ITV was back with another season full of suspense, drama, and more cases coming on the way. The wait for the season’s third was over as the story of season two ended on the biggest cliffhanger, and since then, the fans haven’t stopped talking about it and have taken part in many of the new season’s discussions and theories.
Grace season three was directed by John Alexander and Julia Ford. The series’ first episode was released on the 19th of March, and the last one was released on the 2nd of April, 2023. This season third, had three episodes aired on ITV1 on weekdays and on ITVX every Sunday, with a runtime of two hours each. Unlike other seasons, in the third season, other writers—including Ben Court, Caroline Ip, and Ed Whitmore—took over the role of screenwriter after Russell Lewis, Grace’s flagship series’s much-lauded author, left for season three.
The Roy Grace series, which had seen eight books transferred to the audience screen, was based on the bestselling and prize-worthy works by Peter James. There are a staggering 19 published books in total in the series, so the crew has a lot left to do. These three James books—the fifth, sixth, and seventh—took place in or close to the coastal city of Brighton.
A series called Grace, set in Brighton and Hove, narrated the tale of a melancholy detective who suffered from the death of his wife. More information concerning Sandy, Grace’s wife, who vanished many years ago, was revealed to viewers in season three. And with the help of pathologist Cleo, Grace made an effort to move on, but Sandy’s spirit will always linger inside her. Also, Branson and Grace had gone through personal challenges that brought them closer together.
Three books served as the foundation for season three: Ed Whitmore’s Dead Man’s Grip, Caroline Ip, and Ben Court’s Dead Like You and Not Dead Yet. Isher Sahota, Will Sinclair, and Camilla Strm Henriksen each helmed one of the three recent episodes.
Characters of Grace Season 3
There were a few characters that were back in the third season, and some new characters made an entry in the series. Every character had an essential role to play and contributed to the show. Few characters were there to make things easy for Grace, and others to make it impossible to make it to the end. You cannot imagine this series without these characters.
DS Roy Grace
John Simm played the role of Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, who lived in Brighton. Grace was known for his hard work and how determined he was. He would do anything and give his all to his job. Grace was trying everything and pulling every card to find his wife, who had gone missing years ago.
He seemed to have employed more novel strategies in his line of work, even getting in touch with a medium to locate the lost. John Simm is well-known for the quality of the role he played in movies, television series, and music videos. His work includes Life on Mars, Doctor Who, Prey, Strangers, Cracker, Trauma, and Cold Courage.
DS Glenn Branson
Richie Campbell played the role of DS Gelnn Branson. He was Grace’s companion and co-worker. Things went wrong in his life, especially with his marriage, since he got shot at the end of the episode of Looking Good Dead. Branson was always a helping hand to Grace. Richie has worked on several films and television, including Waterloo Road, Anuvahood, The Bill, The Firm, The Last Photograph, and Liar.
Cleo Morey
Zoë Tapper played the role of Cleo Morey. She was a love interest of Roy Grace. Cleo was a strong yet beautiful human being with a witty nature, full of confidence, and passionate about her work. She worked at a morgue in Brighton as a Senior Anatomical Pathology Technician.
Cleo tried to bring a change and made an effort to restore some of the victims’ lost pride when they departed via the hallways of the mortuary. But other than this, she also had a side of amounts of difficulties she had faced. Zoë Tapper has done some fantastic work on television, including Demons, Liar, The One, Rules of the Game, The Musketeers, and Reunited.
DS Bella Moy
Laura Elphinstone played the role of DS Bella Moy. She was decisive, wise, and had tremendous intuitions with a sharp mindset. But even her personal life, which she always kept confidential, was filled with problems, especially when she looked after her sick mother. Laura Elphinstone is widely known for her roles, including Game of Thrones, Line of Duty, Military Wives, and Chernobyl.
DS Norman Potting
Craig Parkinson played the role of DS Norman Potting. He was a traditional police officer who, while reliable, persistent, and practical, may sometimes be a bit too direct and politically wrong. But it was good to see him back on the screen. Craig Parkinson has been a part of many television and films, including Line of Duty, Doctor Who, The English Game, Four Lions, Temple, and Misfits.
ACC Cassian Pewe
Sam Hoare played the role of ACC Cassian Pewe. He was never on good terms with Roy Grace. Cassian was an inheritor of ACC Alison Vosper. It was not always pleasing to see him. Sam Hoare has appeared in several films and television, including One’s Death in Paradise, The Duke, Outlander, and Carnival Row.
The Plot of Grace Season 3
The fans were thrilled to see Grace’s resumed romance with Cleo Morey by the conclusion of the second season, but at the end in the final episode, it was shown that the detective received a phone informing him that there’s a possibility of Sandy, his wife, who had been missing for a while was alive somewhere!
And the new episodes in this season might also provide more insight into the struggle of DS Glenn Branson during the second season while dealing with his concussion following his hit. In the third season, Grace’s assistance turned out to be crucial once more.
When Grace learned that ACC Alison Vosper’s replacement was announced, East Sussex police were sad to see her go. Will Vosper’s new Chief, whom he had finally won over, accord him the same freedom now that he has done so? And following his discovery of Sandy’s latest sighting, Roy was troubled and found it difficult to move on with Cleo as he became involved in three diabolical investigations.
Grace’s talents were set to difficulty when Roy’s past and present collided, causing him to encounter his remembrances and reflect on his faults. Among these difficulties was on the Brighton music scene of a startling murder endeavored, a terrible serial killer from Grace’s past, and a car accident that set off a chain reaction of revenge.
The three books that inspired the episodes were Dead Like You, Dead Man’s Grip, and Not Dead Yet. In the episode of Dead Like You, a horrific thing occurred on the evening of ACC Vosper’s farewell celebration. Dead Man’s Grip showed that Grace with his team was met with an unfortunate incident involving three distinct automobiles. Also, in the episode Not Dead Yet, Grace and Branson were worried that a prospective attacker might be attempting to harm a budding musician.
Review of Grace Season 3
We periodically came across what was likely the skeletons of stuff from the book that were never offered the possibility to evolve because a 650-page novel was crystallized into a two-hour TV special.
The awful plot has absolutely nothing to do with the story that was started only slightly. In the third season, nothing seemed to fit, and everything seemed to be at odds with itself and trying to be too dramatic when it was completely unneeded and full of silliness and dullness. The only thing to look forward to or to be concerned about was whether or not Grace’s wife was still alive.
If we talk about the acting aspect, John Simm did pretty well in portraying all the emotions of Roy Grace and his strong will, mindset, and thoughtful person he was. He had an eloquent bearing and was especially strict when it came to antiquated, inadequate police procedures. Richie as Glenn Branson was not bad either. He contributed to the show as he should. The audience admired their understanding of one another and their companionship. Other than them, other characters were worth noticing as well. They added their own color to this season.
Sometimes that overly-dramatic music playing in the background would irritate you or seem tedious. Instead, it needed to heighten the tension, which was missing between the audience. And also, the ending of the final episode was something to be discussed, as there were mistakes in the television series adaptation, and different from what was given in the book.
But despite that, this had been the most thrilling season, and this season series where the pacing had been so ideal from the start, season three concluded with the most effective episode thus far. It was a compelling of hours in which the central characters’ personal lives appeared to be taken the last seat more than expected.
They have also encountered several difficult circumstances; as a result of it. And, as always, the episode’s genius rested in how skillfully the disparate elements were carried together. In this gripping television series, the most awful and fundamental of emotions—a gloomy daughter’s desire for retribution and a devastated father’s uncontrolled anguish—come to the fore. A few scenes were no doubt entertaining and worth watching it.
Season four needs to arrive soon because the wait will be excruciatingly lengthy, and it is not releasing any time soon.
Our Verdict
If we see it all together, though, the series did a great job playing its part, finishing with a clever ending twist, much like Grace did. However, the impression that this show was far from morally upright and may make an acceptable subject for one of his quick moral teachings was what dominated it. It was disappointing sometimes, but you would at least be able to finish this season.
Grace is a crime drama series, so the audience’s expectations would rise automatically. It needed to be worked more on the tense storyline and must be precise and engaging enough.
Now the fans are patiently anticipating the fourth season and what new things will deliver to the audience.
I will give 3.9 out of 5 to Grace Season 3.
