Luther season 5 episode 2 review: Is Luther happy to see Alice?
Why is Alice back and how?
Well two years ago she tried to sell those diamonds to George (so that she and Luther could run away together), but instead ended up abducted by some men after George tried to double cross her. Afterwards she lost the diamonds and was facing arrest as the sirens got closer. How did she disappear and fake her death? With the help of a retired police officer and money.
So was Luther happy to see Alice at his door step? He says he’s not, but we know he is in some ways and after putting a gun in his face and collapsing he takes her in as she needs a place to hide. She’s injured and while he tends to her wounds he tells her that he doesn’t want anything to do with whatever mess she’s in, but still wants to know what happened. Turns out George is the one that shot her and she is the one holding his son – she demanded that he give her the money owed for the diamonds and in exchange for Alister, but instead George pulled out that shotgun and started blasting, hitting her with shrapnel.
When George and his men show up at Luther’s house for Alice (they know that he’s her weak spot) they escape through the ceiling and boost a car. They head to Alice’s parents house bringing Luther to where she is keeping Alister. He uncuffs Alister and brings him to George hoping that it will all be over, but George wants Alice and that will make things square between them. Luther is willing to give him every penny he has to make things square and George says he will think on it and give him a call. He calls Alice and tells her that it’s done and that she needs to go now, ending whatever could’ve been with them.
So is it really over? No. George wants Alice and nothing else will do, so he has captured Benny and is torturing him until he gets Alice. Luther agrees to hand over Alice, but we suspect (and hope) that he has another plan in mind. He heads back to her parents place to get her, but she’s gone leaving Luther holding the bag.
She shows up at George’s house in disguise claiming to be a “welcome home present” for Alister and ends up alone in a room with him. All it took was those few moments and now Alister is dead and Luther’s problems just got a whole lot worse.
The case
Halliday brings her theory to Luther in that Dr. Lake knew that she was close to being caught and put James up as a scape-goat to protect her and her relationship. Their first stop is to pay Lake’s husband a visit – which is probably a good thing since he’s the killer while his wife is trying to find a way to keep it all under control. He promises to play safer next time, but as soon as he leaves the house he’s on the prowl again before going to work… as heart surgeon.
While we’ve seen Dr. Lake humiliate her husband on the regular, at work he’s the boss and a commanding one. Luther isn’t able to get much out of him, but they did see him looking at the MRI of a skull which is strange since he is a heart specialist.
Related: Check out what’s coming up on Luther season 5 episode 3
CarterMatt Verdict
We have been sorely missing the Luther/Alice relationship and this episode gave us everything we wanted. The cat and mouse games, the tension between them, and the undeniable connection they have. Luther isn’t a love story, it never was and it never will be, but there’s something so wonderfully flawed about this relationship that we can’t get enough of.
What did you think of Luther season 5 episode 2 and was it worth the wait? Leave us a comment in the box below with your thoughts. (BBC One)