When a woman goes missing on a night out in Oxford DI Thursday sees connections to another case a few years previously where a woman was attacked and left in a coma. She had been attending classes at a night school where the caretaker quickly makes himself a suspect by saying he can't recall seeing her when he had actually spoken to her. Another suspect is a park keeper who was seen giving a woman her a lift; first says he didn't mention it as he didn't want to drive her home, then he says he drove her home then he admits dropping her off near Wytham Woods. Soon there is another disappearance; a man vanished while his girlfriend went for a swim. After a search his severed arm is found! The coroner suggests he must have drowned and been hit by a boat propeller but the police are unconvinced. When a third person goes missing and his tent is found shredded people talk of a big cat that is rumoured to be in the area
although nobody really believes it. There were some at a nearby stately home but they had been put down as cubs after one mauled a girl. Surely there can't really be a big cat in the area? Away from the case DI Thursday appears to be unwell and Sgt Strange joins CID and encourages Morse to apply for promotion.
This was an enjoyable episode; the idea of a big cat killing people in the English countryside might seem like a plot more suited to 'Midsomer Murders' but it works surprisingly well. There are plenty of suspects and the final resolution isn't too obvious. As well as an interesting case we see established characters in a new light; most notably when DI Thursday assaults the suspect he is convinced assaulted the woman years before and believes was involved in the current case and when the quietly spoken Chief Superintendent Bright tell how he shot a man-eating tiger in India Roger Allam and Anton Lesser do fine jobs in these roles. The final scenes where we see the tiger are very impressive; one could really believe that the cast were in a maze with a real live tiger. Overall an impressive episode that words despite its unlikely premise.
This was an enjoyable episode; the idea of a big cat killing people in the English countryside might seem like a plot more suited to 'Midsomer Murders' but it works surprisingly well. There are plenty of suspects and the final resolution isn't too obvious. As well as an interesting case we see established characters in a new light; most notably when DI Thursday assaults the suspect he is convinced assaulted the woman years before and believes was involved in the current case and when the quietly spoken Chief Superintendent Bright tell how he shot a man-eating tiger in India Roger Allam and Anton Lesser do fine jobs in these roles. The final scenes where we see the tiger are very impressive; one could really believe that the cast were in a maze with a real live tiger. Overall an impressive episode that words despite its unlikely premise.