Fast Love – As this episode of Vera begins, Milan Shah (Amit Shah) says hello to Ian Headley (Andrew Dunn). Carole Sloane (Nimmy March) tells Leanne Barrie (Evie Hargreaves) that she is going to dock her wages. If she is late again, she’ll be let go. A nearby vendor asks Carole to break a twenty. Danny Meddon (Travis Ross) finishes the transaction. Tony Meddon (Stephen Lord) arrives with the produce van and begins unloading it. That night, Danny and the others hang out at a pub. Tony asks Danny if he thinks he’s had enough. He asks for a word in private. Owen “Onions” Duggan (Patrick McNamee) follows Danny outside. Later, Danny is run over by a car while walking across a bridge.

DC Mark Edwards (Riley Jones) greets DCI Vera Stanhope (Brenda Blethyn) when she reaches the crime scene. She learns about Danny Meddon and remembers going to the Meddon’s Fruit and Veg stall. Dr. Paula Bennett (Sarah Kameela Impey) tells Vera about the victim’s injuries. She suspects Danny has been dead for six to eight hours. Paula is told that Aiden is in Perth, Australia. His missus sent in the application. Mark calls the phone number allowing nearby police to find the victim’s phone. They go over what they know right now. DC Kenny Lockhart (Jon Morrison) tells Vera that they found a home address in East Bentham but no one is home. Based on what the victim had on him, Vera believes he was enjoying a night on the town.

They’re not sure what he was doing out there though. Vera finds a picture of a woman in the victim’s wallet. She goes to the market where she speaks to Milan Shah. Then, she speaks to Owen ‘Onions’ Duggan who says Danny’s mom died a while back. His dad was headed to the wholesalers. Vera learns that there was a kick-off at the pub when Tony told Danny he was thinking of selling the business. Onions got between them before Danny stormed out of the pub. Danny’s mom died about six months ago. Since then, Danny has been letting things slide with the business. Onions is unable to identify the girl in the picture. When asked if anyone had it in for Danny, Onions recommends speaking to Ian Headley.

One day, Tony learned that the gaffer, Milan Shah, handed Headley his pitch. Tony went after Headley and landed an assault charge. Vera approaches Tony next to tell him about Danny’s death. Tony tells Vera about their argument and how Danny said the store was his mom’s legacy. He wasn’t worried that his son didn’t come home because he’d been staying at Owen’s place regularly. Vera tells him he has a broken headlight and that’s against the law. Tony says he smashed it a few weeks ago, but he hasn’t had time to get it fixed. Then, he admits to letting his insurance lapse. Vera says that’s not her department, but she will need him to ID the body. At the station, Vera talks to her team about the death of Danny.

Mark reveals that Tony got six months suspended for the assault on Ian Headley. Joe surprises Vera when he enters the room. Joe tells Vera it is DI Ashworth with the College of Policing. He is going to be observing her investigation. Joe tells DC Steph Duncan (Rhiannon Clements) and the others that their force is being studied for comparative purposes. Recent case summaries highlighted a lack of strategic direction so they’re being studied. Vera takes Joe into her office where she complains about being observed. Next, Vera and the others go to the market to speak to the locals. Milan asks Basma what she is doing there. She thought she’d be able to help. Milan asks her to go home. He complains about how it’ll look with the investigators questioning everyone.

He tells Vera where to find Ian Headley. Ian tells Vera that Danny was shooting his mouth off as usual. He called his dad out in front of the traders. When asked about Tony swinging at him, Ian says the Meddons like to think they own the market and they have many people in their pocket. Ian recommends searching the lock-up because Danny was selling knock-off cigarettes. He believes Milan was in on it as well. Ian says Danny was bad news so he got everything that was coming to him. Vera asks Mark to get a warrant to search the lock-up belonging to the Meddons. She complains about Joe breathing down their necks. Steph interrupts to tell Vera that the barmaid confirmed Danny had a skinful and left the pub with Onions around 9 PM.

Vera says that’s two or three hours unaccounted for. Carol comes over to say she was mates with Danny’s mom Gaynor. She thinks they should speak to Leanne. Carol says Danny was lost after his mom passed and it all came out at the funeral. Tony went and told him he was adopted. It drove a wedge between them. Basma used to be friends with Danny’s mom. Carol agrees to get Leanne’s address for them. Vera and the others discuss the case at the station again. Joe and Vera argue about whether Malin might’ve been taking brides to turn a blind eye. Danny received three missed calls from Leanne Barrie on the night of his murder. She lives with her parents in Fourstones. As Vera heads out the door, she talks to Joe about the so-called lack of strategic direction.

Vera visits Leanne to ask about her relationship with Danny. Alun Barrie (Bryan Dick) admits he never wanted Leanne to take that job. He says Leanne doesn’t need friends like Danny Meddon so he told him to stay away. Leanne argues that he never gave Danny a chance. She reveals they were set on leaving last night and she had even packed a bag. Outside, Leanne tells Vera that Danny looked out for them at the market. They decided to leave a couple of days before and booked the tickets last night on his tablet. They got roped into the dinner with Carol and the girls so Danny said he’d meet them at the coach station later. She tried calling him but realized he wasn’t coming to the station. Danny didn’t want people at the market to know he was adopted.

Danny told Leanne he had tracked down his birth mother. He never mentioned her again although Leanne believes she might’ve lived somewhere in South Shields. Joe and Vera discuss the recent revelation. Joe doubts Danny was running away since he still had a business to run. Vera gets a search warrant to search the lock-up. Once they find knock-off gear, Owen promises he didn’t know since he doesn’t even have a key. Milan tells Vera he’ll have to write up a report. She believes he is trying to cover himself. Vera knows the Meddons hadn’t paid their subs there for weeks, yet he let them stay on. Milan argues that Tony’s wife just died. He denies being involved and explains he runs a reputable market.

Milan last saw Danny around closing when he was on his way to the pub. Milan didn’t go to the pub because he doesn’t mix with the traders outside of work hours. After leaving the market around seven, Milan went home to his wife. When Tony calls, Vera says she’ll let Milan give him the news. In an interview room, Owen is asked about the knock-off gear. Owen says Danny sold that stuff on the side and it supposedly came straight off one of the ships. He denies knowing where Danny’s tablet is. Vera finds it odd that he didn’t call Danny even though he was staying with him. Owen insists Danny was always disappearing and wouldn’t show up for days sometimes. Owen eventually confesses that Danny broke into Ian’s van to steal some shirts and tops a few days ago.

That night, Danny came into the pub wearing one of those shirts and Ian saw. Vera tells Owen that the stuff in the lock-up will fall on Tony. Dr. Bennett tells Vera what she found out during the autopsy. Danny was killed by an acute subdural hematoma. Microscopic flecks of grey paint were found on Danny’s jeans. Bennett suspects they came from the vehicle that ran him down. The broken headlight is more promising because the fragment has an incomplete code embedded inside it. Later, Vera speaks to a distraught Tony. He says Gaynor’s dying wish was for him to tell Danny the truth. It just never felt like the right time to tell him. When Vera mentions Ian, Tony gets upset. Tony says he had it coming. Vera suspects the market inspector was in on it as well.

Tony reveals Danny told him that Milan wouldn’t be a problem. Vera visits Basma Shah (Farzana Dua Elahe) who admits she used to run a store at the market. Basma was friendly enough with Gaynor although Milan didn’t think they were their sort of people. When asked about money, Basma says they came into some family money. She believes Milan got back around 7:30 on the night of Danny’s death. At the station, Steph tells Vera that Danny had a profile on a gay hookup app. Tony confronts Ian and calls him a snitch. Ian drives past him causing Tony to fall. He drives to Vera to tell her about the encounter. Ian admits he keeps most of his stock in his van overnight. Vera wants her forensics team to go over the van. At the station, Vera tells Steph she thinks Tony is a violent individual.

When the others mention Ian, Vera says she’ll bring him in when she is ready to bring him in. In private, she argues with Joe about bringing in new equipment. Steph interrupts with the report from social services about Danny’s adoption. The father is unknown. There is a scanned picture of the birth mother who is named Alison Wilmslow/Alison Rahim (Susan Jayne Robinson). It is the same photo Danny had in his pocket. Steph says the mother got pregnant as a result of a sexual assault. She goes by the name Alison Rahim. Steph traced her number on Danny’s mobile so they had been in contact. She’d like to visit her. Joe offers to go with her.

Vera confronts Tony about threatening Ian. Tony claims Ian tried to run over them. She accuses him and Danny of making a special effort to threaten Ian. He says Ian grassed them up. She asks if he knew Danny broke into Ian’s van and stole his gear. He tells her that Gaynor’s death broke Danny.

Duncan and Ashworth inform Alison of Danny’s murder. Alison tells them that she was 21 when she got pregnant with Danny. She admits to putting him up for adoption. She says Neil only found out about six months ago. Ashworth tells her that they are aware of the specifics of Danny’s adoption.

Tony tells Vera that he and Gaynor couldn’t have children. Vera says Danny may have traced his birth mother but he refuses to believe it. He claims the adoption agency told them that Danny was a product of a sexual assault. He says when Gaynor was diagnosed with cancer, she insisted Danny know the truth. Vera suggests Danny was upset to learn Tony was not his real father.

Alison explains the circumstances of her rape. Neil assures her that it was not her fault. She describes her assailant as strong and young. Duncan asks if the police ever followed up on her case. Alison tells her that there was no match for her assailant’s DNA in the system. She dropped the case before Danny was born. After his adoption, she moved from Bentham to Northumberland where she met Neil. She denies telling Danny about the rape when he unexpectedly showed up a few months ago. Ashworth says there is evidence of Danny calling her two weeks ago. Neil tells her that she was supposed to cut off all contact with Danny. She reminds him of Danny being her son. She questions if she had taken a different approach, things may have been different. Duncan offers to look into reopening her cold case. Outside, Ashworth scolds Duncan for offering to reinvestigate Alison’s case. Duncan complains about not being accepted on Vera’s investigation team. He assures her that Vera is the best. She suggests running Neil’s taxi license plate.

Tony claims to have taken a cab from the pub on the night Danny was killed. She asks why he was found inside his van at the wholesalers. He tells her that he picked up orders and delivery boxes from Onions’ place before he learned of Danny’s death.

Vera asks Onions if he knew Danny was planning to go to London with Leanne. He claims Danny booked a room at a local hotel. She admits to being intoxicated on the night Danny was killed. She suggests he was determined to stop Danny from leaving with Leanne. He tells her that Danny was his only true friend.

Duncan and Ashworth lay Alison’s cold case file on Vera’s desk. Vera demands to know who told them to pull it. He says Bethan CID cleared it. She reminds him that he is not part of her team. He suggests running Alison’s assailant’s DNA through the database and reviewing the evidence. She refuses to reopen the case. Mark informs them that Neil was in Betham on the night Danny was killed.

Neil admits to offering Danny money to stay away from Alison but he refused. He says Alison never knew about it. Ashworth tells Neil that there is evidence of him being in Betham, a few miles from where Danny was killed. Neil tells him that he transported a girl from the coach station to Fourstones. Ashworth points out that Fourstones is about 20 miles from Betham. Neil says the taxi company keeps a record on file. As Vera and Ashworth are leaving, Neil claims Danny was tracking Alison’s assailant to make him pay. Ashworth questions if Alison knew her assailant. Vera refutes the idea. She receives a call from Lockhart saying Danny utilized Milan Shah’s bank card to pay for a room at the Pendelton Hotel

Milan claims to have set up a meeting with a man for sex at the Pendleton Hotel. Putting a photo on the table, Vera asks if he was meeting Danny. He says the profile did not have a photo. Ashworth shows him an invoice for two different nights at the hotel. Milan tells them that Danny was passed out on the bed when he left the hotel at about 11pm. Vera says Basma covered for him. Later, Mark shows Vera Milan’s receipt from a gas station at 11:25pm near where Danny’s body was found.

Leanne is booked for shoplifting. Vera confronts her about Danny’s tablet in her possession. Leanne tells her that Alun is Danny’s father, they are siblings. Later, Vera informs Ashworth of Alun and Alison working at Camley’s in 1999 when she was sexually assaulted. She says Danny discovered Leanne was his sister. They arrest Alun at his workplace for suspicion of sexual assault.

Vera questions Alun about the night Alison was sexually assaulted. Alun denies any recollection of Alison. When she starts reading Alison’s police statement, he says there is no need for him to hear it. She shows him photos of a beaten and battered Alison. She informs him of Leanne’s arrest. Ashworth says Leanne submitted a DNA sample. Placing Leanne’s and Alison’s assailant’s DNA profiles on the table, Vera says they are a familial match. She says Danny’s mum is Alison and he is his father. Later, Vera and Ashworth fill Kathy Barrie (Samantha Seager) in on the case.

Vera and Ashworth watch CCTV footage from the gas station near where Danny was killed. Danny is seen exiting Milan’s vehicle. Later, Vera confronts Milan with the new evidence. Milan claims Danny was threatening to expose him if he didn’t write off Tony’s back rent and return his pitch. He tells her that he refused to let Danny destroy everything he worked for. Outside the interrogation room, Ashworth tells Vera that the headlight from the crime scene matches a Volkswagen Golf. He reminds her of Milan driving a white Range Rover.

Carole tells Vera that Basma had dinner with them at a local restaurant on the night Danny was killed. She says Basma left at about 11pm. Later, Duncan informs Vera that the broken headlight matches a gray Volkswagen Golf registered to Milan.

In a flashback, Basma is on her way home when she sees Milan and Danny arguing. She admits to mowing Danny down. Vera reminds her that she left Danny dying on the bridge to go home to a cheating husband. Basma assures her that Danny got what he deserved. Later, Milan tells Vera that he figured it out when he learned about the broken headlight.

Vera informs Tony of Basma’s murder. Tony agrees to talk to Alison. Later, Vera offers to help Ashworth get on their team. He agrees to think about it.

 

Vera Review

The opening episode of Vera’s 13^th series was okay but the formulaic nature of the show is beginning to become a bit stale. The episode had the same problems as many other British crime dramas. The murder victims are often props because the series didn’t build a legitimate connection between the victim and the viewer. There isn’t really an investigation since 99% of the episode was Vera walking around speaking to people.

Vera’s team is pretty shallow to the point that they only interject to add new pieces of evidence with these scenes scattered throughout the episode. Personally, I found the back and forth between Vera and Joe to be annoying. At one point, they were arguing about upgrading equipment even though there is no equipment being used.

Again, the series has become too formulaic with Vera speaking to witnesses for 20 minutes before returning to the station to update the team. This is repeated throughout until it finally reaches its conclusion. Just don’t forget the millions of twists sprinkled into the show to try to keep things interesting for a tedious hour and a half.

In reality, these twists only diminish the overall believability of the series if that was still intact by this point. Unsurprisingly, those twists are the same clichés we’ve been a blue million times by now such as sexuality, being adopted, sexual assault, and so on. A little originality would go a long way to make this more interesting, but a legitimately empathetic victim and even relatable victim’s loved ones would do wonders.

Overall, the episode was watchable if viewers can stomach the unnecessarily long runtime, but it’ll be quickly forgotten once the credit rolls. The episode scores a 5.5 out of 10. Recaps of Vera are available on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support our independent site at this link. Learn more about advertising with us here. Discuss this series and more with friends at the Reel Mockery Forum.