"Broadchurch" Recap: "Series 2 - Episode 8"

Written by John Edward Betancourt

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

When we last left Broadchurch, we were mere seconds away from hearing the verdict on the Joe Miller case before the show decided to fade to black and leave all of us shouting at our televisions because the suspense was killing us. I mentioned last week that despite this tortuous move, the wait would be worth it and I was right, because last night's season finale, "Episode 8" was by far one of the finest episodes of the show to date.

Thankfully the show wasted no time in bringing us the verdict on Joe Miller and holy hell it was infuriating and shocking to say the least, because the damn jury found Joe...not guilty. All the mistakes made, the poor decisions, all of it came to a head because clearly there was enough for the Jury to send Joe home a free man. But, rather than dwell on the sheer shock of this decision...there was one other matter that needed to be resolved, the fact that Claire had the pendant in her possession, which led to her arrest.  

Of course Claire being the piece of crap she is, she did her best to antagonize Miller and Hardy, but Hardy's master plan to finally get one of them to crack and tell the truth finally worked. A quick phone call to Lee, letting him know she was arrested sent him over the edge as he ransacked the cottage looking for the pendant. A move that finally allowed Hardy to bring him in for questioning as well and at last...the truth came out. It turns out Lee was sleeping with Lisa the night she died, an act that Ricky found offensive when he found them together and well...in the ensuing fight between Ricky and Lisa, Ricky killed her. 

Of course it only gets worse after that. Claire comes home to find an upset Pippa and then quickly discovers the horror of what has just occurred, so naturally, Ricky puts together a plan to deal with Lisa's body and after Claire drugs Lisa with rohypnol, Lee smothers the young girl with a pillow as insurance. Ricky is of course arrested as well, the body of Lisa is recovered and well...the Sandbrook case finally comes to a close and Hardy is vindicated at last.  

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But despite that lovely ending...there is still the matter of Joe to be dealt with, for this king of cowards wants to come home to Broadchurch, and seeks out help from Reverend Paul...who in turn takes matters into his own hands. Joe is kidnapped by Mark and Nigel and taken to the place where he killed Danny, to be confronted by Beth and Ellie where he is reminded of what a piece of garbage he truly is...before they banish him from Broadchurch forever. 

So, suffice it to say...this was a brilliant end to the season. I was completely blown away with every single twist and turn we went on this week. Offended of course by the disgusting verdict from the jury, but in its own special way justice was served for everyone last night. I love the fact that Joe has nothing left in Broadchurch and is essentially left to wander the world alone, and that the people he hurt most handled him in incredible fashion and owned up to their mistakes and man...it was one satisfying thing to see the Sandbrook case finally come to a close and Hardy finally get the right people locked up behind bars. I mean this is how you do a season finale folks. Every little loose end tied up, every character getting the closure needed to their story...just brilliant. 

But it would seem the story isn't quite over just yet. The end credits made mention that the show would return and it has been announced that a Third Series will be commissioned for the show.  This is news that of course has me excited, and curious as to where exactly the story will go from here. Granted this would be a good time to sit here and conjecture what possible plot lines they could explore, but I think I would rather not, simply because of the fact that this was a damn satisfying season finale, one that the characters and audience deserved.  So before we delve into the darkness of Broadchurch once again I'll just sit here and bask in the glow of this fantastic finale...and let the show surprise me when it returns.  Until then...

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