Saving Hope Season 4

DVD Wholesale Quick Overview:

I love this show, and Season 5 was great. I am very sad to hear that it is the last season, since the powers that be have unbelievably decided to cancel the show. Too bad the public can’t have the final say. I would rather see the idiots who cancelled it fired for incompetence.-Amazon Customer

This series remains outstanding, but the bad news is that there will be no more episodes. This bit of news is even darker than the series which makes no attempt to sugarcoat the gritty work of homicide investigation. As a final insult, the writers chose to end the series with brutalization of the most interesting character.- George Burns

The last three years have taken a dreadful toll on my favorite British policemen:
— “Foyle’s War” ended in 2015 after eight seasons.
— “New Tricks” ended in 2015 after twelve seasons.
— “Inspector Lewis” ended in 2016 after nine seasons.
— “DCI Banks” ends in 2017 after five seasons.
— “George Gently” will end in 2017 after eight seasons.

We may come to look back on the last ten years as the Golden Age of British Police on Television.
Christopher Foyle, Robbie Lewis and George Gently are better known to us Americans than Alan Banks or the eccentric geezers from “New Tricks”.
Inspectors Foyle, Lewis and Gently all received national exposure on Masterpiece Mystery.
But my local PBS station (Univ. of Illinois) never broadcast “DCI Banks” or “New Tricks”.
I found them at the library and took a chance.

DCI BANKS:
This excellent and gritty British police series debuted in 2010.
Set in the industrial North of England.
Filmed in and around the city of Leeds in Yorkshire.
My apologies to the Chamber of Commerce, but this is really dreary real estate.
Not a tourist attraction like the Sussex of “Foyle’s War” or the Thames Valley of “Inspector Lewis”.

Since the series began, Stephen Tompkinson has played Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks, and Andrea Lowe has played Detective Sergeant Annie Cabbot.
There is a surprising amount of sexual tension on this show.
D.S. Cabbot took maternity leave at the start of Season Two.
Nobody knows who the father is, and there is a great deal of speculation among her fellow officers.
[No, DCI Banks is not the father.]

In Season Two, Caroline Catz, as Detective Inspector Helen Morton, was brought in as a temporary replacement.
I have a major crush on this woman
(DCI Banks was filmed simultaneously with “Doc Martin”).
D.S. Cabbot came back as a single mother for Season Three, but D.I. Helen Morton has caught on and is now part of the team.
All three are back for Season Five.

My major problem with the show is that there was entirely too much fraternization between the ranks, especially in Season Three.
Too much “Boinking”
Too much “Rogering”
Too much “Shagging”
Too much “Taking Old One-Eye to the Optometrist”
— British euphemisms for sexual intercourse (from the Online Slang Dictionary)

The implied sexual tension of Seasons One and Two is out in the open.
I would have thought the lower ranks were off-limits to Detective Chief Inspectors.
In my thirty years of experience with the British Police (a lot of TV watching),
this sort of thing never turns out well.*

Surprise: When Season Four opened, the romance between DCI Banks and DS Annie Cabbot has fizzled.
Sergeant Cabbot has gone back to her old boyfriend.
Complication: D.I. Helen Morton’s husband has just announced that he wants a divorce.
Most of Season Four was spent with DCI Banks mooning about for his lost love.
But there was a surprising turn of events in the final episode.
Season Five will be interesting.

* Why fraternization between the ranks never works out well:

— 2013: “The Fall” Season One, Episode One
Police Superintendent Stella Gibson (Gillian Anderson) visits a crime scene,
where she notices handsome Sergeant James Olson.
Without waiting for an introduction, she hands Sergeant Olson her hotel room key,
and orders him to report for duty that night.
No consequences for Superintendent Gibson.
Grave consequences for Sergeant Olson.
I used to think I was fairly liberal about such things, but just realized that I am a prude.
Thanks a lot, Scully.

— 1992: “Prime Suspect” Season Two, Episode One
Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennison (Helen Mirren) seduces Sergeant Bob Oswald.
By the end of the series,
DCI Tennison is fast-tracked for promotion to Superintendent.
Sergeant Oswald is out of a job (he’s still better off than Sergeant Olson).

It remains to be seen how the romance between DCI Banks and Sergeant Cabbott will turn out.
I won’t give it away – you’ll have to watch Season Five.
Although I did warn you that this sort of thing never turns out well.
English SDH subtitles.
Full-length UK versions.
My only real complaint is the lack of Blu-Ray.

– John Fowler

DVD Wholesale Main Features :   

Actors: Erica Durance
Format: NTSC, Anamorphic
Language: English
Subtitles: English
Subtitles for the Hearing Impaired: English
Region: Region 1
Number of discs: 5
Rated: PG – Parental Guidance Suggested
Studio: eOne Films
Run Time: 792.00 minutes
ASIN: B01DTAQ6Q4