Series 3 was the best yet! Hoping for a strong series 4! - Shetland (2013) Discussion

[–] jwkfh 9 years ago

Agreed. Lots of room for more stories, even if they don't revolve around Shetland Islands. Maybe Jimmie goes to Portugal to save his daughter from slave traders?... Ok well that is a bit of a stretch, but the cast is great and even with Tosh leaving we have the addition of "Kalinda" (from the Good Wife) as a love interest / partner. She was seriously "kick ass" in that series and seems to fit in Shetland very well...
Hope for more wind swept beauty in season 4...

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[–] lilactime2014 9 years ago

Series 3 was fantastic but no way does Kalinda (as you say, from the Good Wife)compensate for Tosh's potential loss.

Unless Tosh has scored a major role in something like Game of Thrones, pleeeeese move heaven and earth to bring her back. She is the "EveryGirl" that most people can relate to. Do not replace her with eye candy as they have just done with Constable Trewlove (yeeeuch) in Endeavour. Just normal, Ok / Pretty-ish people will do. She is a fabulous actress and her story just got interesting. The relationship she has forged with Beardy guy was beautifully touching, he should come back too. The story he told about his brother was heart-breaking and that friendship needs building on. There is far too much focus within other programs of Wham, bam, thank-you Ma'am so just two people finding a common ground and a friendship is refreshing.

I hope that is the last we see of Archie Panjabi's character (no offence to the actress). It's just all wrong and felt forced to me. I would rather watch Tosh and the Beard holding hands, just talking than Jimmy and Asha tackling tonsils. Moody coppers need to be alone and moody, love needs to be lost and, if found, lost again. Outside Midsomer, WAGs do not work well.

To me, we are on the brink of something brilliant, a few series do this, leave you with a real feeling of anticipation, that you CANNOT wait for the next series and Series 03 of Shetland has just done this to me. Now, most programmes make a mess of it, such as the aforementioned Series 03 of Endeavour that has taken the crescendo of brilliance from series 02 and pissed it up against the wall with an adequate, but lesser quality, series 03. What with silly CGI tigers and unreasonably gorgeous WPCs.

'tler

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[–] synchary 9 years ago

To me, we are on the brink of something brilliant, a few series do this, leave you with a real feeling of anticipation, that you CANNOT wait for the next series and Series 03 of Shetland has just done this to me. Now, most programmes make a mess of it, such as the aforementioned Series 03 of Endeavour that has taken the crescendo of brilliance from series 02 and pissed it up against the wall with an adequate, but lesser quality, series 03. What with silly CGI tigers and unreasonably gorgeous WPCs/

I agree that Panjabi strikes a bit of a false note, and of course the botched BBC scheduling was inexcusable. Nevertheless, this latest Shetland was so well done, I'm extremely eager for Series 4. Both the long form and separate stories work for me, though the six episode format has to avoid filler and inorganic developments.

I entirely empathise with your other remarks; The Curse of Series 3 struck not only Endeavour but for me, Sherlock as well. Endeavour took some missteps (that blasted tiger!), but it can still recover. Sadly, after S3 and then the holiday special I think the tone and direction Sherlock has taken are now set in stone.

In some ways, a superior series is a disadvantage. Even if S4 of Shetland is a solid effort, we'll be a bit let down if it doesn't match this last. 

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[–] LyonME 9 years ago

Say it ain't so! I'm in the states so we don't hear much on the series, but I'll be very upset if Tosh leaves. She's my favorite. As you say, she's EVERYGIRL. :-(

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[–] SrEditor 9 years ago

It's just all wrong and felt forced to me. I would rather watch Tosh and the Beard holding hands, just talking...

It really did seem more real than many sex scenes ever do. It was perfect, and gave me hope for TV!

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[–] freddie_m99 9 years ago

I also prefer these "6-episode-one crime season" rather then the
"one episode quick solved cases" in most other crime series.
Since it makes the story more trustworthy although I feel that some parts of
S3 were perhaps a little exaggerated or too twisted just for the sake of it.

@jwkfh, the daughter moved to Brazil not Portugal, although they do
speak Portuguese in Brazil.

siridr kiardi bur dosi mudiR alriks tutiR urms fur salu hulmkirs fadur sukrudar buata sis

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[–] odd-odium 9 years ago

YES! It was worth the long wait. Enjoyed it thoroughly.

#The X-Files #Breaking Bad #Lost #Hannibal #Fringe #River #Utopia #Twin Peaks

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[–] 9 years ago

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[–] synchary 9 years ago

IMO the 2-parters (or at most 3-parters) are quite long enough and.... not to mention that at my age I'd like to see the end of a story before shuffling of the mortal coil etc.

My God this made me laugh! 

I agree that there was a bit of a rushed, patched together feel to the conclusion, but I think I've been numbed by the awful decline in the other programmes I enjoy. It's the current fashion to throw every seasoning into the stew. Writers often think that complicated makes it clever, and loose ends will entice us back. A tightly woven, intricate but open-ended plot can suit me quite well. An arsenal of Chekhov's unfired guns, no.

As for Panjabi, I can't make out if it's the role, the setting, the other characters or what makes her an ill-fit. I'll be rewatching at some point, and will keep that misgiving in mind.

Cassie's departure needs more development. As a new father, I'm uneasy when my son is two rooms away. I might need to be sedated if he left for another continent.

Despite the flaws, this was quite good I think, and I'm looking forward to S4.

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[–] 9 years ago

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[–] synchary 9 years ago

Even an unsolved case can be satisfying, if it adheres to its own internal logic and provides enough meat for the viewer to chew on later. I prefer that to a Deus ex machina, out of nowhere resolution, or one you can work out in the first twenty minutes.

Meh, a proper believable mystery is becoming a lost art. Anything that avoids vampires, zombies and CGI is already a plus though. LOL!

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[–] 9 years ago

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[–] synchary 9 years ago

Don't hold your breath. The series has already covered the "Shetland" works written by Ann Cleeves. With "based on characters of.." scriptwriters making the running, anything is possible.

Ack, the dreaded "based on"! I can understand both writers and viewers wanting to continue a worthy, successful show, even if the source material has run out.

What irks me is when characters are so completely rewritten as to be unrecognisable, and placed in situations entirely unsuitable to their backstories, natures and abilities. Interpretation does not mean a personality transplant.

If scriptwriters want to depart so radically from a well constructed character and firmly established fictional universe, they should write their own original story and players. 

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[–] 9 years ago

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[–] benbrae76 9 years ago

I'm looking forward to S4.

The wait will be painful. Hope the casting stays the same.

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[–] synchary 9 years ago

The wait will be painful. Hope the casting stays the same.

I quite agree! A number of programmes that currently interest me are on a long hiatus.

As for casting, I also hope for continuity. Perez is especially well realised, as were most other characters. However, even splendid actors can fail in the hands of the wrong writer or director. IMO, these are unseen but absolutely crucial elements which contribute to a series' overall quality.

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[–] benbrae76 9 years ago

Absolutely. Particularly, as one poster noted above, that the Cleeves Shetland stories have been completed. Trepidations as to what form any new stories from new writers will take.

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[–] synchary 9 years ago

Particularly, as one poster noted above, that the Cleeves Shetland stories have been completed. Trepidations as to what form any new stories from new writers will take.

Quite so and I appreciate the challenge.

Each episode must be a good story all on its own. It must however also exist in the world Cleeves has already created. Above all, the writer must understand each character's "voice" as we have come to know it. Yet, those same characters cannot remain static relics; they must believably change and grow. In addition, the series must retain its core audience and attract new viewers, or not be renewed at all the next go-round.

It's quite a trick, given these considerations. Thus trepidation is precisely what I feel as well. 

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[–] lilactime2014 9 years ago

So many series have their particular make-up, their "DNA" for want of a better phrase. What works in Oxford wouldn't get the time of day in Shetland and most probably vice versa. I hope the writers remember where they are and what real Shetland people would do in a situation. I pray that Tosh stays and would love to see more of her relationship, in whatever way it goes, with the guy who lost his Brother, lonely, shy artist guy (obviously can't recall name), that was beautifully written.

'tler

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[–] synchary 9 years ago

So many series have their particular make-up, their "DNA" for want of a better phrase. What works in Oxford wouldn't get the time of day in Shetland and most probably vice versa. I hope the writers remember where they are and what real Shetland people would do in a situation.

This is an excellent point, especially regarding something like Shetland.

In certain works, the location is almost a character in itself, or at least forms the DNA of the characters, as you say. The moors imbue Cathy and Heathcliff with their wildness and passion. Scarlett O'Hara's true love is, and her strength comes from Tara. O-Lan will face famine and death to keep the family land in The Good Earth.

In both life and fiction, many of F. Scott Fitzgerald's sensibilities are tied to the urban landscape. "And with the awful realization that New York was a city after all and not a universe, the whole shining edifice that he had reared in his imagination came crashing to the ground."

Shetland is set in a very specific place, one which dictates the personalities and behaviour of the characters. A Shetlander can come and go, but he should never be written as you would an off-islander.

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[–] 9 years ago

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[–] benbrae76 9 years ago

Hard to say. From what I've read the Shetlanders by and large have no quibbles about it. I doubt if the programme given its nature will last as long as Bergerac did. But who knows?

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[–] LyonME 9 years ago

This made me laugh. As someone who lives in Maine (USA), a rural, coastal state with the lowest crime rate in the country, home of Stephen King and subject of so many of his creepy tales, not to mention the show in the states of years back, "Murder She Wrote," and numerous others, it's become one of our jokes. "There's no crime here, we just have a lot of murders."
There's no reason Shetland cannot do the same. For me, it's a breath of fresh air.
:-)

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[–] 9 years ago

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[–] Pedro_MGA 9 years ago

really liked this season... BUT i do prefer the way S2 and S! was made. a case with 2 episodes instead of a single case in a full season...

http://trakt.tv/users/pedro
http://mooviestats.com/johhnyy/tv/2016/

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[–] laza-6 8 years ago

I'm another who prefer 3 x 2 episodes stories.

Big believer in the don't put all your eggs in one basket in case. Even if the story is sound with a 6 parter tends to be far more filler

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[–] Chapter24 9 years ago

here's hoping there's a series 4, I love this show....

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[–] caviar1234 9 years ago

Me too. Hope to hear about renewal soon.

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[–] trazey34 8 years ago

agreed! the ending was a bit of a let down but I was so happy Jimmy found someone : yay!

And I'm keeping my fingers crossed Tosh will be back, she'll realize she can't solve her problems by running away etc.

Someone who disagrees with you is NOT a hater 😉

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[–] sugreev2001-1 8 years ago

Except that cliché addition of a Black guy as Cassie's BF, it's been a flawless show so far. So sick of this forced pandering. It really takes me out of the moment. And it's always a Black dude. Never South Asian or East Asian, people who number far more than them in the British Isles.

"What the world needs is more geniuses with humility, there are so few of us left."

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