Luther - season finale review

So the third series of Luther is done and dusted, and what a finale.
By now you've either seen it, about to watch on catch up, or have wandered onto this section by accident.
Safe to say, there are mild spoilers ahead.

As ever, this was another showcase for Idris Elba, an actor so compelling, he should be goalkeeper for England at the next World Cup; he just needs to show up and can save anything.
An army of ILM effects experts worked for months to create the huge robots in Pacific Rim and Idris managed to overshadow them all.
Obviously Luther is made for a fraction of that film's budget; Idris’s Stacker Pentecost’s costume probably cost as much to make as the final ep of the BBC’s compelling crime drama.

Naturally writer Neil Cross saved the best for last, playing his ace card Alice, the posh psycho killer millions hate to love and vice versa.

Effortlessly played by Ruth Wilson, Alice’s greatest crime was to steal the best dialogue.
In a genre littered with cliches, she tap danced around any plot holes with the skill of a seasoned hoofer.
Okay, like any drama, it wasn't perfect.

There was the odd moment I started grumbling at the TV, namely during Mary's desperate search for a key while standing in front of a plate glass door.
I don’t know about you, but if someone's coming after me with a shotgun, I wouldn't let a pane of glass stand in the way. I’d smash it with the nearest thing to hand and start running like Jess Ennis on Super Saturday until the eloquent psycho gunman du jour is a safe distance away.

I won't bother you with the ups and downs of the second act as this was all about the finale, and like far too many thrillers, it resorted to the obvious: scale a tall building and face an impossible dilemma before the authorities show up.

Taking a leaf out of the Life on Mars and Sherlock BBC guidebook to series finales, Luther may not have been staggeringly original, but thanks to the scenery-chewing performances of Idris and Ruth, it didn't matter a jot.
Given the choice between saving girlfriend Mary and psycho femme fatale Alice, poor Luther was understandably torn.

Thankfully, Alice literally nailed her chance to escape when the possibility arose, and the result was more edge-of-the-seat drama than edge-of-the-sky rise.

There's been talk of an Alice spin-off project, which is not a bad idea. Ms Wilson is magnetic in the role of her life, and who wouldn't want to see Idris guest star in that for a short spell instead of carrying a series on his formidable shoulders?

Now the series trilogy is over, for my money it’s time to give Idris the big screen vehicle he deserves.
Given the nail-biting/slashing touches of this run, it could be something incredible.

And if you need an investor BBC Films, I'll happily shell out for a new coat.
It has to be a lot cheaper than Stacker Pentecost’s Pacific Rim threads.

Luther: series three is released on DVD on July 29