Finally AC-12 and Line of Duty fans have their man. After weeks of speculation, 'H' has at last been unmasked.
But as one mystery is solved another begins. Is this the end of Superintendent Ted Hastings and his band of bent copper busters? With another series of LoD yet to be confirmed, that question has been left dangling in a finale that ties up several loose ends but departs with a few hanging in the wind. Here’s the recap:
1: 'H', aka the Fourth Man
Who’s been pulling every evil string? It’s been Detective Superintendent Ian Buckells all along. An analysis of old communiqués going back to the Lawrence Christopher case reveal Buckells as the shadowy figure with the giveaway misspelling of “definitely”.
So it was he who had put together the Eastfield Depot hold-up in series five. And who had been giving secret orders both to Lisa McQueen in 2019 and to Detective Chief Inspector Jo Davidson in the present season.
But what about the trail leading to Spain and Marcus Thurwell? All simply a ruse by Buckells who was re-routing his electronic communications so as to make it appear were originating on the Costa del Thurwell.
Yet while Buckells has led AC-12 on a merry dance, he does not see himself as a mastermind. With the death of godfather figure Tommy Hunter, organised crime had splintered into different OCGs. He was merely a facilitator helping the gangs work together.
“I didn’t plan it,” he shrugs. “They just kept asking me to sort bigger and bigger stuff.”
2: But his plan to walk comes unstuck
Buckells knows that Chief Constable Philip Osborne, as represented on earth by new anti-corruption boss, Detective Chief Superintendent Patricia Carmichael, wants to brush under the carpet any evidence of police wrongdoing.
He thinks this give him wriggle room. In his interrogation by Hastings, DI Kate Fleming and DI Steve Arnott, Buckells loftily declares that he will take immunity from prosecution and a place in witness protection.
That way, the stain on the reputation of the police will be made vanish and everyone goes home happy – apart from Ted and the gang.
He isn’t as clever as he thinks, though, is he? The Gail Vella inquiry is still an open investigation. And if Buckells fails to co-operate he will render himself ineligible for immunity. On the other hand, if he DOES co-operate he will be implicated as the one who ordered Carl Banks to kill Vella (to prevent her exposing the Lawrence Christopher cover up). Thus rendering himself ineligible for immunity. Either way, he’s done for.
3: Ted confesses to blowing the cover of John Corbett
The theory that Hastings might be 'H' has revolved around the fact he informed Lee Banks – OCG operative and brother of Carl – of the existence of a rat in the organised crime gang behind the Eastfield raid.
This blew the cover of John Corbett and led to his death at the hands of Ryan Pilkington. Kate and Steve confront Ted who claims he had been trying to nudge Corbett to walk away from the undercover operation.
Ted’s logic was that if Corbett became aware that the gang were looking for a “rat” he’d give up the ghost and make himself scarce. The plan backfired: the gang had guessed Corbett was the operative and Ryan Pilkington had cut his throat.
Wracked with guilt, Ted had then passed on to Steph Corbett, John’s widow, the missing £50,000 from the bribe he’d swatted away in season five. He had felt he was doing the right thing – and besides, Corbett, having participated in the murder and torture of police, was hardly a paragon of virtue.
Kate and Steve’s intervention awakens Ted’s conscience. And so the episode concludes with Hastings going to his new superior, Patricia Carmichael, and confessing to leaking to the OCG.
“What do you expect me to do with that information?” asks Carmichael. “That's entirely up to you ma'am,” says Ted. “But whatever you do – you do it because you care about truth and accountability. You do it because you carry the fire.”
4: The OCG tries to take out Jo Davidson
Fans will have savoured the face-off between Buckells (“No comment,” he says over and over) and AC-12.
But also there’s a big action sequence earlier as Buckells orders the killing of Davidson, who knows far too much and could compromise the OCG. She’s sprung from prison by corrupt guards and is sped off to a grisly fate.
That’s until Hastings and crew catch wind of the ruse (the release has been approved using Kate’s faked signature). They rescue Jo. And when the OCG gunman opens the back of the van, he is confronted by Kate holding a gun.
A face-off ensues – rendered the tiniest bit absurd by the fact Steve has to use a rather silly looking taser after his gun is taken away because of his dependency of painkillers (an underwhelming end to that story strand).
We get more of Jo’s backstory, too. Tommy Hunter, the OCG boss and her real dad, convinced her that her actual father was Patrick Fairbank, a member of the 'H' conspiracy whom AC-12 banged up in season three. Alas, Fairbank’s memory is fading and he claims no knowledge of grooming Jo to join the police as an OCG plant.
There is a happy ending, though, for Jo. Having given up Fairbanks, she is entered into witness protection. We see her starting a new life in an undisclosed location with a new girlfriend.
5: The future of AC-12 is up on the air
The season ends with Ted, Kate and Steve exiting AC-12 HQ, their fates unclear. Earlier, Ted argues that their cracking of the Gail Vella murder will give Osborne no choice but reverse his planned scrapping of the unit. However, Osborne is clearly determined to cover up all evidence of institutionalised corruption.
So while the crown prosecutor is weighing up the evidence against Buckells, the police have insisted that, in the public interest, any case against him be confined to his activities alone.
That is, the matter of wider police corruption be buried. Does that spell game over for Ted and AC-12? We will have to wait and see.
Loose ends tied-up
Terry Boyle’s name has been cleared. A stash of weapons uncovered in the OCG workshop confirms Gail Vella was executed by Carl Banks. And so the attempt to frame Terry unravels and charges against him are dropped.
Steve’s prescription-drug habit is finally flagged by his superiors. Turns out it isn’t that big a deal. Yes, he has to surrender his firearm. And no more high-speed chases for the time being. That is as far as the consequences go, however.
Kate is returning to AC-12. “You don’t realise what you’ve got ’til it’s gone,” she tells Steve over a pint. So she’s back fighting the good fight – assuming Carmichael and Osborne don’t put Ted’s troops out to pasture first.
Hopefully we'll get a seventh season to find out.
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