The more I see of Peter Davison the more I enjoy his work.  I first encountered him in Doctor Who, and though I thought that he wasn't the best choice to replace Tom Baker at the time, looking back at his seasons with the show I realize that he did a very credible job.  Davison has appeared in many British shows and movies, and he's able to play a wide range of roles very convincingly, something many highly paid movie stars can't pull off.  In The Last Detective, Davison brings to life the mild mannered detective DC "Dangerous" Davies and instills the character with charm and human foibles that makes the show enjoyable to watch.

Detective Constable Davies (Peter Davison), "Dangerous" to his friends and foes alike because he isn't, is a middle-aged man who doesn't quite fit in his job.  He's just doesn't seem to be rugged and tough person who could handle being on the police force, and he's not. Because he's not callous and hardened like the rest of the squad, and not particularly outstanding at his job, he's not well liked.  The fact that he has turned in a fellow officer for a capital crime earns him the enmity of the rest of the squad and especially his Inspector.  He's known as The Last Detective, the last one who will get a good assignment or will ever be called to work an important case.

Not only is his professional life not going well, his private life is in a shambles too.  He's getting divorced from his wife, though he's not really sure it's the right move, and his only friend is Mod (Sean Hughes), a younger man who jumps from job to job.

In this season of four episodes, Dangerous Davies has his work cut out for him.  In Christine he's presented with a locked room mystery when a rich painter dies locked in his studio that burns down.  Everyone is ready to pin the crime on his unpleasant, attractive and much younger wife, but Davies isn't so sure.

Next Davies apparently discovers where a serial killer has buried his victims.  As more and more skeletons are unearthed in a small garden Davies is taken off the case, it's much too important for him, and looks into a man who was hit by a train and a spate of computer thefts from offices.  Are the two somehow connected?

A top researcher for a small drug company turns up dead of an apparent suicide in Benefit to Mankind.  After the man's assistant calls Davies and wants to talk with him in private, she disappears and Dangerous thinks that there's more to the suicide than meets the eye.

The final episode in this set is one of the better ones too.  When a young immigrant girl is picked up for shoplifting, she refuses to give her name or even talk to the police.  It turns out that her mother was murdered and is lying dead in their apartment.  When Davies investigates he discovers that the mother was a part of a computer dating club, and that his boss had gone out with her and been rebuffed.  Could the inspector, who has a drinking problem and has been rather irritable of late, have done something to the attractive woman?

Like the first season, this set of episodes was very good.  DC Davies is an interesting character because he's so down to earth and real.  He has a very complicated relationship with his estranged wife, he has problems with the people he works with, and he has few friends, problems that many people can relate to, at least in part.  He's also not amazingly brilliant nor does he have near psychic abilities that allow him to deduce things that others can't.  He's just persistent and thorough.  The show is driven as much by Davies personality as by the crimes themselves, and you find yourself rooting for the perpetual underdog, hoping he stumbles onto a juice crime or shows up the other snobby detectives in his unit.  Of course he often doesn't which also adds to the reality of the program.

This season deals with Davies personal life a bit more than the first season did, and that's a good thing.  He's been forced to move in with Mod, and it's a less than ideal living arrangement.  The problems with his wife escalate and reach a bursting point of sorts in the final episode in this season.

As with most British drama, the acting is very good.  Peter Davison plays Dangerous Davies with just the right amount of sadness so the character gets your sympathy but doesn't become pathetic.  He usually has an upbeat attitude but sometimes his situation gets the better of him.  Sean Hughes is also good in his role of Mod, bringing a nice touch of humor to lighten up Davies rather pathetic life.

This is a show that the will appeal to mystery fans as well as anyone who enjoys good storytelling.  While the plots aren't intense and serious as modern crime drama, the show does have a cozy feel to it.  It's like a pair of well worn tennis shoes, comfortable even though it's not flashy.

These for shows, which run a bit over an hour each except for the pilot that last an hour and a half, come on two DVDs which are housed in a pair of single width keepcases.  The cases fit into a nice slipcase.

Audio:

This show has a stereo soundtrack with no optional subtitles.  I really wish that Acorn would put subs on their BBC discs, some times the British accents are a little hard to understand and some translations would be nice.  Aside from that, the audio portion is fine.

Video:

The widescreen anamorphic image (1.78:1) looks good for a British TV show.  The image is just a tad soft and there's a slight red push, but these aren't big defects.  The level of detail is fine, and the black levels, while not outstanding, are acceptable.  Digital defects are very minimal, a little aliasing in the background is all.  A nice solid image.

Extras:

The only extras included are a photo gallery and a series of actor filmographies.

Final Thoughts:

I enjoyed this set just as much as the first.  DC Davies is a rather engrossing character, someone you can empathize with and find yourself rooting for.  The mysteries can have interesting twists to them too, and sometimes go off in unexpected directions.  Equal parts drama and mystery, The Last Detective is a show that is strongly recommended.