankfully, there will be a second series! So with the increasing profile the police are building of the murderer, the photofit and the fact Spector's last victim has just woken up, it's looking like it'll be a very interesting series.

Catch up on The Fall on iPlayer here.