Upbeat Caribbean music draws us happily back into the gorgeous island of Saint Marie, as we rejoin the Death in Paradise team for a fifth season on BBC One.
However, the happy, breezy nature of the opening sequence quickly turns to a chilling murder, as a millionaire researcher (Julian Ovenden) is found shot dead at the steering wheel of his yacht – whilst his entire team of research divers were in the depths of the ocean below.
“The witnesses are saying they were all diving in the reef when he was shot. They reckon it was crooks on a passing boat,” explains Dwayne (Danny John-Jules).
The Jonathan Creek style mystery provides a welcome and thought-provoking mystery to this season opener.
“Tell you what I don’t get, Florence,” an inquisitive Humphrey (Kris Marshall) asks his assistant. “The victim was a millionaire. He’d have handed over his wallet and watch the moment that the robbers asked for it, wouldn’t he?”
The robbery as a red herring is quickly tanked as a theory, leaving us to reason that one of the four divers, supposedly off the boat at the time of the murder, is our killer. The eventual reveal of the perpetrators is one that you might see coming (this reviewer definitely did), but it did so while getting strong performances from this week’s guest cast including Emma Rigby from Hollyoaks and Doctor Who star Neve McIntosh. Everyone here has an ample motive for Dan’s death and the actors really run with it.
“But with Dan alive, he’d have discredited you. And with him dead, your reputation and job are once again safe.”
As well as a series of misleading red herrings, such a drug smuggling subplot and an intelligently written plotline about faulty data research, the main plot is actually quite interesting. The action also gives some light relief moments for the main cast as we discover JP’s inability to swim, a Lara Croft style acrobatic moment from Josephine Jobert’s Florence and the fact that Humphrey is so settled into island life that he has bought himself a (rather rickety) old boat. Now in his third season as the bumbling Humphrey, Kris Marshall shows just how totally in the skin of his character he now is.
Edward Bennett’s faultless direction makes the best of the Guadeloupe island vistas, complimenting them with beautiful aerial camera work and a nice line of well-edited flashbacks.
Death in Paradise’s sunshine and tropical setting will no doubt beat the January blues and this season, with no major cast shake ups on the way will perhaps be a good starting off point for anyone new to the series. This opening episode is a strong start to reinforce that, providing an intelligent mystery and pithy humour.
Aired at 9pm on Thursday 7 January 2016 on BBC One.
> Buy the complete Season 1-5 boxset on Amazon.
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