D.I. Ray - General Discussion

[chitowngirl]

D.I. Rachita Ray is promoted to homicide but realizes instantly she is a token hire. Begins Sunday, July 9 on PBS

[wanderingstar]

Glad this show is back. Even though I was kinda meh on it the first season, I enjoy seeing Parminder Nagra in this sort of grizzled veteran role.

[chitowngirl]

44 minutes ago, wanderingstar said:

Glad this show is back. Even though I was kinda meh on it the first season, I enjoy seeing Parminder Nagra in this sort of grizzled veteran role.

This is the first season. We haven’t seen it in the US yet.

[wanderingstar]

Oops! I definitely saw the first season. Now I'm trying to remember where I watched it.

[chitowngirl]

It looks like all 4 episodes are available on Passport. They ARE filming a second season!

3 minutes ago, wanderingstar said:

Oops! I definitely saw the first season. Now I'm trying to remember where I watched it.

 

[wanderingstar]

Yeah, I think I watched it on Prime via my Passport subscription. Anyway, I'm glad they're doing a second season. 

[Dr.OO7]

Anything that gives me Jamie Bamber is fine by me.

ETA SHIRTLESS Jamie Bamber. TWICE.

Edited July 10, 2023 by Dr.OO7

[possibilities]

I liked this, but I find myself laughing inappropriately at how non-plussed she is about her engagement. I thought she put the ring in the glove box so as to avoid talking about it at work, but she still wasn't wearing it when she was in bed later that night. Her fiance strikes me as a bit of a dummy, so I get why she's not excited. But I don't get why she's with him at all.

Everyone at work being SO against her and SO disrespectful, is hard to take. She has plenty of reason to be depressed. The bluntneess with which they admit thy don't like or respect her and are using her for cynical reasons is the kind of thing that you'd think would be reportably a violation of protocol-- aren't you supposed to pretend you're not an asshole and everything is all on the up and up? But I get that it's not practical to complain, and she just wants to out-perform them all and grind them to dust that way. It's so exhausting, it's no wonder she doesn't have the energy to smile at her fiance, even if she does see something in him that I don't.

I hope she finds an ally somewhere soon. 

 

[statsgirl]

My PBS station plays 3 Brit mysteries in a row; Ridley, Grantchester and D.I. Ray and this may be the strongest of them although I'd like to see more than one episode to know. Nice to see Parminder Nagra again, it's been a long time since ER. And Jamie Bamber is always nice eye candy.

I agree that there seems to be more angst and prejudice against her at the office than there should be, and it's weird to see Gemma Whelan, who is one of my favourite characters on Upstart Crow, play such a bitch of a boss. I think I saw a number of minority members of the team so it's strange that they treat her so badly.

[possibilities]

I'm watching Ridley, too. Haven't tried Grantchester.

She did such a good job with the knife guy in the opening scene, you'd think she'd have earned a little respect. The combination of sexism, racism, and I don't even know what else, in that office, is really painful. It does surprise me that it's coming even more intensely from the people I expected to be her allies, but I think it's like: all the women are racists, all the men are sexists, and some of each are both. 

I'm noticing a trend in cop shows lately, where they seem to be trying to be less purely "copaganda" by having the set up be "good cops vs bad cops" instead of "good cops vs the criminals" as the central focus of the show. Obviously, they still do casework vs the criminals, but they have added the dimension of cops being criminals, as well. And not just "one bad apple on the force" but an overall institutional corruption and/or shittiness. 

I'm grateful the show is not set in the USA because at least nobody got shot.

 

[Dr.OO7]

9 hours ago, possibilities said:

I'm grateful the show is not set in the USA because at least nobody got shot.

It's such a stark difference. I've long known that UK cops don't carry guns, but being American, I still expected them to draw their weapons at the first sign of trouble.

[statsgirl]

14 hours ago, possibilities said:

She did such a good job with the knife guy in the opening scene, you'd think she'd have earned a little respect. The combination of sexism, racism, and I don't even know what else, in that office, is really painful. It does surprise me that it's coming even more intensely from the people I expected to be her allies, but I think it's like: all the women are racists, all the men are sexists, and some of each are both.

That is something that I found problematic about the show. The show descriptions says that she realizes that she is a token hire but that didn't come across to me

When the DC asked her what her languages are and she replied that she got a middling mark in Spanish, it occurred to me that one of the reasons she got the job was to be a cultural liaison with the Indian community but she didn't have a clue how to do it.

I've been mistaken for a grocery store employee before and I'm not a visible minority. I've also lost jobs because I didn't speak enough languages and had to take extra cultural courses in others. The show hasn't yet convinced me that she is having those work problems because she is of Indian origin and not because she started a new job bossing people around and ignoring them when they told her that she had to run things by the boss first.

[Driad]

She had worked in "Response," whatever that is.  I did not hear that she had ever worked on a murder investigation, so it seemed a bit odd that she was assigned to lead one. 

[statsgirl]

UK Police Armed Response Units

Quote

Armed response units / firearms units are teams of armed Police Officers tasked with countering crimes committed by armed criminals. Each UK constabulary / force has some form of firearms team.

One of the nation's most prominent firearms units is the London Metropolitan Police Service's SCO19.

It sounds like this was the unit she called when she stopped Tarik in his psychotic break.

51 minutes ago, Driad said:

 I did not hear that she had ever worked on a murder investigation, so it seemed a bit odd that she was assigned to lead one. 

Good point. Did the tokenism work in her favour there?

[EtheltoTillie]

I liked this well enough.  I saw it months ago.  Maybe it was on Britbox. 

[Daff]

On 7/10/2023 at 3:46 PM, statsgirl said:

but she didn't have a clue how to do it.

Hearing her explain her heritage at the initial gathering, I got the impression that her parents were busy making a living and providing for her so that she would fit in. Perhaps too busy to maintain cultural practices. She’s definitely feeling “lacking” and the liaison is giving her incredulous looks (but he’s a bit kinder and more patient than the others).

 

[proserpina65]

On 7/9/2023 at 10:13 PM, Dr.OO7 said:

Anything that gives me Jamie Bamber is fine by me.

ETA SHIRTLESS Jamie Bamber. TWICE.

I used to really dig him, then I kinda lost interest.  I'm wondering why, because, yum.

Just watched the first episode and while there a little things I'd criticize, overall I liked it so I'm in.  I do really enjoy Parminder Nagra as an actress and am glad to have her on my tv.

3 hours ago, Daff said:

Hearing her explain her heritage at the initial gathering, I got the impression that her parents were busy making a living and providing for her so that she would fit in. Perhaps too busy to maintain cultural practices. She’s definitely feeling “lacking” and the liaison is giving her incredulous looks (but he’s a bit kinder and more patient than the others).

 

I think everyone else on the team, and her boss, looked at her and her name and assumed she'd be the perfect liaison for the Indian/East Asian community.  The casual and open discrimination in the workplace is one of the elements I'd nitpick, but I can roll with it.  At least she's not singing in a jazz club in her spare time.

[Dr.OO7]

16 minutes ago, proserpina65 said:

 I used to really dig him, then I kinda lost interest

Shame on you.

18 minutes ago, proserpina65 said:

I'm wondering why, because, yum.

Exactly.

19 minutes ago, proserpina65 said:

think everyone else on the team, and her boss, looked at her and her name and assumed she'd be the perfect liaison for the Indian/East Asian community

It's one of the reasons police departments have made an effort to recruit more diverse applicants, but unfortunately, a lot more progress still needs to be made. What's the point of diversifying the department if its non-white/female members are still going to be treated badly?

[proserpina65]

1 minute ago, Dr.OO7 said:

24 minutes ago, proserpina65 said:

 I used to really dig him, then I kinda lost interest

Shame on you.

24 minutes ago, proserpina65 said:

I'm wondering why, because, yum.

Exactly.

I think it was Battlestar Galatica which turned me off him.

[Dr.OO7]

3 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

think it was Battlestar Galatica which turned me off him

REALLY? After THAT scene?

I really like the fact that the show is avoiding the Britain Is Only London trope and is set somewhere other than London. It still amazes how technically big England/the UK is and how far away from London many of its other major cities are.

[proserpina65]

3 minutes ago, Dr.OO7 said:

REALLY? After THAT scene?

I really like the fact that the show is avoiding the Britain Is Only London trope and is set somewhere other than London. It still amazes how technically big England/the UK is and how far away from London many of its other major cities are.

Don't know what scene you mean.  I never watched it at all because I hated that they were turning my fun, campy show into yet another dystopian grind.

I'm also glad this show is set somewhere beyond London or even Manchester.  It's good to see another city.

[statsgirl]

8 hours ago, Dr.OO7 said:

. What's the point of diversifying the department if its non-white/female members are still going to be treated badly?

The show really tried to make me believe that she was treated badly because she was a visible minority but all I saw was someone having difficulty fitting in at a new job.

The woman who gave her the wrong name tag made an assumption but she seemed pleasant and apologetic afterwards. The group was somewhat hostile but it didn't seem unrealistic towards a new boss (I experienced the same thing at work once and the new boss was white and Protestant) and Rachita started giving orders before figuring out how the group functions. That's a mistake in a new boss regardless of ethnic origin. When they told her that X is the way they do it, she said 'well I'm going to continue doing it Y'. She didn't explain to her DCI why she wasn't following orders and was brusque to the DC who asked her what her languages were.

No one is perfect and both sides made mistakes. But I have yet to be convinced that Rachita is being treated badly because of her ethnicity and not because she went in there inexperienced and with blinkers.

[Dowel Jones]

I picked human smuggling as soon as I saw the container.

[howiveaddict]

5 hours ago, Dowel Jones said:

I picked human smuggling as soon as I saw the container.

Me too.

Liked how she talked about being embarrassed about her dad just taking being prejudiced against.  It seems there are many levels of racism.  It's a slur to be thought to be Pakistani.  Also, I think her team/boss  do act prejudiced to her.  The main female boss seems to just discount any opinion she has.  The way everyone but Ray  just assumed it was honor killings, because of the victims heritage.  Lots of layers here.

I like this show.  Glad to see Parminder again after seeing her years ago on Bend it Like Beckham.  I really like Brit dramas because the women, for the most part, look like real women and not Hollywood big boobs and plastic faces.  

[Dr.OO7]

I made the mistake, or perhaps good decision of looking up a recap of the first season:

Spoiler

Stop watching if you love Jamie Bamber and therefore any character he plays, because Martyn turns out to be one of the bad guys--he's working with one of the traffickers she's looking for, had sex with one of the underage trafficking victims (though he swears he thought she was of legal age), and is indirectly involved in the victim's murder.

 

[Daff]

Trixie! Obviously played when Helen George was pregnant. Liked the voice.

[Broderbits]

Does anyone else suspect that the bathtub scene assailant was her fiance?

[Dowel Jones]

That's a possibility but I can't see why at this point in the series.  But, the Brits are good at concealing the twists.

[statsgirl]

I liked the second episode better than the first.

The team wasn't wrong to think that it was an honour killing because there are approximately 12 -15 reported honour killings per year in the United Kingdom but they were wrong to refuse to move on from the theory.

I wish that Rachita wasn't all "I can't take time to recover from my concussion because no one can do this but me." It's a trope I've always hated.

Spoiler

I thought that Martyn would be killed by episode 4 because Jamie Bamber is not signed on for season 2. But they're going to have to do some twisty things to make him a bad guy.

 

[Dr.OO7]

34 minutes ago, Broderbits said:

Does anyone else suspect that the bathtub scene assailant was her fiance?

Spoiler

With what I learned from reading the recap, I had a Fridge Horror realization about that possibility too. Or that at the very least, he knows who it was--no forced entry, he doesn't catch the guy because he supposedly ran off, etc.

 

[alias1]

37 minutes ago, Broderbits said:

Does anyone else suspect that the bathtub scene assailant was her fiance?

I thought it was suspicious that he came in right after her assault.

[Dr.OO7]

7 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

I liked the second episode better than the first.

The team wasn't wrong to think that it was an honour killing because there are approximately 12 -15 reported honour killings per year in the United Kingdom but they were wrong to refuse to move on from the theory.

I wish that Rachita wasn't all "I can't take time to recover from my concussion because no one can do this but me." It's a trope I've always hated.

  Reveal spoiler

I thought that Martyn would be killed by episode 4 because Jamie Bamber is not signed on for season 2. But they're going to have to do some twisty things to make him a bad guy.

 

Spoiler

Apparently, Bamber has decided to switch from always playing people who get killed to playing bad guys. He has a slew of these types of roles and he's always very effective in them.

 

[Dowel Jones]

5 hours ago, statsgirl said:

I wish that Rachita wasn't all "I can't take time to recover from my concussion because no one can do this but me." It's a trope I've always hated.

Agreed.  

[Dr.OO7]

5 hours ago, alias1 said:

I thought it was suspicious that he came in right after her assault.

I don't think it's him, because he'd be soaking wet if he'd just tried to drown her in the tub, 

Spoiler

but since he does turn out to be one of the bad guys, he likely knew who it was. It's unlikely the guy could have gotten away without him seeing him.

 

[Daff]

14 hours ago, statsgirl said:

I liked the second episode better than the first.

The team wasn't wrong to think that it was an honour killing because there are approximately 12 -15 reported honour killings per year in the United Kingdom but they were wrong to refuse to move on from the theory.

I wish that Rachita wasn't all "I can't take time to recover from my concussion because no one can do this but me." It's a trope I've always hated.

  Reveal spoiler

I thought that Martyn would be killed by episode 4 because Jamie Bamber is not signed on for season 2. But they're going to have to do some twisty things to make him a bad guy.

 

I agree, but typically, it’s a male trope.

[Dr.OO7]

3 hours ago, Daff said:

I agree, but typically, it’s a male trope.

Women do it too.

There was a episode of Cold Case where despite having been run off the road and almost drowning, Lily raced out of the hospital before her doctor could finish evaluating her and spent the rest of the episode clearly struggling with the effects of a concussion, although it turned out that she never even made it out of the car and the entire episode was a dream.

But overall, the "who cares that I'm badly hurt, I've got a case to solve!" is infuriatingly common on cop shows. Saturday Night Live even parodied this where the guy kept working even though he'd been SHOT. By the time it was time to celebrate catching the bad guy, he'd DIED.

[proserpina65]

On 7/17/2023 at 10:04 PM, howiveaddict said:

It's a slur to be thought to be Pakistani. 

"Paki" as an insult to East Asian immigrants has a long history in Britain.  The first time I came across it was in the last book of the Dark is Rising series by Susan Cooper.  The horrible kid using it got dumped in a creek by the main character's older brother.  Well deserved punishment.

20 hours ago, statsgirl said:

The team wasn't wrong to think that it was an honour killing because there are approximately 12 -15 reported honour killings per year in the United Kingdom but they were wrong to refuse to move on from the theory.

It was one valid theory at the start but once the brothers' alibi was confirmed they needed to move on and the boss certainly had problems doing that.  And going back to it when the sister was killed, AFTER they knew the boyfriend was into some shady business, was just a waste of time.  Honestly, there's a reason cops usually shouldn't narrow their focus to just one motive or theory so quickly.  They were extremely lucky that the younger brother was willing to talk to Ray at all after that.

If the "intruder" (in quotes because I have my doubts about that) was really trying to kill Ray, he should've pulled her body down into the water by her feet/legs.  That's what I've learned from various true crime shows about the Brides in the Bath murderer and at least one Midsomer Murders episode.

Edited July 19, 2023 by proserpina65

[possibilities]

Well, I hated the fiance since the first episode, but I thought I was being irrational. 

And so much for nobody getting shot.

That ending was physically painful to witness.

Edited July 24, 2023 by possibilities

[possibilities]

Des anyone know how many total episodes there are?

[magdalene]

Well,well. well, I thought her fiance was "off" since the start. When she was pushed under the water it did occur to me to suspect him but he wasn't soaked so I put it aside....

I hope her lover isn't dead but I fear the worst.

[HelloooKitty]

Never liked the fiancé (though he is pretty). He came across very patronizing to me bc he was always trying to “fix” things for her. And she didn’t want or even need his help. 

[janeta]

The “bullying” thing is just nonsense and completely contrived. The soap opera aspects of this show are what’s putting me off it.  I'm just watching for the crime and the crime solving—I don’t care about these people’s personal lives.

[abbyzenn]

Well that took me by surprise!  I really only had the second episode on as background noise so didn't pay it much attention  but did find the fiance too clingy/slimy but still wasn't expecting him to do what he did.

While I find the show okay, I don't find the characters appealing - even DI Ray.  The guy that got shot with her (can't remember his name) is about the only one that displays any pleasing personality.

[statsgirl]

Well that suddenly got exciting.

Of course we find out that the sergeant is single so he's available as a love interest.

38 minutes ago, abbyzenn said:

While I find the show okay, I don't find the characters appealing - even DI Ray.  The guy that got shot with her (can't remember his name) is about the only one that displays any pleasing personality.

Same here. Rachita cheats on her fiance, he immediately takes a hit out on her and the guy (while I may have fantasized about killing my cheating ex, I never would actually have done it. Maybe.). I have no idea what Rachita's boss' problem is with her and the bullying allegation came out of nowhere (after only 2 interactions? really?) and is easily disproved by witnesses.

10 hours ago, possibilities said:

Des anyone know how many total episodes there are?

4 this season, 6 in season 2 (so far).

If you want to know who will stick around, imdb has how many episodes each actor is in.

[sempervivum]

I agree with all the criticisms, but I did love Rachita and New Lover dancing in that very British pub. It made her more likeable and him more than just her underling. 

Also, this may sound weird, but I love her pretty little mouth- it's so refreshing not to see puffy injected lips on an actress.

 

[12catcrazy]

Wow, I didn't see that coming.   I figured that the fiance was a controlling jerk (like who goes house shopping without talking to their intended about it? Maybe she would like a say about a house she'd be living in) but wow.  

I wonder if we are going to be given more of a back story as to how she started dating the fiance and how long it was after that  she was promoted to Detective.  It seems pretty over the top to want to kill your fiance because she was seen kissing another guy,  without even a jealous confrontation over it (though from reading the papers it seems men kill their girlfriends/wives over less than that).   This seems like its going to be much more about corruption in the police than a love triangle.  Now it makes me wonder about the nasty boss...

[possibilities]

6 hours ago, statsgirl said:

4 this season, 6 in season 2 (so far).

Thanks.

---

The guy who did the hit was the smuggler, right? So it's more than just that the fiance was upset over the cheating. He apparently was already in with the criminals she's been trying to catch.

It's interesting to me that the fiance's parents are less controlling than he is. 

I really hope the sergeant isn't dead, but that looked really bad.

I thought the bullying charge was way over the top, but I also wouldn't put it past some defensive racist little shit to try claiming it. I also suspect the boss who took it seriously is part of the corruption. She has been going out of her way to interfere with Ray's effectiveness, and I thought she was just a control freak racist, but she might also be on the take or part of a conspiracy, given that there seems to be one.

---

I don't want to go to IMDB and be spoiled by casting, but does anyone know if S2 is already filmed, thus might show up on PBS soon? Or will we have to wait til next year, or some other distant future?

 

[chitowngirl]

4 hours ago, possibilities said:

I don't want to go to IMDB and be spoiled by casting, but does anyone know if S2 is already filmed, thus might show up on PBS soon? Or will we have to wait til next year, or some other distant future?

Season 2 is being filmed this year, so I expect it will show up on PBS summer of 2024. PBS tends to air their shows the same time of year as the first season aired

[proserpina65]

On 7/24/2023 at 9:19 AM, janeta said:

The “bullying” thing is just nonsense and completely contrived. The soap opera aspects of this show are what’s putting me off it.  I'm just watching for the crime and the crime solving—I don’t care about these people’s personal lives.

Yep, absolutely no one hearing the other officer's complaint would've given it any credence.  I can buy that it had to go through the process, but had her commander actually been supporting Ray as she should rather than putting her down, she'd have made it known that the complaint wasn't going anywhere.  Because it was ridiculous.  "She corrected me when I called her the wrong rank."  OH NO!  Maybe, you know, call her by the right rank.

I knew the fiance wasn't on the up and up.  I'm not sure he's the one who tried to drown her - I think he had the other guy do it.  And I told the cute subordinate not to get involved with Ray because it wasn't going to end well, but did he listen to me????

On 7/24/2023 at 10:32 AM, statsgirl said:

Rachita cheats on her fiance, he immediately takes a hit out on her and the guy

I think that was more about keeping her from solving the murder than it was just about jealousy.  The "drowning" was attempt to scare her away.  When that didn't work AND she cheated on him, he decided to have her killed, imo.  I think if she hadn't sleep with her subordinate, the fiance might've kept trying to just scare her off.

On 7/24/2023 at 12:01 PM, sempervivum said:

I agree with all the criticisms, but I did love Rachita and New Lover dancing in that very British pub. It made her more likeable and him more than just her underling. 

That was a good scene.  It humanized her a bit.

[magdalene]

Isn't this show made by the same creative that made Richard Madden's The Bodyguard ? Based on that pedigree I am going to state that sweet lover boy is a goner.