The first mystery is simply called Above Suspicion and involves the brutal murder of a young student strangled by her own tights. We find Travis joining Langton's force, almost as a favor, since he previously worked for her recently deceased father. However, Travis quickly proves her own worth with her quick mind and determined ways. The case revolves around a handsome and well known young actor and his peculiar past. As Travis, Langton and the rest of the team dig further, they discover a slew of prostitute murders with the same killer's signature. Could they be connected? If they are going to keep their jobs while looking into someone as famous as Alan Daniels, someone "Above Suspicion," they had better make a clear-cut case.
Above Suspicion: The Red Dahlia once again places Travis and Langton working the same case, despite the fact that they are no longer working in the same office. While the pair seem to have some romantic sparks, regardless of the obvious age difference, they barely scratch the surface of flirting, at this point. This episode also marks the arrival of Celyn Jones playing DS Paul Barolli, who lends a comedic element to the character. This case involves the violent murder of a lonely young woman with few family ties. She is killed in a fashion very similar to that of Elizabeth Short, the Black Dahlia, and since that was a really old American case, it takes the team a bit of time to piece together the connections. It seems the victim, Louise Pennel (Ty Glaser), had previously answered a newspaper ad to be a personal assistant. When a sketch artist renders Louise's older mystery man from a witness's description, it seems to depict a wealthy and highly connected former army doctor, Charles Wickenham (Simon Williams), so the team had better tread lightly as they delve into Wickenham's unusual and disturbed family.
Above Suspicion: Deadly Intent has Langton come together with Travis and company following the drug-related murder of a former cop. Everything seems wrong about the whole setup and, soon, they discover that there's a mystery man who was present at the murder, and it just might be someone who has been on the run in the U.S. for decades. To further complicate matters, it seems a very deadly drug may soon be hitting London's streets if they can't find the source and stop him. This case has lots of twists and turns and finds Langton and company in a bit of a tight spot at the end, one that will have future repercussions.
Finally, Above Suspicion: Silent Scream presents the high profile murder of a popular and promiscuous young actress named Amanda Delany (Joanna Vanderham). Langton is on a rampage when he is passed over for the promotion of Commander for someone younger and less experienced. It seems someone from his team talked about the previously bungled case, despite being cautioned not to mention it. So he must root out the mole, while working on this case. It seems plenty of people had problems with Amanda, whether it was jealous friends from drama school who didn't "make it" in the acting world, the angry spouses of men she slept with, her strange and distant parents, or even members in the dangerous world of drugs. Everyone around her seems to be a suspect and they are stepping on some pretty prominent toes while working the case in the spotlight.
Above Suspicion: Complete Collection is a great collection of mysteries and the acting is fantastic. It's gritty and dark, so don't come into it expecting something lighthearted and pleasant along the lines of Midsomer Murders or Poirot, but something more along the lines of Prime Suspect, also by Lynda La Plante. I, personally, find Langton's brutish behavior to be a bit ridiculous, especially considering these episodes are only a few years old. The way he orders around the female detectives and researchers like poor DC Joan Faulkand (Amanda Lawrence) and DC Barbara Maddox (Michelle Holmes), demanding sandwiches with "no to-mah-toes" and such is just insulting. It's almost like he is straight out of the 60's, and yet, Anna Travis finds him immensely attractive. Personally, I find he just seemed like a bit of an ass, but a great cop nonetheless. Rounding out the group is DCI Mike Lewis (Shaun Dingwall), who has some personal ups and downs during the course of the show, and the earlier mentioned DS Paul Barolli, who lightens up the mood a good bit.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Above Suspicion: Complete Collection and wish they had continued to make La Plante's series of books into television series because I would have found it interesting to see where everyone goes in the future. As it stands, if you like British murder mysteries, you can't go wrong with Above Suspicion: Complete Collection. Each episode comes packed with special features like behind the scenes featurettes, interviews with cast and crew, photo galleries, biographies of La Plante and several cast members, and several enlightening interviews with Lynda La Plante herself. This would make a great gift for any fan of the show.
