User Reviews

Prime Suspect 4 marks a departure for the series. Gone is series writer and creator Lynda La Plante. The other major change is the format; this series consists of three unrelated episodes, with some unifying characteristics.

Spoilers: When we last saw DCI Tennison, she had failed to gather enough evidence to convict Edward Parker-Jones of the death of Colin "Conny" Jenkins and for running a pedophile ring; but, she gained a measure of justice by subtly providing a journalist the opportunity to reveal the story. She was able to extort a promise of promotion from her superiors, if she solved the case and gained a conviction. She earns her promotion to Detective Superintendent, even though she doesn't obtain a conviction. She also finds that she is pregnant with the child of a former lover, a married man. After the horrors she has witnessed and learned, she decides to terminate the pregnancy. This episode opens with Tennison having her abortion. She wants to quickly return to work so she doesn't have to confront her emotions. Unfortunately, her first case involves the apparent abduction of an infant. Tennison becomes increasingly desperate to recover the child; and when it is found dead, to bring the killer to justice. Although the previous series involved the dangers of pedophiles preying on kids on the street and in state institutions, this series confronts the harsher reality of a pedophile in a domestic situation. Tennison's prime suspect is a pedophile who was released after serving his sentence and undergoing treatment. Like most offenders, he was the product of abuse himself. At points he seems like he is truly trying to live a normal and healthy life; and at others, his actions are suspicious. To add to the mix, one of Tennison's detectives seems obsessed with this case. He nearly causes the suspect's death and sets into motion events which lead to his escape and taking of hostages. Tennison discovers that her officer was also the survivor of abuse, although his life took a more positive path. While Tennison attempts to resolve the hostage situation, without loss of life, she uncovers the truth of what happened to the infant victim. The siege ends safely, but Tennison has faced her own loss and had a glimpse of what life could have been like had she chosen to carry out her pregnancy. In the end, she doesn't know if she is better or worse off. The performances are good, as always, and the writing, although not La Plante's, holds up well. As always, issues are presented without providing easy solutions, much like life.

A special note for Star Wars fans; check out Anthony Daniels, sans C3PO costume, as a pathologist. He demonstrates far greater skill than he was allowed to show in the other films.

One woman kills her unborn child and continues her career, another kills her child and will suffer the consequences for the rest of her life. Where's the justice?

The biggest mistake with the writing in this episode is that they actually believed that the supposed kidnapper showed up to kidnap the baby and didn't have a car, seriously? I am pretty sure any kidnapper would have planned better, so he or she steals the baby's mom's car, a car they could readily identify? That gave away the whole story line, honestly, some lazy writing, it was frustrating to watch, none of them should have been that stupid and they latched on to who they wanted to be guilty and didn't investigate any further!

A baby gets abducted and the prime suspect is a convicted pedophile. As emotions build up, the members of CID London have to pull themselves together to stay professional and focused.

The worst episode of this otherwise excellent series is surely The Lost Child. Not only was the plot completely obvious after 15 minutes, the depiction of paedophilia hysteria was itself hysterical. The throwing of a suspect in front of speeding van by a senior police officer was completely over the top and thoroughly unbelievable. On top of that we have to suffer through the completely rubbish acting of Beatie Edney playing the role of the mother of the abducted child.

Given the short running time of this episode, the proceedings felt rushed. But this could have been forgiven if the writing had been up to the standard of the previous seasons. It didn't even come close.

4/10