Death in Paradise Season 13 finished with a bit of a whimper. Neville finally chooses the right path. After vacillating about just who he is in love with, the DI picks DS Cassell (Joséphine Jobert) to be his partner. The couple then leave St Marie to travel the world.
Together.
Wait how many
A little bit of shifting around took place, while Florence waited for Neville to make up his mind. Marlon gets a job in Jamaica so he can watch over his little sister. And while Cassell first shows up as a familiar face, it was not long before another “blast from the past” Officer Dwayne Myers Danny John-Jules makes an appearance.
Another face from previous seasons also arrives in Jamaica to give the commissioner a hand getting Marlon hired on. JP Hooper (Tobi Bakare) appears in a “blink and you’ll miss him” cameo.
Season 13 had one other arrival from a previous season. Zoe arrives to see if she can breathe some life into the failed relationship with Neville. She arrives just as DS Cassell returns to the tropic island.
Sailing into the sunset
While Death in Paradise does not exactly allow both Marlon and the new couple Parker and Florence to sail off into the sunset, this trio does leave. DI Parker takes on his most baffling case. He manages to solve the missing passenger issue and then goes on to decide just where he and Cassell stand. Marlon heads to Jamaica and now we must wait to see who the new DI will be.
Pundits favour Simon Bird and from the outside looking in, he does seem a perfect fit. There have been no signs of a deal here, but he would make a refreshing change from four seasons of Ralf Little. Don’t get me wrong, he was alright in the role, but he did somewhat overstay his welcome.
hello I must be going
Throughout the 13 seasons of Death in Paradise each time a new Detective Inspector arrived, he left rather quickly. Ben Miller, the first and, arguably, the best detective on the island, was murdered in the first episode of season 3. So it was exit stage left, feetfirst.
Kris Marshall flew in to solve his predecessor’s murder and hung around from season 3 to season 6. I will admit to having a bit of prejudice with Marshall. He was brilliant in My Family and darn near stole Love Actually as the overly optimistic Brit who came to America for the birds.
Ardal O’Hanlon was next. Another favorite first spotted in the splendid comedy Father Ted. He lasted from season 6 to 9. His replacement was Ralf Little who just left the series.
All this movement of good actors who each brought something to their role felt a bit like the Groucho Marx song from Animal Crackers (1930) “Hurrah for Captain Spaulding.” They were no sooner settled than they had to leave.
*Video courtesy of Catherine Thompson via YouTube*
One thing is certain however, whether Simon Bird gets the nod to be the next DI or not, Death in Paradise may well continue for quite a while. American viewers can watch the show via Britbox – all the seasons and on Pluto TV seasons 1 through 6.
Death in Paradise may have let DI Parker exit softly with the love of his life, but the final episode was an interesting take on the “locked room” scenario. And that whimper, was really just a romantic gesture after all.
You must be logged in to post a comment.