Vigil viewers divided online over hotly anticipated series finale

The finale of Vigil falls somewhere in the middle of the spectrum of Twitter fan reactions — between anti-climactic and gripping

The final episode of BBC’s Vigil aired last night (26 September) and drew mixed reactions from fans online.

The limited series kept viewers on the edges of their seats for the last five weeks, as DCI Amy Silva (Suranne Jones) investigated the murky ongoings of HMS Vigil.

The end of episode five looked like the end of the road for Silva, when she realised that Matthew Doward (chillingly played by Lorne MacFadyen) was the dangerous Russian spy onboard the submarine.

In the final moments of the penultimate episode, Doward hit Silva on the head and shoved her inside a soundproof torpedo tube, leaving the detective to die.

From then on, the only thing rising faster than the water level inside the torpedo tube was the urgency to find out whether Jones’s character survived the deadly attack.

As expected, the high-octane finale left viewers divided on everything, from the romance between Silva and her love interest DCI Longacre (Rose Leslie), to the writing, acting and the show’s ending.

While some were thrilled to see an on-screen gay couple get the happy ending they deserved, others found the lack of chemistry between Jones and Leslie disappointing.

One user even called their romance “completely unnecessary”.

Fans also couldn’t agree on whether episode six was brilliant or boring.

One Twitter user wrote: “#Vigil left me cold. Disappointed.”

Conversely, another user tweeted that the makers of the show had saved the best episode for last.

There was, however, widespread appreciation for Jones’ performance as the steely detective.

The biggest gripe with viewers appeared to be the show’s unanswered questions — including why Doward was working with the Russians in the first place.

One user said the drama was unintentionally funny, calling Vigil the “the best comedy series BBC has released in decades”.

Another said the show was “entertaining nonsense” but questioned why MacFadyen’s character would need to be on-board HMS Vigil when Jackie was already doing the Russians’s bidding, rendering Burke’s killing a moot point.

A more balanced critique of the show read: “A great show but with some questionable moments, leaps of logic and the final 20 minutes rather fizzles out. I still enjoyed it though, particularly the final two episodes.”

In conclusion? The finale of Vigil fell somewhere in the middle of the spectrum of Twitter fan reactions — between anti-climactic and gripping.

You can read a full recap (spoilers included) of episode six here.