Gently and the New Age

Not a high note to end the series, as this is the worst episode in the show. A rather idealistic, politically-charged episode with Gently made out to be some sort of saintly martyr, tilting at overwhelming odds in the interests of what he believes is right.

The mystery is interesting enough though and at last Bacchus's character has learnt from Gently and is starting to show signs of being more tactful and tolerant. It's only taken 6 years, 8 seasons and 25 episodes.

Having been a fan of this series throughout its run, the finish was a disappointment. But not one without tears. However, what it begs is the potential for a Bacchus & Coles 'next generation' series akin to Inspector Lewis on the heels of Inspector Morse. Lee Ingleby and Lisa McGrillis have a solid chemistry, one that is refreshingly free of the archetypal sexual tension between male and female leads in a cop drama.

I can't really agree with some of the other reviews for this episode, I thought it was absolutely brilliant, I loved it from start to finish, exciting, dramatic, explosive, and managed to draw a tear from the eye.

The show seemed to follow a similar pattern to Foyle's War, crime and detection, before moving on to crimes of a larger scale.

It was always going to be interesting to see the relationship between Gently and Bacchus, after the events in the previous episode, I was surprised they didn't make more of it.

Richard Harrington was superb, loved his scenes with Martin Shaw, but let's not be in any doubt, this was all about Gently, Shaw was at his best.

The crime itself was fascinating, the characters were big, and George's story was captivating, I thought the ending was superbly done, I teared up.

A shame it ended here, it never dipped in quality. I felt it could have run a little longer. 9/10.

As a huge fan of detective/crime/mystery series, there is the admission that it took me a while to start watching 'Inspector George Gently', worrying as to whether it would appeal to me for "can't put my finger on it" reasons other than being young at the time and not being as knowledgeable of the period. Getting into the show eight years ago and continuing to watch it without fail, it turned out to be simply wonderful and actually became a favourite.

After a very solid, if still settling, start in "Gently Go Man", it felt like 'Inspector George Gently' started to hit its stride with "The Burning Man" and that continued with "Bomber's Moon". The show hit a high point with "Gently with the Innocents", but what should have been the best 'Inspector George Gently' episode, being the final one, sadly was the weakest to me. There is a lot here however that is particularly good about 'Inspector George Gently' and it shows that it is not at all hard to see why the show appeals to many.

"Gently and the New Age" shows 'Inspector George Gently' still delivering on a consistent level, but at the same time for a series finale it didn't feel completely satisfying. It doesn't quite have the emotional impact of other episodes that tackled daring themes, yet there is the tension and tautness are there. Like Rachel a good deal and her chemistry with Bacchus adds hugely to the episode.

Would have loved much more of Gently and Bacchus together though, for such a fascinating duo and one of the biggest driving forces of the show there wasn't enough of it.

Some things disappointingly don't add up in plausibility, including a big revelation concerning a major character that is brought up too suddenly and not developed enough. While very sad, the ending lacks the shock factor which would have been there if it wasn't so derivative and not as foreseeable.

Furthermore, "Gently and the New Age", like the rest of the show, looks great, often beautiful. It is strikingly filmed and the scenery and period detail are atmospheric, handsome and evocative, a lot of work and care went into re-creating the period and it definitely shows loud and clear. The music is stirring and haunting, dynamic with what's going on and never intrusive.

The writing has a lot of thought-provoking intelligence and balances subtle humour and drama very well and executing both individually just as well. The direction is alert and accommodating and the story is easy to follow and absorbing with a good deal of suspense. "Gently and the New Age", and 'Inspector Gently' in general, is very interesting for how British law was like in the 60s and how much it's changed and come on compared to now.

Acting is very good as usual, with Martin Shaw, Lee Ingleby and Lisa McGrillis being brilliant.

In summary, very good but was expecting more. 8/10 Bethany Cox

I have loved this series. Love it's characters, stories, setting in both time and location.

That is why this last episode was so disappointing. In fairness, a finale to any series is tricky, especially a great series like this one was.

However, this episode strayed far afield from the rest of the series to the point it was unrecognizable.

Finally, if you watch entertainment in the UK long enough, you understand who it is that controls the narrative. This means you already know who will be portrayed as the villains in any movie, show, series, commercial, etc. It is sooo boringly threadbare, predictable, and over the top, it has become cringeworthy.

If you know what I am talking about, no explanation is necessary. If you don't know by now, no explanation is possible.

This unfortunate, clichéd storyline took away from the lifeblood of the series & seemed a hodgepodge of an ending to a truly great series.