A number of Dirk’s former clients have been found dead, expertly murdered seemingly at random, and the only common thread linking them is the holistic detective himself. In Dirk Gently’s third and final episode of the series, Dirk suspects that a former foe may be attempting to frame him for the murders, but the reality is closer to home than he had first anticipated...
Embroiled in a cold war with his cleaning lady and hired to catch the stalker of the woman he himself has been stalking, all the while dashing across rooftops to evade DI Gilks and the rest of the constabulary, Dirk Gently doesn’t exactly pervade great moral integrity. His home is a mess, his financial situation is even worse, and his previous clients are slowly being picked off one by one; but Dirk is more interested in courting his latest client/stalkee, and finding himself a new cleaning lady. However, the fundamental interconnectedness of all things invariably links the seemingly tangential to the more prominent...
Scripted by Jamie Mathieson (Being Human: Educating Creature, Type 4, The Graveyard Shift), the third episode was comprised of equal parts detective drama and gentle comedy, creating the perfect balance and tone for Dirk Gently. The crux of the narrative revolves around Dirk’s personality; he’s feckless, lazy and profoundly cheap, and it’s this that ultimately—albeit tangentially—is both his undoing and his saving grace.
Once again, Stephen Mangan is utterly sublime as Dirk. His timing, delivery and expression feel quintessentially Gently-esque, and despite Dirk’s apparent egotism and fundamentally self-serving nature, he still manages to come off as a vaguely decent human being—if a bit eccentric. Mangan’s approach to Dirk’s eccentricities and quirks makes him a continuous pleasure to watch, which combined with his chemistry with co-star Darren Boyd, provides one of the show’s greatest strengths.
In the role of MacDuff, Darren Boyd just goes from strength to strength throughout this series. After MacDuff admitted in last week’s episode that he believes Dirk might actually be brilliant after all, he finds that his patience with the unscrupulous and self-absorbed detective is pushed to its limits in this episode. Boyd’s performance elevated MacDuff above the status of the everyman, whilst maintaining the character’s inherent audience relatability, as he proves to be both a competent and necessary equal to Dirk. MacDuff continues to be Gently’s only grounding influence, and of much more importance to Dirk than he realises. Capturing a superb dynamic for the duo, Mangan and Boyd expertly riff off of each other’s performance; they really are absolutely perfect in the roles of Dirk and MacDuff.
Overall, although this series may not be as intensely intricate or Science Fiction-y as Douglas Adams’ books, the past three episodes have done Dirk Gently justice and make a fine addition to the holistic detective’s legacy. The series has been fantastically enjoyable, and has literally been the only thing I’ve watched on television this past month. Hopefully we can expect to see this excellent show commissioned for a second series.
If you missed Dirk Gently’s series finale, I hope it was because you had much more pressing matters to take care of, like you’re on the run from the police or your cleaning lady has been trying to kill you. If this is the case, you can watch the last episode on BBC iPlayer here, and should probably re-evaluate your life!
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