You’re Dead Already – The episode opens in 2023 in Whitechapel. A trainer escorts a group of female runners across a bridge while urging them speed to up. DS Shahara Hasan (Amaka Okafor) swears she would pay more to shut the trainer up for five minutes. Later, Shahara greets Ishmael Hasan (Nitin Ganatra) before going to her room to find Jawad (Oscar Coleman) in her bed.

DS Rick Williams (Anton Cross) pulls up to a raging protest. Officers, including Shahara file out of the vehicle to be confronted by angry protestors. DI Goodman (Tim Downie) orders Shahara and Rick to not engage with the protestors until they are directly provoked. She calls in a suspicious “Asian man” when the street lights begin to explode. The protestors drop to the ground as the man draws his pistol before fleeing. A foot pursuit ensues. The man knocks her down. She regains her footing before the pursuit continues into a building to the rooftop and to Longharvest Lane. Shahara races through a tunnel when she meets the suspect who demands she drop her taser. A nude man lies on the ground at the suspect’s feet. He assures her that it isn’t him. She tries to convince him to put down his gun but he flees. A closer look reveals the man with a unique tattoo on his wrist is dead.

1941 – DS Charlie Whiteman (Jacob Fortune-Lloyd) grabs a newspaper on his way to the police station to meet with Calloway (Derek Riddell) and Inspector Farrell (Tom Mothersdale). After suggesting the department has a “snitch,” Farrell says rumors claim he throwing money at women. Farrell sarcastically says it is a shame the synagogue was hit last night. The men go back and forth until Calloway intervenes. Outside the office, Charlie asks Kathleen (Emily Barber) on a date but she refuses. He receives a call from a woman with the details of his next assignment. He warns that they are watching him. She reminds him of how much he is being paid before ending the call. The ceiling lights flicker and explode.

In the vehicle left for him, Charlie drives to Longharvest Lane to find a nude body with a unique wrist tattoo lying in the street. He is supposed to drop the body off at Royal Albert dock.

1890 Whitechapel – DI Edmond Hillinghead (Kyle Soller) oversees the arrest of a woman and her son. The streetlights flicker and explode causing temporary hysteria among the locals. PC Bryne (Will Merrick) claims to have grown up in Whitechapel but would never live there again. They pass through the tunnel at Longharvest Lane to see a previously discovered nude body lying on the street. A closer look, Edmond sees a gunshot to the head and a unique wrist tattoo. Officer Webb nearby confiscates Henry Ashe’s (George Parker) camera for taking photos of the body. Henry boasts of having authority before calling Webb a “bona fide ape”. Webb assaults Henry when Edmond intervenes docking his pay and sending him home. Thanking Edmond, Henry identifies him as a Star journalist. Edmond returns the camera but confiscates the plates as evidence.

2023 – Maggie Skinner (Alexandra Roach) insists on assessing Shahara for a concussion because she loves her. The body is placed in a body bag. Maggie suggests sending Shahara home, even though, there is no sign of a concussion. Williams scolds Shahara for disobeying his orders. She explains the situation with an armed Asian man. DCI Jack Barber (Michael Jibson) says the victim was far-right before suggesting the power surge damaged the CCTV cameras.

Shahara learns the suspect’s name is Syed Tahir (Chaneil Kular), a care home system resident. DCI Jack Barber (Michael Jibson) informs her that the last number dialed on Syed’s phone is Aaliyah Tahir (Natalie Dew). Shahara denies hearing a gunshot before questioning why Syed would remove the victim’s clothes.

1890 Whitechapel – At the medical examiner’s office, Edmond tells Ladbroke (Andrew Whipp) that the victim was discovered at Longharvest Lane but was shot somewhere else. He points out that there was no blood around the forehead gunshot wound. He collects fingerprints from the victim against Ladbroke’s advice.

2023 – Maggie says the victim is not in their database. Shahara questions why she never heard Syed fire his weapon. Maggie points out no bullet casings or exit wound before suggesting a 9mm round was fired at medium range. Barber moves closer to get a better look.

1890 – Ladbroke pulls the victim’s scalp back to expose the skull. He cuts through the skull while Edmund examines the wrist tattoo.

2023 – Shahara assures Barber and Maggie that the tattoo is not far-right.

1890 – Ladbroke suggests the tattoo is Hebrew or Fenian. Edmond says it may be a “runic symbol” of Anglo-Saxon. Ladbroke opens the brain but there is no bullet or exit wound.

1941 – Whiteman kneels beside the nude body when a girl approaches. Declining a pursuit, he places the body in the boot as an air siren blares in the background. While driving down the road, he looks back to see a police cruiser following him. A short clip of bomber planes appears on the screen. Whiteman brings the vehicle to a halt. Farrell cautiously approaches to find Whiteman behind the wheel. After an anti-Semitic slur, he demands the keys to the boot. Whiteman willingly complies but warns against it. An explosion kills Farrell and traps Whiteman inside the vehicle. He emerges through the windshield before leaving the scene.

2023 – Barber interrupts Ishmael’s birthday to inform Shahara that there was no bullet in the victim’s brain. He urges her to speak with Aaliyah to see why Syed called her. He warns that the army will start shooting all Asian men with a backpack if Syed isn’t located. Later, Aaliyah claims Syed denied killing anyone. Shahara says he knew the shooting was going to take place. She vows to listen to Syed’s side of the story. In the surveillance van, Williams orders a wiretap on Shahara’s phone.

1890 – Edmond visits Henry to collect the crime scene photos. Henry hands him several photos, one of which shows a reflection of an unknown man. Edmond asks for an alibi of where he was when the victim was shot. Henry shows him intimate photos of him and another man. Edmond asks if the man will give him an alibi. Henry warns that he will go to jail. Edmond asks why the photos when Henry tries to kiss him. Edmond arrests him.

1941 – Whiteman arrives at the scene from the previous night. Calloway assigns the investigation to him. He questions why Farrell decided against calling the stop into dispatch. Whiteman looks inside the vehicle to find his missing lighter. He opens the boot to expose the nude man. Later, Whiteman tells a group of detectives that he will not stand by while they slander Farrell’s name because he was one of them. He receives a call from the same caller. She tells him that he failed to deliver the body. He vows to make it a cold case. She demands he destroy all the police records but he can’t until Farrell’s death is investigated. She threatens to deal with him if he doesn’t comply.

2023 – Shahara receives a call from Syed demanding she meet him. En route to the Stratford Shopping Center, she calls Barber. He orders her to wait for SO19 to apprehend him but she refuses. At the café, she warns Syed of the impending arrival of SO19. He claims everything they told him has happened. He says they wanted her to find the victim’s body. He fires random shots when she charges him. He puts the gun in his mouth and pulls the trigger. Later, Aaliyah tries to attack her for betraying her and Syed.

1890 – Henry identifies the man in the photo as the son of Lieutenant Colonel Richard Pearson, Assistant Commissioner of Police. Edmond shows Ladbroke Henry’s intimate photos to Ladbroke. Recognizing the man in the reflection at the scene, Ladbroke orders Edmond to burn the photo. Edmond threatens to take it over his head if he refuses to identify the man. Henry warns that he is already dead.

2023 – Maggie tells Shahara that the residue from the gun and the victim are not a complete match. Shahara pulls up CCTV from the café to reveal Syed and a boy sitting together. She claims the boy was watching her last night.

2053 – DC Iris Maplewood’s (Shira Haas) vehicle malfunctions. A computer detects the source at Longharvest Lane. A hologram of Elias Mannix (Stephen Graham) appears in the square. She breaks a lock to access Longharvest Lane where she finds a nude body lying on the ground. She gets a closer look when the man comes to gasping for breath when the episode ends.

 

Bodies Review

Whitechapel detectives from 1941, 1890, and 2023, find a nude body at Longharvest Lane under different circumstances. There is a different spin on each investigation. The 1890 investigation discovers there is no bullet inside the victim’s brain and no exit wound. The 2023 investigation focuses more on a suspect, Syed than the actual forensics of the investigation. The 1941 investigation takes a different direction by trying to cover up the murder.

The series appears to be divided into four separate but similar plots. The writer injects agendas into the storyline to bring the series up to par with the 2023 film industry.

The victim is not dead in the 2053 plot.

The pace is at times unbearably slow. The cinematography and editing are subpar at best. The camerawork isn’t much better. The acting for the most part is decent. The cast is oversaturated with actors and actresses, most of whom are lucky to get a few minutes of screen time.

Anyone watching the show for Stephen Graham may be disappointed like in “Boiling Point”. He makes a brief appearance near the end. So far, it seems they are utilizing his name to sell these series.

The episode deserves a 6. Get more Bodies recaps here. Support Reel Mockery by donating. Our onsite advertising builds brand awareness, click the link to learn more. Join our forum to discuss the latest TV shows, movies, and celebrity news.