'Broadchurch' Recap: 'Series 3 - Episode 1'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

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

One of the many, many things that has made Broadchurch an absolute must watch, is the fact that it holds nothing back. Over the past two years on the show, we have been there for powerful moment after powerful moment, the kind that break our hearts right in two and just when we think this show is ready to pull back and give us a moment to catch our breath, it snaps us right back into the fray, allowing for us to once more look at some of the darkest parts of the human soul, and the injustices that the world sometimes sends our way.

But to date, the series has been light on providing us with a truly immersive emotional experience and that's not necessarily a bad thing. I'm not sure that many of us could have properly handled the emotional burden that would have come with Danny's death, and the revelation that Joe killed him and the subsequent trial and acquittal that was to follow. With that storyline in the books however, and with Broadchurch entering its final season, it's clear that Showrunner Chris Chibnall decided it was high time to truly take the audience on a ride and immerse us at last within the true horrors of violent crime, because last night's season three premiere was downright shocking, and downright haunting. 

Last night, we were introduced to a woman named Trish Winterman and when we first meet Trish, she's in bad shape. She's been sexually assaulted and has contacted the police and well...this is where things instantly get rough for the audience, and even tougher for Trish. Because once DI's Hardy and Miller arrive on scene to deal with the matter we are thrust into the delicate balancing act the two detectives must play as they try to uncover details about Trish's attack, and comfort a hurting human. But where the show truly unsettled this reviewer, is when it took us behind the scenes of processing a different kind of crime scene, a live human being. There was nothing shied away from as Ellie and Alec processed the evidence present on, in and around Trish and goodness. This segment not only brought me to tears, but every single second of it became all that much more difficult to watch.

Simply because you could see Trish reliving every single horrifying second of her assault while the evidence was processed and all you could do was feel for her, plain and simple, and it's rare to see any show hold nothing back when it comes to sexual assault and I do applaud Broadchurch for this bold and powerful set of scenes. Yet despite feeling sorrow for Trish, there is still a mystery to be solved and the show did a wonderful job setting up everything to come. However, there is sadly, an air of deceit hanging in the air when it comes to what happened to Trish at her friend's party and already there's suspicious characters being thrown into the mix and clearly...whomever did this does not want to be caught judging from the closing seconds of this first episode.

In the end however, outside of an emotional rollercoaster the show really didn't advance the plot that much and honestly, that's okay. This series has proven time and time again that the slow burn is what it does best. All will be revealed in good time, and everything it sends our way will be nothing short of top notch storytelling. However, before we go, kudos to the show for finding a way to also integrate the Latmiers into the story as well, and I have to say...it should come as no surprise that their relationship completely fell to pieces. Either way, this was a powerful, powerful start to Broadchurch's final season and I fully believe that the story is only going to far more brutal and visceral from here on out, meaning this series is going to exit the airwaves in the most stunning fashion possible. Until next time. 

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