As the second episode of The Diplomat begins, a worker with Petites Nanny Services arrives at the Villa Rose in Maresme. She finds a lot of empty alcohol bottles and outdoor furniture flipped over. The kids come over to tell her that their mommy isn’t there. When she goes inside, she finds blood on the floor and stairs. Then, she finds a bloody Seth Miller (Bert Seymour) on the bed upstairs. After the intro, Laura Simmonds (Sophie Rundle), Alba, and Carl talk about Seth’s wife Izzy (Tamsin Topolski) who has gone missing. She learns that Seth is out of danger and the kids are with social services.

Sam Henderson (Steven Cree) joins them and explains he was on the phone with Izzy’s father who is the ex-cabinet secretary and head of civil service. Sir Gerald Forster (Stephen Boxer) recently retired and he is driving down this morning. Laura hopes to speak to Inspector Castells (Isak Ferriz) about the second autopsy of Jay Sutherland later today. Sam reminds her that her top priority is the possible abduction of a British national. Laura argues with him briefly. As she leaves, Alba Ortiz (Serena Manteghi) admits she thought she had softened on him. Laura isn’t sure what happened to Izzy although the police have gone too far with the sex slave angle.

Once they arrive, Colin Sutherland (Danny Sapani) approaches them to say the girl is gone. Castells is waiting for them inside. Mariona Cabell (Laia Costa) calls Sam to tell him that Amy has gone. She urges him to stop Laura from sticking her nose in it. When Sam asks if she wants to hook up later, Mariona asks him to take her somewhere nice. Sam wants to know if Fabian (Philipp Boos) is planning anything against the girl. Castells asks to speak to Laura alone. He tells her that they’re ruling out burglary as a motive in the attack on the Miller house. Seth was struck in the head with a blunt instrument they haven’t been able to locate. They discuss the fact that Izzy is missing.

Laura believes Izzy could be in considerable danger no matter why she left the house. Izzy stops to buy a drink and a lollipop. As she walks away, she only has one shoe on. She is found at a nearby church. Inspector Castells tells Colin that there are contusions consistent with blows, but the body was banging against the harbor buoy. Furthermore, the carpal bones in one of the wrists were broken. It is less likely that this was caused by movement in the water. It is more consistent with someone stomping on Jay’s wrist. Castells explains that he is going to take a look at the yacht when it arrives. Seconds later, they learn that Izzy has been found.

Laura is going to stay and speak to her so she asks Alba to make sure Colin gets back to his accommodation. Sam greets Gerald Forster when he arrives. Gerald introduces his assistant named Eddie. Sam asks whether Gerald would like him to find a lawyer since he thinks it might be a good idea. Gerald agrees before saying he hopes this will be the end of Izzy’s cursed marriage. Izzy asks if she can see her children before she tells the inspector what happened. Izzy says she thought her husband would look after the kids when she left the property. She insists her husband didn’t have a significant head wound at the time. Laura wants to know why Izzy left the property.

Izzy explains that they had their worst argument ever. They had been out to dinner so they were drunk. Inspector Castells mentions there were signs of cocaine use. Izzy admits to buying some coke at El Faro even though she doesn’t like it. She was already hurt and humiliated by the time they got back to the villa because Seth had flirted with the hostess. They drank some more before it kicked off. Izzy claims her husband is a controller. This time, she stood up for herself and said she wouldn’t take it anymore. When Castells asks what she wasn’t going to take, Izzy says the psychological abuse. She tells them how Seth hits on her friends before explaining that the nanny was the last straw.

Izzy suggests someone must’ve broken into their home and attacked Seth. Castells is going to ask them to hold Izzy for 24 hours pending the questioning of Seth. Izzy says that is crazy because she has no idea how Seth became injured. She claims the nanny might have a boyfriend before asking Larua why she isn’t helping her. Laura promises they are there to help. Sam introduces Eddie to Alba and Carl (Dylan Brady). He asks about bars or restaurants for later. When Eddie invites them out, Alba tells Carl to get lost and he agrees. Later that night, Laura talks to Tom (Ladi Emeruwa) on her computer. Tom met Gerald once and describes him as a blue-chip establishment type.

After the video call, Laura researches the nanny service. In the morning, Alba tries to sneak out without waking Eddie, but he calls her name. He tells her that last night was intense. She tells Carl that it was intensely boring. When Laura arrives, Alba says they’re just going through the lost passport stats. Laura takes Alba with her while Carl stays to guard the fort. As they drive, Laura says Ana (Paula Jornet) has another gig so she didn’t want to come to the consulate. They discuss whether Izzy did it. Laura says she believes she had her reasons even if she did do it. Nanny tells them it was okay working for the Millers when they were sober although they weren’t sober very often.

She confirms she saw Seth being abusive to his wife and describes him as a wanker. The nanny says Izzy was just as bad. When asked about sleeping with Seth, she denies it and explains that he hit on her regularly. She didn’t see physical violence since it was always verbal. The kids were the victims of those two selfish arseholes. Later, Laura and Alba discuss which woman they should believe. Laura gets a call from Inspector Castells who asks if she can talk. Seth is conscious. He isn’t cooperating and says everything is hazy, but Castells doesn’t believe him. He has something else to show Laura too. Laura asks Alba to get onto UK social services to see if the Millers are known to them.

Castells shows Laura a picture of the house before the crime. There is an odd figurine on a table. In the pictures of the crime scene, the figurine is gone. It is the only thing missing from the house and it has very little value. Castells says Izzy has a lawyer and she is organizing the release of the children to the grandfather. Mariona Cabell is also trying to get Izzy released. Laura agrees to speak to Laura to see what he says. Castells says Colin will be able to go on the yacht later. Gerald meets the kids and says mommy will be back soon. Mariona tells Sam it all hinges on the husband who hasn’t said anything yet. She hopes Laura doesn’t screw things up for the Millers as well.

Seth tells Laura that they’re not always at war. He loves his wife and she loves him. He claims he doesn’t know who hit him. Seth knows it’ll be harder for the judge to bring charges. When he asked about being abusive, Seth says he is a straight white man so he’d have to be the bad guy. He confesses to abusing Izzy when she reminds him that the house is in her name thanks to her father. He hopes it teaches their kids that there is a crock of crap somewhere over the rainbow and they’ll have to deal with it. Laura thinks kids are better off with ice cream. She believes he is using his powers of recall to control the outcome for his wife. Laura thinks he might be getting more leverage over her.

Seth asks if she wants him to say she did it. Laura argues he should do whatever is best for the children before admitting he is a wanker like the nanny said. Later, Castells calls Laura to tell her about the evidence and that the judge is reluctant to move forward with charges without a statement from the husband. After the call, Alba says social services were aware of the Millers because there is a history of neglect. Laura sits down with Sam and Izzy. She mentions the missing Brazilian ornament. Laura believes it was used to assault Seth and hastily hidden. She mentions that things are messy for Izzy and Seth. Laura believes they need professional help for their substance abuse issues.

Laura says she has to report this to social services. Izzy warns her that they could destroy her for this. Gerald agrees, but says Laura is entirely accurate in her analysis. He says Seth is a nasty piece of work while Izzy is an alcoholic. Laura believes this could be the last straw and the case is on a knife’s edge. She thinks Izzy should let the kids go home with her father while she seeks professional help. Although she’ll still need to inform social services, it could impact the tone of her report. Gerald says they will do that and Izzy won’t get any more support from him until he gets the help she needs. The kids burst in to say hello to their mother.

Eddie (Bobby Lockwood) and Gerald leave with the kids while Izzy packs her stuff. Sam complains on the phone about people trying to do their jobs. Laura makes Colin say he’ll let Inspector Castells do all the talking. Mariona and Fabian arrive moments later. After formal introductions, they look at the spot where Jay would’ve launched the jet ski. Laura tells Fabian that she doesn’t like yachts. Fabian has to door open so the inspector can see where the keys are kept. He confirms they haven’t replaced jet ski two yet. The inspector says it’d be odd if one of the keys fits the jet ski they have. Once the others leave, Laura tells Colin she didn’t mention the keys being on board because she didn’t want him throwing things around.

He thinks it is a game changer and wonders how they can explain it. When Laura gets back, Carl asks the same question. Laura gets upset when she learns she is up for a vetting review. Sam interrupts to talk to them about the Miller case. Laura hopes Colin gets the same satisfaction even if he doesn’t have all of Izzy’s advantages.

 

The Diplomat Review

The second episode of The Diplomat tackled an attempted murder while putting the investigation into Jay’s drowning on the backburner. The case of the abusive husband who ended up badly injured was different so that was a good touch. The performances are good with Sophie Rundle, Steven Cree, Isak Ferriz, and Danny Sapani leading the way.

The Diplomat is well made and the soundtrack seemed more tolerable in this episode. However, there are a lot of storylines and dialogue lines that diminish the serious nature of the subject matter. The story may be trying too hard to walk a political line with certain things making the main characters unlikeable and unprofessional.

Unfortunately, the agenda is too blatant so it is hard to overlook. If these things would’ve been left out, it would’ve been easier to take The Diplomat seriously. Instead, the two main characters just don’t come across as professional enough to be working in a consulate. The episode scores a 6 out of 10.

Recaps of The Diplomat are available on Reel Mockery here. Learn how to support our independent website by following this link. Find out more about advertising on Reel Mockery here.