DCI Lauren Quigley (Siobhan Finneran) begins the episode asleep in her office. She is disturbed by a noise nearby. Seconds later, she finds herself attacking Blake Albrighton (Don Gilet). Blake is patched up, before he asks whether or not Craig Petrie (Alastair Mackenzie) plans to press charges. Blake offers his assistance, but Quigley quickly turns it down. After Lauren departs, Blake digs through the drawer and grabs a radio. After the intro, Craig goes for a jog. Kieran (Jack Bannon) gives his brother a quick bath. Alan Redford (Gray O’Brien) strolls downstairs and speaks with his wife, Annie (Laura Fraser). Alan looks to have recovered miraculously. Alan comes clean and admits he has been lying about the Loch Ness monster all along. He made up the entire story to get attention.

Then, we jump over to Mhari Toner (Simone Lahbib). She gets a visit from Craig about the upcoming field trip. Craig speaks with Dessie (Conor McCarry) in private and asks about the mysterious letter. Dessie insists he had nothing to do with it. Craig doesn’t seem to believe him. Craig tells the boy that they need to stick together. Mhari drags her son outside and asks why he was whispering. Kieran’s arrival interrupts their conversation. Back at the station, Quigley confirms that they’ve been given permission to search Simon Marr’s house. Then, Annie tells the group about the man in the CCTV footage. Don McGrellish (George Anton) and his wife, Angusina (Victoria Liddelle), visit Simon. He tells them that Angusina may be suffering from pre-eclampsia.

Meanwhile, Dessie plays around with a rifle. Evie (Shona McHugh) tries to get in touch with Bethan (Kay McAllister). She doesn’t get an answer. Craig continues his jog, until he hears a few bullets whiz by his head. At the station, Quigley asks Annie about her husband. Then, Craig enters and complains about his recent interview. He tells Quigley about the shooting and blames her. Annie is tasked with speaking to Don. Annie scours the scene and finds the bullet holes. Angusina notices Annie nearby and tells Don to get rid of her as quickly as possible. Don speaks with Annie. He tells her that he was out shooting and got the wolf, but missing the runner. Annie asks to see his rifle certificate. Meanwhile, the detectives search Simon’s home. The police take Simon’s computer, which contains patient records. Don reemerges with the certificate. This time, Annie requests to see the rifle.

Don finally admits that he doesn’t have it. He explains that he let Dessie borrow it. Evie hangs out with Kieran. They speak about their future plans. Kieran plans to join the other students for the trip to the dam. Evie intends to head for Foyers Point to throw a bunch of flowers into the loch for Jonjo. After the police leave, Simon (John Heffernan) looks at a broken picture of his wife. He leaves his house is a hurry. Seconds later, he catches up with Evie and chases her down. He asks her why she is harassing him. At the station, Quigley confirms that the DNA for the heart has been returned. The owner was born in 1964. She tasks her team with compiling a list of potential victims. Evie admits Simon touched her boob too long during an examination. He explains that his wife had just died from breast cancer. Evie accepts the excuse and jumps in the vehicle with the doctor. He tells her that he wants to show her the truth.

Simon takes Evie to Don’s house. She is told to wait in the vehicle. Annie rushes over to Dessie’s house. She speaks with Dessie’s mom and is give permission to search his room. Meanwhile, Evie enters the McGrellish house and overhears their conversation with Sam. Sam pleads with the family to let him take Bethan to the doctor. It is revealed that Bethan is the one pregnant and not Don’s wife. Bethan pretends she has gone into labor, so she can leave the house with Sam. Nevertheless, he takes her to the hospital anyway. Also, Bethan tells Evie that she loves Sam. Craig leads the students towards the dam. While searching Dessie’s room, Annie finds the potential murder weapon. She radios it in right away. Quigley orders the police to rush to the dam and catch up with Dessie.

Crawford Baxter (Euan Stamper) harasses Dessie at the dam. He asks him what he is hiding in his guitar case. Blake hears the radio chatter and decides to rush to the dam too. Eventually, Quigley arrives at the scene and finds Baxter dead. We see a gun behind her. Of course, Annie arrives in time to prevent her from getting shot dead. They search for Dessie together. Eventually, the find him dead alongside a wounded Kieran. Blake arrives outside. He spots Craig consoling a few of the students. Blake again tells Quigley about his suspicions. This time, she isn’t having it. She believes Dessie is solely responsible. Bethan chats with Evie at the hospital. Then, Evie receives a call and learns about Kieran’s wounds. Back at the station, the police are shown the video of the kids laying out the bones on the beach. Quigley believes this is further evidence that Dessie was responsible.

Evie sits with Kieran at the hospital. He finally wakes up and asks for a drink of water. Blake watches the interviews with the students at the motel. Alan gives a tour to two men. He tells them about his lie, before one man begins shouting at the television screen. The man points to the screen and it shows the man’s body floating in the water.

 

The Loch Review

The Loch has been a major disappointment from start to finish, yet somehow it has scored well with critics. I am a little baffled by the fact that the so-called critics from The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle and St. Louis Post-Dispatch gave the series such higher scores. The fact that many have compared The Loch to Broadchurch is laughable, if not downright ridiculous. I enjoy Laura Fraser and Siobhan Finneran just as much as everyone else, but their decisions to take roles in The Loch has me questioning their judgment.

This episode pinpointed many of the biggest flaws with the show. First and foremost, the series is insanely politically correct. Each Caucasian man in the series is either a pedophile, murderer or a borderline rapist. Even the white police officers are portrayed are imbeciles. Meanwhile, Lauren Quigley is a 50 to 60 year old bad arse. Quigley’s beating of Blake this episode was child’s play. It didn’t matter that she was as stiff as a 2 by 4. There are better ways to portray women as tough, independent and smart.

Simultaneously, the episode felt like an unnecessary side trip. Much of it was too predictable. It didn’t take a genius to realize that Dessie wanted to shoot and kill someone. And, as soon as I saw Kieran in the van, I knew he would be portrayed as the hero in one way or another. Finally, the man’s body in the water has been discovered. After such an excruciating wait, we finally get to pull the body out of the water and identify the man.

How can anyone care at this point? The series has been so sluggishly slow and incoherent that it doesn’t matter. The second coming of Christ couldn’t save The Loch. Still, I’ll admit that it is so bad that I find myself laughing at the silliness from time to time. For that, the series is a little better than Bellevue and Fearless. Unfortunately, that isn’t saying much. A 4.5 out of 10 or lower is deserved. Catch up with previous recaps of The Loch now, if you want to punish yourself a little more.