Damien's tweets from the naughty corner!

here is the original photo posted by Fay Ripley, 20 June! 

Did Jack feel he had done anything wrong when Martha called him into her office....

or here

or here...

Brilliant topic, domino. lol!  I've been itching to get on here....but I haven't got round to a rewatch(!!) and there's some stuff around this that I haven't got straight in my head yet.

I think the thing with the mum was just a bit of arrogance on Jack's part...he thought that he didn't need to give a reason.  I'm also not sure that him talking to Rose's sister about Shaffer was particularly unprofessional (although the way he went about it might have been)  Surely that's what the police do?...talk to victims and witnesses about possible suspects?  BUT Shaffer made a complaint against him.....and I would expect him to have been taken off the case and reassigned because of that?

The question in my mind is what was he being reprimanded for?    Now we, the audience, know that the only reason he went to Shaffer's was to plant evidence.....not to confront Shaffer.  But the police didn't know that.  As far as the police were concerned he was at the house of man who had made a complaint about him....who turned up dead - another reason to have been reassigned....at the very least?  Surely he looked like a prime suspect - motive, opportunity...... Admittedly they discovered pretty quickly who did push Shaffer off the roof.   

I reckon that as he 'knew' Shaffer was guilty he probably believes the end justifies the means as far as planting evidence is concerned and he was pissed off that he was sent off on 6 weeks leave because he was caught out, rather than because he thought it was unfair....and because Martha had a go at him.

I don't know why it bothers me...but I did feel that Martha should've sat him down in her office to bollock him - it felt too......unoffical doing it on the roof, somehow - it was personal rather than professional.  She did seem more bothered by the fact that he lied to her....

"However - I always admire the maverick who is willing to take risks for justice. Jack has that verve about him - like all good heroes do - unfortunately there is that little thing called The Law - which he in his job is supposed to enforce to the letter"

I agree with this completely, domino.  Although I'm feeling very much as if Jack's primary motive is to solve the case....I'm not sure that he's in the job to persue justice for victims, or even to uphold the law; I don't think he's in it for personal glory either.....I think it's all about the satisfaction of solving the crime and catching the bad guys - maybe by any means and at any cost.

And, ultimately, it makes for damn good tv!!

I've just finished rewatching these 2 eps....and you're right, Pearl - he didn't actually make the complaint.  I still feel as though I've missed a lot of what happened in this series....there's just so much going on!

Thanks for the little tidbit about the bit of paper on Jack's computer screen, domino.  It's a lovely detail...and it seems to me that Jack does need the reminder!

The writers are so clever not to have Jack actually taking the law into his own hands in the end.... ironically what he so strongly criticised the pedophile hunter for doing:

"Yeh, well the guy's got what was coming to him"

"When you take the law into your own hands you take the risks" .....

He didn't plant the evidence because he didn't get the opportunity....but the fact is he didn't actually do it - so I guess that he couldn't be officially reprimanded for it....only for the intention.  And I agree, Rosie.....I don't believe that he admits to it at any point so it's still just supposition as far as Martha is concerned (however certain she is)......that is possibly why he is so defensive when she confronts him about it.....he can't apologise for something which he is unprepared to admit to - even in the context of an unofficial reprimand.  And he is so pissed off because he's in trouble for something he didn't actually do (whatever his intention)....but I do think he would act the same way again.

He does have a strong sense of justice.....but it's his own version of justice which is primarily concerned with (as I said before) catching the bad guys - it doesn't necessarily coincide with the law.

"When you take the law into your own hands you take the risks" ..... I'd missed this, domino!  Makes me wonder if he feels he has more justification taking the law into his own hands because of being a DS?

So much more to say....  But things to do.....so I'll have to come back.

I will just say - it did make me laugh a bit that he had 6 weeks holiday owed to him!  Do you think he ever takes holidays?

My attempt at a Jack-centric review of Suspects 2 - with emphasis on the naughty corner!

SUSPECTS SERIES 2 REVIEW: JACK WESTON REPORTS FROM THE NAUGHTY CORNER

© Channel 5

Suspects concluded its second series last week, after two gripping double-bill specials and two new investigations for DS Jack Weston (Damien), DI Martha Bellamy (Fay Ripley) andDC Charlie Steele (Clare-Hope Ashitey).

The new series was a high impact affair and an extraordinarily arresting bit of crime drama, so rich in twisty-turny plots and character intrigue, so fast paced with multi-layered, complex and galvanising storylines, so well executed by the three leads and so ultra realistic, that watching it was a heightened, all consuming and immersive televisual experience, leaving you buzzing, breathless and in awe.

As series 1 confirmed, the thing that sets Suspects apart from other cop dramas is its unique formula: documentary style filming techniques + dialogue entirely improvised by the actors based on a plot description + no contextual / personal character details = innovative, real, engaging drama. Story arcs are completely case driven and the ‘no going home with the detectives’ principle was not compromised in series 2 – a good thing too because not only is it integral to the show’s USP, but it adds a goodly amount of intrigue and makes the tiny insights we are given into the characters all the more compelling and tantalising. But the new storylines had an added dimension (excitingly for us Damien fans) revolving around Detective Sergeant Jack Weston and living up to its rep for gritty, dark subject matter, the episodes brought two tough cases for the team but particularly for Jack, who became over-involved in both.

The first 2 part special, (Episodes 1 and 2) opens with an investigation into a brutal attack on Jonathan Moxton, found at the scene by paranoid schizophrenic Saul Hammond (Dominic Power), who becomes the team’s first suspect. Particularly Jack’s, who has his sights set so firmly on Saul as the attacker it clouds his judgement, causing his usual uncanny intuition to misfire, even when more evidence appears and more names are added to the suspects board.

© Channel 5

His tunnel vision and consequent hot-headedness causes problems with the case and tensions within the team, resulting in some firey exchanges with colleague Charlie..

..and some concerned words and warnings from “Boss” Martha, even asking if she needs to take him off the case.

It transpires that Jack has mental health issues in his family, his brother was a paranoid schizophrenic and in the past had attacked his Mother, later going on to commit suicide. Jack does not want his personal history to affect his detective work, but it is only further down the road in the investigation when more attacks occur and it becomes undeniable that Saul could not have been the perpetrator, that he manages to let his fixation go.

In the end, it is Saul’s ‘responsible adult’ Sadie Burns (Katie Jarvis) who has committed the attacks, and Saul himself becomes one of her victims. The story’s conclusion sees Charlie finding a concerned off duty Jack sitting at the hospital checking Saul’s outlook for recovery.

The second 2-part special (Episodes 3 and 4) opens with a news report on an amateur paedophile hunter (Scott Freeman) having been attacked and now in a critical condition in hospital. When his daughter Rose (Frieda Thiel) is pulled in for questioning she tells the detectives she had been raped 8 years earlier. Both strands of the case ultimately lead the team to a dance studio run by Edward (Alexander Kirk) and Tamsin Shaffer (Gillian Kearney).

On first meeting Edward Shaffer, Jack’s killer instinct kicks in, convinced from the get-go that he is the bad guy. Shaffer becomes Jack’s one and only target, and he is so focussed on getting the collar that he over steps the mark, and resulting in Shaffer threatening to make a formal complaint against him.

But when Jack’s prime suspect is released due to insufficient evidence, he decides to take matters into his own hands by removing evidence (a grey towel from the dance studio) from a crime scene and planting it in Edward Shaffer’s bin. Interrupted in the act before he can carry it out, Jack doesn’t carry through with his intention.

In the end it turns out Jack’s gut feeling is right about Shaffer, and that the crime is far bigger and more hideous than even he first imagined, but enough solid evidence comes to light to convict him anyway.

As if Jack wasn’t already appearing to be taking the law into his own hands, we then see him leaning over Shaffer’s dead body, with blood on his hands, and for one moment we wonder, would his killer instinct go that far?

The fact that the question even crosses our minds is a reality check, how far would Jack go to get justice? So driven to achieve the end goal by increasingly less appropriate means, it is beginning to affect his approach to victims, attitude to suspects and his relationship with Charlie and Martha, and Jack seems to be heading closer to the point of no return.

After a change of clothes back at HQ and an alone moment where his facial expression betrays his secrecy, and how shady his actions could potentially have become, Jack finally hands over the evidence.

Martha questions why he left it so late, calling him into her office later on to ask why he was already at the Shaffers’ house at the time of the murder, before the call came through about the new evidence. By this time, it has become a high profile case and the Detective Chief Inspector also wants to know why the car tracker shows Jack arrived prematurely at what ended up being a murder scene.

Jack claims he went to apologise to Edward to try and smooth things over, and avoid the formal complaint.

“You are a liar Jack”
“What do you want me to say?”

Once the case is solved, we are left wondering if there will be any consequences for Jack and his career. In a private chat on the rooftop, Martha tells him in no uncertain terms that she knows he had planned to plant evidence, that he is right on the edge and she has a good mind to give him a push. She is fed up with holding his hand, but had pulled strings and used up some favours to cover his back.

Jack humours her with an insincere apology and ends up with an enforced 6 week holiday instead of any action being taken against him. He seems less than happy with the outcome, but whether he feels any regret for his actions or intentions is hard to tell, a fascinating ambiguity played superbly by Damien.

Damien himself is not giving anything away, reporting on his Twitter page as Jack Weston from ‘the naughty corner’ after the final episode of the series had aired.

We get the feeling Martha knew exactly where she would be sending Jack, when Fay Ripleyposted the mirror photo on her Twitter page earlier in the year, during summer filming for the latest series:

At just four episodes it may have been short, but Suspects Series 2 was perfectly formed. We cannot wait for the show to return with series 3 in 2015, and to find out what Jack got up to in the naughty corner. Will he have thought long and hard about what he has done? Will he come back a changed detective?

We hope not, because watching his wild Weston ways and enjoying the scope it allows the actor who brings them to life is our big guilty pleasure, and being drawn a little deeper in to Jack’s world with an extra focus on (and complexity in) his character adds even greater power to an already absorbing, edgy, dynamic show.

Now the dust has settled after the series, we are left with an indelible knowing we’ve been blessed with something overwhelmingly amazing and new, by a show that knows it leaves us wanting more.

Suspects Series 2 is available on Demand 5 until August 2015.

To comment on this review and discuss ‘Jack Weston in the naughty corner’ with other fans click here

For more info on Suspects Series 2 and to discuss with other fans click here

To vote in our Suspects Series 2 polls click here.

Yes!  thank you fifi for saying so much of what I wanted to say in a much better way I could ever put it!  

The tone of S2 was definitely more serious, intense.  The edginess they introduced in S1 upped so many notches and I was floored by the end of each hour.  I found myself mesmerized as the stories unfolded, gripping a pillow most of the time, my heart beating fast.  By the end it was a bit dizzying, with all the twists and turns, so exciting to watch everyone's fantastic performances (especially Damien's, obvs.)  I am thrilled that we were treated to the Jack-centric storylines as I have been hungering to know more about his character, and these cases hitting such sensitive spots really gave Damien room to delve into Jack's emotions.  In S1 we could see the frustration simmering under the surface, you could see Jack holding himself back. This time he let it out and it was a wonderful thing to behold, to see him push and break rules because I wanted him to get the bad guys too without having to deal with all the red tape.  I was worried at the end of E3, having really become invested in his character, but even then the adrenaline fueled part of me wanted him to have succeeded in planting the evidence.  Part of me hoped he had killed Shaffer.  I wanted to see how he would get out of it.  But of course, Jack is one of the good guys.  He wouldn't go that far...

And yet, having said that I like how intense S2 got, my favorite moment has to be the hug between Jack and Saul, and at the end when Charlie caught him at the hospital making sure Saul would be alright.  Heartwarming. And I feel that Jack needed that, something a bit good to come out of it.

I did miss the banter between the team from S1 and too wonder how the episodes filmed last fall will will slot into S3 after such an intense S2.  How much was planned for ahead of time.  S1 were stand alone episodes, really very few moments were shown that would have relied on previous knowledge. (the one that comes to mind is Charlie commenting on Jack having quit smoking, and now in S2 we see he's taken it up again)  I also feel a bit that Charlie got the wrong end of the stick in S2.  As you said fifi, she spent most of the time with a WTF expression on her face. In S1 she held her own and I do hope we get some more background for her as well.  I really like Clare-Hope.

Domino, phenomenal review.  You should do Damo's PR.  Oh wait...