Lewis, ITV - TV review: Dated, safe and predictable, it will be sorely missed
Lewis has held a special place in the nation's heart for almost a decade for good reason
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Your support makes all the difference.The Morse era has finally drawn to a close, as DI Robert Lewis and DS James Hathaway hang up their crime-solving hats for the last time, and – in Lewis's case – don a jazzy, Hawaiian shirt for a sixth-month trip to New Zealand. There will be no more sharing pints in traditional pubs, picturesque scenes of Oxford colleges or academics strolling around in gowns all day long.
The much-loved drama bowed out with the second part of “What Lies Tangled”, a typical Lewis storyline featuring a megalomaniac professor implicated with a student and academic jargon that holds the key to the mystery. But the two sleuths' stories ended less predictably. Workaholic Lewis was eventually persuaded to hand in his resignation, while Hathaway had to steel himself to hold his father's hand on his deathbed.
At the height of the drama's popularity eight years ago, Lewis attracted eight million viewers, but that number has halved during its final ninth series. Even actor Kevin Whately, who has played the detective on and off for 30 years, recently claimed Lewis “has gone on long enough”.
The series does look dated compared to Scandi-noir inspired British dramas such as Broadchurch and The Missing. It is hard to imagine Lewis and Hathaway staring out on to a foggy moor wearing thick knits in a greying light, although the tone may have suited Hathaway's brooding. At least its diverse cast has helped to bring the drama into 2015.
But Lewis has held a special place in the nation's heart for almost a decade for good reason. It will be remembered as an unthreatening, quintessentially British series, stunningly filmed and featuring beautiful music from Morse composer Barrington Pheloung. It is first-class curl-under-the-blanket comfort viewing, and will be sorely missed.
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