As the first episode of The Diplomat begins, a woman is questioned about working with Jay. Amy Callaghan (Eubha Akilade) didn’t notice anything odd with him, but he was drunk near the end. They had done some drugs just to get through the shift. Jay wanted to borrow one of the jet skis after their shift. Amy tells Inspector Castells (Isak Ferriz) that was the first mention of the jet ski. She didn’t think he was serious. Later that night, he visited and she told him she wasn’t going on the jet ski because it was dark and he was drunk. Amy knows there was nothing she could do the stop him. At the morgue, his body is photographed.

After the intro at the British Consulate General in Barcelona, Laura Simmonds (Sophie Rundle) tells Carl Hyndley (Dylan Brady) that she is going to the airport with Alba. She reminds him that the new consul general will be arriving soon. As she leaves, she receives a call from Inspector Castells and says she is on her way. At El Prat Airport, Laura and Alba watch the women come off the plane. Alba believes she is going to marry the Inspector and have his kids one day although he might not be aware of it. Laura learns that the first toxicology results show cocaine in Jay’s body.

They greet Jay’s father Colin Sutherland (Danny Sapani) when he gets there. After he is introduced to Alba (Serena Manteghi), Colin is told he will be meeting Inspector Castells and he can go to the city morgue after that. Sam Henderson (Steven Cree) meets with Carl and explains what he is doing there. He knows about Jay and suspects he got wasted and took out a jet ski. Sam is taken to his office. Alba tells Colin and Laura that they might have to take a different route because of the protests in town. She explains she moved back there because she needed a change of scenery. Colin briefly talks to Jay’s brother on the phone.

He says he is a professional footballer although Jay was the real talent. When Laura mentions the identification process, Colin makes it clear he wants to see his boy. Sam calls Mariona Cabell (Laia Costa) to see if she wants to meet. Colin arrives at the police station with Laura. Inspector Castells shows Colin the possessions they recovered from Jay’s body. Colin immediately realizes that Jay’s watch is missing, but the inspector doesn’t know where it is. Colin insists Jay always wore it so she suspects someone stole it. Castells promises to double-check. When asked about the toxicology, Castells says she was three times over the drinking limit and had cocaine in his system.

Colin says Jay never touched hard drugs. Inspector Castells agrees to let him see the jet ski once the forensics team has finished. Colin knows those are Jay’s possessions, but he still wants to see the body. He wants to say goodbye no matter how messed up Jay looks. When Sam meets Mariona, they have sex. Colin goes to the hospital to see his son’s body. Laura and Alba try to comfort him once he sits next to them. Sam and Mariona talk about Jay’s death. He worries it might make them jittery, but Mariona thinks it’ll be okay since a witness told police what happened. The police checked everything out and they’re happy with the story.

Sam wants to make sure it stays that way. Once he asks about the wedding, she says invitations haven’t even gone out yet. Sam says it should be strictly a business meeting because this is serious. He says he’ll be there, but she can’t get reckless. Alba and Laura return to the office and talk to Carl. Laura introduces herself and Alba to Sam moments later. Laura tells him that muggings of British tourists have escalated and they usually involve knives. Carl says there was one involving a diabetic recently. Sam learns that Colin is questioning a few things about his son’s death. Laura mentions the watch. They talk about the owner of the yacht Fabian Hartmann (Philipp Boos) who owns a lot of property in Barcelona.

Sam offers to take them all out to dinner to celebrate his arrival. Later, Alba shows Laura the pamphlets they are handing out at the airport about knife crime. They talk about the muggings before Alba says it’ll be a gift to the fascists. After Laura gets a call from the inspector, she talks to Alba about men. Alba asks if she has internet sex, but Laura doesn’t want to talk to her about that. Laura meets with Colin and the Inspector so they can look over the jet ski. Colin learns about Amy only to be told he can’t interfere with witnesses. Once Laura and Colin leave, Inspector Castells tells an officer to keep looking because jet skis don’t move without their master keys.

Colin tells Laura that he doesn’t believe any of this. Laura admits she trusts Inspector Castells although she can’t explain the missing watch. Colin is adamant that he is going to talk to the girl because it is his right. When Colin leaves, he sits on a bench alone and looks at pictures of Jay. Gemma (Emmy Stonelake) stops by to talk to him and see if he is okay. Colin tells her what happened and how they’re blaming Jay for his death. Gemma tells him to never believe the official version of events. She explains that they’re from Wales and they’re there because one of them is getting married. She leaves her alcohol and gives Colin her condolences before leaving to rejoin her friends.

Sam goes to El Faro where Mariona takes him to his table. At home, Laura talks to her boyfriend Tom (Ladi Emeruwa) on a video call. They joke about the idea of internet sex before Laura confesses she’d like to see him in person. Colin goes to El Faro in hopes of speaking to Amy. Sam hangs out with Mariona. Sam says the restaurant rinses a lot of foreign cash. He thinks it’ll be better for her to get away from this. Mariona is pulled away to deal with Colin. She tells him she is the legal representative of the owner. Colin learns that the owner is away for a few days so he wants to talk to the girl. Mariona pretends Amy isn’t working even though she is nearby.

Colin ends up getting into a fight with one guard before he is overwhelmed by two more. Laura calls to say she doesn’t think leaflets are going to help with the stabbings. Sam approaches her to suggest they need to get Colin home. He’d like her to try to get Colin to tone it down too. Laura doesn’t want it to look like they’re brushing serious questions away. Gemma and her friend make out on a bench when they’re approached by a man with a knife. They end up knocking him down, taking the knife, and shoving a dildo in his mouth. They also take his drugs. The Inspector catches up with Laura to tell her the master key to the jet ski is missing.

He has ordered the yacht to return and a second autopsy. She agrees to keep the key secret for the time being. Castells tells her about the hen party being attacked. Laura says she will be talking to someone about it later. When Fabian returns, Mariona tells him that Colin won’t accept the explanation. Fabian knows Mariona told Amy what to say and she said it. Mariona doubts the girl will take it back because she is terrified. She tells Fabian about having dinner with someone from the Consulate yesterday. She believes he could be useful and confirms they don’t want it to develop any more than they do.

Fabian thinks it is a shame that Castells is handling the case though. Laura tells the others about the hens. She managed to twist the mayor’s arm to ensure they were able to leave instead of going to the slammer. Colin didn’t find his son’s watch and there weren’t any other developments. Sam apologizes if he seems a little unsympathetic earlier. When he steps away, Alba admits she thinks Laura doesn’t like him. Laura believes they’ll be just fine with time. Gemma and her friend wait to leave at the airport. The Inspector goes to the restaurant to speak to Amy who isn’t there or at home. Fabian learns what is going on.

Laura reads through Amy’s interview. She looks up the El Faro and finds a picture of Fabian and Jay together. At the airport, Amy waits to go to Ibiza. She has Jay’s watch. In a flashback, Amy is harassed by an older man until Jay tries to get rid of him. The man throws his drink in Jay’s face. She prepares to get on the plane until the episode ends.

 

The Diplomat Review

The Diplomat explores the death of Jay Sutherland and his dad’s journey to uncover the truth. The official version claims that Jay drowned while driving a jet ski because he was drunk and high on cocaine. Colin doesn’t believe it though because his watch has gone missing and he’d never take it off. He could be right considering Inspector Castells has been unable to find the master key to the jet ski in question.

Laura Simmonds will likely play a vital role in unraveling the truth while the new Consul General Sam Henderson seems to be on the other side. The primary witness, Amy Callaghan, has the watch and appears to be eager to flee. The opening episode of The Diplomat was decent enough to land in the middle of the pack without being spectacular or horrible, but there is still time for the story to deepen and the show to improve.

The soundtrack isn’t great and it is sometimes a bit too loud while the dialogue could do without the childish jokes. Certain aspects of the series are farfetched and a bit too political in nature. It is slightly hypocritical for the show to poke fun at self-defense when those who defend themselves are often punished in the real world. For a series about a murder, The Diplomat should’ve taken itself more seriously.

Unfortunately, it may leave a bad taste in the viewer’s mouth. With the clichés already established, one can only hope The Diplomat has a few surprises in store. Otherwise, it may not bring anything new to the table or at least not enough to justify sitting through. The opening episode scores a 5.5 out of 10. Recaps of The Diplomat can be found on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support our independent website at this link. Learn more about advertising opportunities on Reel Mockery here.