Happy Valley: Season 3, Episode 5
January 29, 2023 2:14 PM - Season 3, Episode 5 - Subscribe
Catherine races to protect her family as a murder investigation begins.
My suspicion is that Tommy will be killed. First guess is by Ryan and second is by his gran.
posted by dobbs at 3:52 PM on January 29, 2023
posted by dobbs at 3:52 PM on January 29, 2023
Good stuff. After noting the supposed inevitability of the plot last time, there were a few red herrings and fake outs this episode and a fair bit tossed out for speculation for the finale. The one I’m wondering about is whether it is just a coincidence that Nev Gallagher wants to take people on a little Spanish jaunt when Tommy Lee is expecting to flee to Marbella? Everyone lets Catherine down; is Nev, who Catherine was getting close to, going to do something stupid as he tries to take revenge?
Feels like the last episode is going to be jam-packed. There’s the Hepworth storyline, Tommy Lee, the Knezevic’s, the retirement party etc.
posted by Hartster at 12:23 AM on January 30, 2023
Feels like the last episode is going to be jam-packed. There’s the Hepworth storyline, Tommy Lee, the Knezevic’s, the retirement party etc.
posted by Hartster at 12:23 AM on January 30, 2023
I like the way the show sets up Catherine and Tommy as adversaries worthy of each other. After Tommy's escape the easy writing would have been to keep him in the background - gradually learning about Ryan and Catherine's whereabouts and ready to come bursting through a door some time in the finale. But here we Tommy kind of on the back foot: fresh out of prison with a limited time window and meeting people who challenge his demands. Ryan is perfectly written too: on the one hand, insecure enough to be tempted by the wooings of Tommy, and on the other somebody who has inherited both a tendency to challenge norms and to weave complex plots of his own. Catherine, Tommy and Ryan and all skilled hunters as this point.
posted by rongorongo at 1:19 AM on January 30, 2023
posted by rongorongo at 1:19 AM on January 30, 2023
I love how poker-faced Ryan is being played - I genuinely have no idea whether he’s falling for Tommy hook, line and sinker, or hoping to set him up to try and lure him into a trap.
Same way Catherine also often reacts with a long, silent deadpan, except we know her well enough to know what she must be thinking - Ryan is so newly-minted as a (nearly) adult that we’ve no idea. Maybe neither does he and is thinking his way through it.
I think the final ep is a bit longer, but maybe only by 10 mins.
I like to think that Sally Wainwright will want to leave us with at least a touch of a heartwarming message about humanity’s ability to overcome evil, by giving Ryan a redemptive arc. But they’ll surely have to sacrifice someone to a violent death, for The Drama. Maybe Alison, who’s kind of fringey? Or Clare, after Catherine said such horrible things to her this week? Will Clare suddenly, finally, get a backbone and try to show her sister she can act with courage and intervene to try and save either Ryan or Catherine from Tommy? But end up dead with Catherine plagued by guilt for being so harsh on her? So many possibilities!
posted by penguin pie at 8:25 AM on January 30, 2023
Same way Catherine also often reacts with a long, silent deadpan, except we know her well enough to know what she must be thinking - Ryan is so newly-minted as a (nearly) adult that we’ve no idea. Maybe neither does he and is thinking his way through it.
I think the final ep is a bit longer, but maybe only by 10 mins.
I like to think that Sally Wainwright will want to leave us with at least a touch of a heartwarming message about humanity’s ability to overcome evil, by giving Ryan a redemptive arc. But they’ll surely have to sacrifice someone to a violent death, for The Drama. Maybe Alison, who’s kind of fringey? Or Clare, after Catherine said such horrible things to her this week? Will Clare suddenly, finally, get a backbone and try to show her sister she can act with courage and intervene to try and save either Ryan or Catherine from Tommy? But end up dead with Catherine plagued by guilt for being so harsh on her? So many possibilities!
posted by penguin pie at 8:25 AM on January 30, 2023
Anne did right to tell Ryan what happened to her, but not to follow up with the stuff about him not being wanted. I think Ryan realises, though, that Catherine's actions are what's important and she's shown her love for him through what she's consistently done over the years. BUT he's only 16 and that is such a lot to take in, and will he fall for Tommy's patter? I think he realises Tommy only ever talks about himself...
I do hope Clare and Catherine find a way forward. I'm certainly going to be glued to the TV tomorrow evening.
posted by altolinguistic at 2:27 PM on February 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
I do hope Clare and Catherine find a way forward. I'm certainly going to be glued to the TV tomorrow evening.
posted by altolinguistic at 2:27 PM on February 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
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So Tommy Lee Royce told Ryan he loved him. But Catherine didn't. When Ryan told her he loved her, she just said: "What's brought that on?" So presumably Ryan's going to go with Tommy. Or at least try to.
It's a series totally built on people making terrible, but entirely plausible decisions. Brilliant writing that pays off so slowly but meticulously in the way it puts people step by step into positions where those terrible decisions are gradually, subtly arrived at. You can see the thought processes in real time.
posted by penguin pie at 2:18 PM on January 29, 2023 [2 favorites]