S01.E10: Episode 10

[Tara Ariano]

In the series finale, detectives apprehend Danny's killer.

[saber5055]

Finally, we get to find out the killer! I'll be sad to see this series end, though. It's been a fun Thursday night for me, and Friday day here.

 

It occurred to me this morning ... whose phone was Tom deleting the messages from, his or Danny's? Stay tuned!

[Automne]

Well, this is disappointing.

Edited December 12, 2014 by Automne

[Kathira]

Seriously, show? This the way you wanted to go with this?

[Automne]

OH SHIT YES YES YES YES YES YES YES!!!!!!!!

 

MY THEORY HOLDS UP!!!

 

 

HOLY SHIT THIS SHOW MIGHT COMPLETELY REDEEM ITSELF HERE.

Edited December 12, 2014 by Automne

[Neurochick]

Whoa, now this is interesting.

But it was an accident, right?

Edited December 12, 2014 by Neurochick

[Automne]

Well done, show. Bait-and-switch. I like it.

 

Yeah, it was an accident. Tom trying to defend his best friend from his (Tom's) father, but ended up killing him instead.

 

Now how are they going to reveal to the town that it was Tom? Or are they not going to do that and let Joe completely take the heat? EDIT: Never mind.

 

And I don't like GP's Beth's delivery of the line "How could you not know?" It sounds vindictive. BC's Beth's delivery was a lot better. More heartbroken for herself and for Ellie while still confused as to how that could happen under Ellie's nose. GP's Beth made me want Ellie to just spit back, "Well, how could you not know that your husband was banging Gemma with your daughter working in the same place? Or not know that your son was dealing drugs and shoplifting? Or not know that your husband hit your son?"

Edited December 12, 2014 by Automne

[Neurochick]

Yes, he said, "leave him alone, he's my friend.". He was trying to protect his friend from his pedo dad.

[Kathira]

Ooh, posted too soon above. I was right, though. That was my theory, too. 

[LakeGal]

I thought they revealed Joe as the killer too early in the episode.  So I suspected it was going to be Tom.

[Ellaria]

Anna Gunn really has trouble with her fictional husbands.

Well, that was a nice series of twists! Tom is involved (that kid was creepy), Ellie and Tom decide to stay silent about it but Carver figures it out. I noticed that Tom said "anyone else" and glanced at his father during the interrogation.

Overall, some scenes were handled better in Broadchurch but I'm glad that the changed it up. It was well - done.

[riverheightsnancy]

So bloody weak. Most of the actors could not squeeze out a tear if their lives depended on it. The actress playing Ellie was also so flat. I mean I get the anger, but even that was muted. I know a lot of people hated The Killing, but I really think that they showed what grief and angst is when someone is suddenly murdered. 

Edited December 12, 2014 by riverheightsnancy

[Automne]

Oop, ended it on a cliffhanger when there's no way there's going to be a second season.

 

Maybe if they had:

 

1.) Premiered Gracepoint now, when all the fall shows are in their mid-season hiatuses and there's no competition, and therefore unnecessary to pit the show against Scandal and Thursday Night Football;

 

2.) Actually promoted the show instead of relying on the Breaking Bad and Doctor Who fandoms doing the promo work for Fox;

 

and

 

3.) Had David Tennant do the talk show rounds a lot earlier (that is, not when the show is more than halfway through its run) and shell out a few more bucks to get him first guest status (and get him the full time with CraigyFerg because how many Tennant fans have been waiting for that for how long?)

 

Gracepoint would have been far more successful and found a spot as a midseason filler while the fall shows are on pause and before the winter shows premiere. Even with the shoddy writing and plodding pace, it probably could have gotten 3 seasons because once Tennant did his promo rounds, ratings went up quite a bit. That 11th hour twist alone would have been great water cooler talk.

[Callaphera]

Still shitty ass police work, letting her go in to put the boots to her husband (however deserved) and then letting Mark talk to his son's "killer". Talking about keeping it a secret while in a prison and with an armed guard standing behind him. Really, how did Miller even get up to detective status?

 

I had put my money on the Miller's husband, but I had thought that he was going to accuse the kid of doing it in order to hide the fact that he wanted to get all touchy feely with Danny. The last few minutes, though. In my mind, Carver totally bursts into the motel room to find it empty and the family will be motoring on down the road. 

 

It was worth the ten episode investment, but damn. That shitty police work.

[benteen]

Just when I thought it was going to be a straight adaptation after all, they threw in an interesting series of twists.  Well done, show.

 

Strong finale with some really good performances by Anna Gunn and the actor playing Joe.  Always like DT's work too.

[Chaos Theory]

So do I get the right. Tommy killed Danny. Tommy's father who is NOT a child molester but was on his way to being one covered it up and took the fall. Anna Gunn (who is the reason I watched this show and will be the reason I watch whatever show she is on next) figured it out and is on the way out of Dodge.

Do I got that right?

Still very strong performance by Anna Gunn. Gracepoint was a passible mystery but it was worth watching simply for her performance. I know most were watching for David Tennant but I came for Anna Gunn and I wasn't disappointed.

Edited December 12, 2014 by Chaos Theory

[alias1]

I hated Beth's delivery of "How could you not have known."  This is supposed to be the different ending?  I feel cheated.  Most of us guessed this from about the midpoint on.  When Joe confessed, I knew there was too much time left in the show and there would be a twist.  And as most of us had already guessed, it was really Tom, and it was an accident.  The only thing I liked better in this version is the conversation Carver had with his daughter at the end.

[truthaboutluv]

I thought they revealed Joe as the killer too early in the episode.  So I suspected it was going to be Tom.

 

 

Yup, me too. The minute I checked the clock at it wasn't even half past yet and he'd confessed, I knew it was really Tom and he was covering for him. I figured his being creepy as hell was all true but that Tom was the one who dealt the blow that killed Danny. I actually liked the confrontation between Joe and Ellie and Joe and Mark. And while Mark being allowed to see Joe probably wasn't appropriate, in a small town, I can buy it.

 

My guess is the cop who let him in knows the family, knows Mark long and let him in without anyone knowing. I was sure of that with how he kept looking sideways when Mark was confronting Joe and he told Mark he only had 5 minutes. It's funny but for as much as Mark couldn't stand Pastor Paul, who knows if Carver and company would have figured out the truth if he hadn't caught Tom smashing his computer and given it to Carver.

 

I forgot that I really liked that Carver's daughter called and she told him when her graduation was and that she'd be at his surgery. The whole episode I kept holding my breath that he'd just drop dead any second because he really didn't look good and he'd be all alone and never talk to his daughter again. So I liked that she called and they had a great conversation and she doesn't seem angry at him at all anymore. 

Edited December 12, 2014 by truthaboutluv

[HermitsUnited]

The reveal takes a lot of punch out of the whole "whodunit" scenario. It wasn't a murder. In fact, it ended up being a whole boat load of unlucky circumstances that led to Danny being killed by accident. Which is odd considering how FOX marketed the whole program. That little last minute twist actually made it an incredibly tragic ending. One I feel FOX really didn't capitalise on. Particularly because they spent 10 episodes creating Broadchurch shot from shot. I'm still not a 100% sure what that random little sideline of Tom going off to the woods was about.

 

Tom might have been the person holding the oar, but there's a whole host of people responsible for Danny's death really. Beth hasn't got the high ground on this one, in my opinion. Joe is quite clearly still the bad guy, but Beth and Mark really dropped the ball on Danny.

 

I also can't believe the drastic change in Ellie Miller from what they had in Broadchurch. She totally reneges on every principle she ever had and covers up Tom's involvement. Admittedly, it's not entirely out of character. We've seen her willing to look the other way all through the series, but I really thought she had some standards. Particularly when the chances of her son actually going to jail are pretty damn slim if everyone knows the facts. Ellie's more likely to go to jail for perverting the course of justice than Tom. Also I think the Solanos deserve to know how Danny really died. At least Carver has his head switched on. That look in the final shot...would not want to be Miller. He's like a dog with a bone.

 

Well it was clear they wanted a second season, but as mentioned above they kind of shot themselves in the foot a bit.

 

Anyway, I watched this on DVD yesterday and I was wondering if the scenes with Carver talking to the media or the Solanos reminiscing over Danny made it into the TV version that just aired? There are stills in the promo pictures...but I definitely didn't see the scenes in the Australian DVD copy.

[ZoloftBlob]

I won't lie....

 

The fires lighting up all around is SUCH a small town thing. Gracepoint in many ways missed small town America but the solidarity of bonfires.... one of my fondest memories of small town life is late nights on the lake on significant days where the fires are lit so we all feel together.

[truthaboutluv]

I'm still not a 100% sure what that random little sideline of Tom going off to the woods was about.

 

 

I think he was trying to set the hiker up for Danny's murder to further take suspicion off himself and his dad. He overheard Ellie talking to Joe about the hiker, the time he snooped through her bag and found the number. We saw him look up the number and find the guy's address and when he was found in the woods, he had a crossword puzzle of Danny's in his backpack. I think he was trying to go to the guy's place and plant Danny's crossword book there so it would look like Danny had to have been there at some point. But I think he got lost on the way and then got injured and couldn't get back home. 

 

In fact, it ended up being a whole boat load of unlucky circumstances that led to Danny being killed by accident.

 

 

Honestly, I almost found the whole murder by accident kind of a cop out because I guess they didn't want to fully commit to making a 12 year old kid a cold blooded murderer. But honestly I found Tom completely creepy and shady as fuck throughout the whole season that I totally would have bought his killing Banny in cold blood. Especially as the emails Carver read seemed to indicate that not only was he and Danny fighting and not getting along but that Danny seemed to be saying some really mean things to him. And I could see the part about even his dad not liking him really sticking in his craw, especially when he followed Joe that night and saw him all close with Danny. Instead of seeing the moment for the creepy, predatory scene he was, I could picture him thinking more that Joe loved Danny more than him and snapping because of it. 

 

Joe is quite clearly still the bad guy, but Beth and Mark really dropped the ball on Danny.

 

 

It is odd that Danny seemed to be seeking comfort from all these different people that Beth and Mark were completely clueless about - Chloe's boyfriend who said he hung out with Danny sometimes because he seemed lonely and was always by himself, Vince admitting that he took Danny hunting unbeknownst to Mark and Beth and his getting very close to and basically being groomed by Joe without them having any suspicion. And that doesn't include their not knowing that he'd quit the wildlife group and the soccer team. 

 

Of course it should be noted that in the case of Joe, that's what pedophiles do - they gloom in on kids who are struggling in some way, who feel alone, misunderstood, etc. and manipulate them into thinking they understand them like no one else and they have a special friendship. Kudos to Danny who was smart enough to realize where things were going and stop it before it got physical. Unfortunately he lost his life partly because of it.  

Edited December 12, 2014 by truthaboutluv

[CarpeDiem54]

Well, damn! I knew Tom was involved. Creepy little freak. However, I wish they would have left the pedophile part out and had just had Joe be Danny's friend (since Mark and Beth were crappy parents and he was lonely), Tom saw them talking, went berserk and killed Danny because he was jealous. And then got locked up.

Glad Carver and his daughter had a nice moment.

Too bad Fox screwed up so there's no second season.

[thuganomics85]

For a second, I actually thought they were going to just go there and have it be Joe, while the rest of the episode was just going to be a fall-out.  But, nope, they threw in a last second twist!  While Joe was this close to going full pedo on Danny, and deserves to be locked up, it was good old Tom, who accidentally killed Danny with an oar.  Points for originality, I guess.  But, it sounds like Ellie and Joe are going to cover for Tom, and Joe is just going to take the fall.  But, now Tom has his suspicions.  Which I doubt will go anywhere, because I can't see this show getting renewed.

 

At least there was closure and the bonfire scene was nice, but I still found the Solanos to be one of the most unlikable families on TV, and I really wonder if they are ever going to be able to go forward, despite the closing moments.  We barely met him, but I still think Danny probably deserved better then that group.

 

Anna Gunn finally had more to do, and this was probably the closet she ever got to showing off the same skills that made her so great on Breaking Bad.  That was good, at least.

 

So, that's it.  Don't know... interesting attempt and I'm glad there was some changes, but I still found it inferior to Broadchurch.  I'm not exactly clamoring for another one of these.  I do hope that David Tennant doesn't just go back to BBC TV.  I'd like to see him interact more with the "Hollywood crew."

[kaygeeret]

I first posted this in the wrong thread, so here goes......redux.....

 

t the hell was up with the entire episode being narrated?

 

Have I lost my mind?  Is this ho the entire series went?

 

I watched the first 7 epis and did not notice the ENTIRE EPI being narrated.

 

Narration gems such as:

 

"The waves foamed on the beach" over a shot of WAVES FOAMING ON THE BEACH! 

 

Stupid episode.

 

Clearly expecting a second season which I suspect - based on ratings - will not happen.  If it did I am out.

 

What an annoying episode.

[Valny]

Still very strong performance by Anna Gunn.  Gracepoint was a passible mystery but it was worth watching simply for her performance.  I know most were watching for David Tennant buy I gave for Anna Gunn and I wasn't disappointed.

 

I think Anna Gunn is a good actress(amazing work on Breaking Bad)  But I actually was a little disappointed with her scene when Carver tells her about Joe. I just thought it would be...I don't know... bigger. A little more punch to the gut.   I know I shouldn't compare the performances but the actress on Broadchurch, her scene was so much rawer. It was actually hard to watch,that's how good it was. But Gunn's flip out on Joe was pretty damn good.

 

Kudos for the little twist at the end because I really thought they were going to keep things exactly the same,because I did not believe them when they said they would change who the killer was.

 

Tom is still creepy.

 

So what were they implying with that ending? Why wouldn't Ellie answer the phone? And Carver looking worried.

Edited December 12, 2014 by Valny

[Rickster]

Not narrated on my TV. Maybe you had some narration feature for the visually impaired on?

[CarpeDiem54]

Not narrated on my TV. Maybe you had some narration feature for the visually impaired on?

Mine wasn't narrated either.

[Guest]

Here's why I hated that ending... Joe, the husband of a cop and an EMT, witnesses an innocent accident where a boy is killed and he decides to cover it up?  As if... his 12 year old would go to jail for that accident?  Like they couldn't leave out the almost-pedophile part of the story and just say it was what it was... an accident?  

 

So stupid.  

 

And so stupid for Ellie to go along with it because she's so disgusted that her husband might be a pedophile, she'd rather he go to prison for murder than just get help.  Because a cop would know that Tom isn't getting any punishment or even stigma for what happened.  

 

For me, the original was a 7 of 10, this was a 3.  

[memememe76]

The bonfire scene did quite a bit to redeem that whole town. I found the population wholly unlikeable for most of the series' run. 

 

I'm generally fine with the resolution of the central mystery. Actually, I quite liked it...so much so, I would've preferred that this resolution occurred in the middle of the run, with the remaining episodes showing the aftermath (the trial, etc.). There was so much time wasted on other storylines (the affair, the reporters' relationship, the priest, Nick Nolte, etc). 

 

I have never seen the original version (and other versions), so I have no real comparison point. I didn't love Gracepoint but I didn't think I was wasting my time either. 

[kaygeeret]

No, I do not have a narration feature on my TV - and I am not hard of hearing so would have no reason to enable any feature like that.

 

I did notice that Bones, the show that preceded Gracepoint, had narration which I put down to a peculiar plot set in the 50's - and I only saw 1/2 half of that show.  I have had that station on after Gracepoint and there were no other shows with narration.

 

Thanks you guys for answering my question.  I am curious enough to follow up with my local station tomorrow.

[Actionmage]

I was so underwhelmed with how the ending ended up being.

 

It would make total sense, as truthaboutluv noted, that Tom maybe misread the level of closeness, got jealous, and decided to make his now-dad-stealing pal Danny pay for all of Tom's feelings. Joe could still be creepy ( I was chanting in my head, 'Don't be that, don't be that' then the thumb on the lips. *sigh*  Kudos to Josh Hamilton for showing denial through Joe. Even without molesting Danny, how could this lying liar hope to think of himself as a good man?

 

As for Ellie? No respect, even as a mom. As a cop, she coddled every flipping situation, whether it needed coddling or not. She had no real feeling for the Solanos/ her "good friend" Beth, or she'd know that Tom would have been cleared of wrong-doing, being led by his father in the cover-up! It was an accident in the first place! The criminal charges deserve to fall squarely on Joe.  Tom should not be made a goat, yet Joe, and now Ellie, are acting as if he's as culpable as Joe!  If the truth we were given is actual Truth, then Tom should have nothing to worry about and Ellie should have known that.  I get that she's going protective Mama Bear, but then she should also trust that the department would try to help her and Tom.  Unless she does know this town and knows that no one would forgive Tom an accident made in the heat of trying to protect Danny. (Potentially, see: Jack Reinhold)

 

I get they were going for a hook for a potential season 2, but they failed in the scheduling, P.R., and lots of other things, as has been noted. I am disappointed because a Season 2 with Carver vs. Miller? Could have been awesome.  Emmett, stronger after the operation, tracking her like he's Javert/ Lt. Gerard. Ellie is swerving all over and getting cannier. She gets more help as the woman with two kids. Tom, being emotionally fragile, is the wildcard; he either breaks, secretly helps Carver, or goes all in sociopath. Mom has to decide who to ultimately save: the one she and her husband broke or the baby.

 

But yeah, let's make the "prestige" mini fight off football and Shond-day.

 

I'm not upset that I watched, but that it seemed to have wasted potential.  I will be watching for lots of this cast's next projects.

 

eta: High-five, Winston9-DT3!

Edited December 12, 2014 by Actionmage

[benteen]

There's no way around it...Elle looked bad in every way on Gracepoint.  When Carver told her she did a good job, I didn't know what he was talking about...she was an awful cop.

Edited December 13, 2014 by benteen

[Guest]

Yep, now poor Tom has to go through life thinking his father's serving a murder sentence for him, because of an innocent accident.  It's not bad enough to accidentally kill your best friend right after seeing your dad try to molest him.  

[izabella]

The Solanos' reaction when Carver told them it was Joe was so flat and dull.  I was expecting more from that reveal to the family, but pretty much nothing. 

 

Tom's going to need a lot of therapy.

[Netfoot]

Gaaaahhhh!   

 

So, with not one prior hint to suggest it, Joe turns out to be a pedophile and Danny his target.  Talk about God in the machine!  Tom accidentally brains Danny, and Joe decides to cover it up.  So, for the rest of the season Joe lolls about the house while Tom sneaks about in the woods trying to plant evidence.  Tom destroys his computer out in the open, instead of asking Joe to help, and when ShamanPaul catches him, he doesn't say "I'm doing what my dad told me, and if you don't believe, go ask him, so fuck off!"

 

the most transparently false confession in the history of the cinematic arts, and Carver the Great doesn't catch on until way later.   Even when Tom says " I didn't see anybody else hit him..." and blows a trumpet and waves a flag to help emphasize the "else". 

 

No reason given for Joe's late-night visit to the shack.  CrazySue is still crazy, Coke dealing officially tolerated, Vince still suspicious, no explanation for the psychic, either way, and the only type of wrap-up being a mini-moment of redemption for creepy ShamanPaul, in the form of a few bonfires.  And of course, an ending just wheedling for a second season.

 

Officially, one of the shittiest piles of steaming shit I've wasted time on in many a year. 

[gameoff]

I thought the very last shot of Carver walking with a purpose would end with his heart giving out, thus the epiphany he had would die with him and Tom's involvement in the crime would stay covered up by Ellie.

 

It's too bad there won't be another season.  

[GreyBunny]

Well, that was a whole lot of nothing.  

 

Anemic acting all around, except for Tennant's death glare at the very end and the look on Ellie's face when she realized that Carver rumbled her.

 

Ellie deserved it to be Joe and Tom because she's such a horrible cop, and she proved it by trying to continue covering up for her son.

 

Officially, one of the shittiest piles of steaming shit I've wasted time on in many a year.

 

Yup and I hope there won't be a second season, it doesn't deserve one.

Edited December 12, 2014 by GreyBunny

[TheDancinMonarch]

Nine weeks of red herrings followed by this conclusion?  That's 10 hour of my life I will not be able to get back.

[queenanne]

 

So, with not one prior hint to suggest it, Joe turns out to be a pedophile and Danny his target.  Talk about God in the machine!  Tom accidentally brains Danny, and Joe decides to cover it up.  So, for the rest of the season Joe lolls about the house while Tom sneaks about in the woods trying to plant evidence.  Tom destroys his computer out in the open, instead of asking Joe to help, and when ShamanPaul catches him, he doesn't say "I'm doing what my dad told me, and if you don't believe, go ask him, so fuck off!"

 

Word, all Joe had to do was run the damn computer over with the car, which you could practically do with no one noticing if your wheelpath was short and slow. 

 

Oh well, at least Gracepoint was consistent to the end - "that show", where all you need in order to keep the mystery from being solved and still a secret, is to have the party of the first part speaking cryptically and tying themselves into a pretzel avoiding: logical and coherent speech patterns; normal expected joy in the presence of a person they would normally seek out, preferring to instead evade, lurk, and skulk; and (re)acting weird just for the sake of being able to say "yo, look at me! here I am, acting weird!"

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I found it weird that they made Joe a pedo who hadn't actually molested Danny. Come on, show. If you're going to go there, then just GO THERE. I'm not saying that I'm pro-molester but it seems like a cop out that they made Joe a pedo who hadn't quite gotten around to molesting the kid he was perving on. It's like they want us to think aww, he's not THAT bad.

[marieYOTZ]

I thought Ellie wailing on Joe was a high point. It looked good to me, like she was really whacking him into submission so she could kick the snot out of him.

Edited December 12, 2014 by marieYOTZ

[alexvillage]

So, I was completely wrong but, like others, I also knew there was more tho the story when they reveled Joe too early in the episode. Then the only logical conclusion was Tom.

 

I will not miss the show or even watch it again if, by a miracle, it gets renewed. Terrible writing with very few highlights for me to care. too many stories that do not matter. Acting is poor, creepiness makes it hard for me to relate or care for any of the characters. 

Besides, if they have a second season, the creepy family would have to stay in town and that would be too weird, even for this town. So, no. If the show is not done, I am.

[Kathira]

Other than to set up all the red herrings and plot misdirection, it doesn't make much sense for Joe to have taken Danny down to the beach and arranged him like that. Since he was killed by a blow to the head, why not stand him at the edge of the cliff and drop him off? That way at least there would have been some question about whether Danny committed suicide. The CSI people might have figured it out from footprints, etc. at the crime scene, but at least it would have made more sense as a cover-up. In Broadchurch, where Danny was strangled, there was no hope of it seeming like suicide.

 

Also, they decided he was dead pretty quickly. Wasn't Joe an EMT or something? I would think he might have at least tried to revive Danny. Does a 12 year-old have the physical strength to kill another twelve-year-old with a wild swing like that? Maybe, but they could have at least tried some CPR.

Edited December 12, 2014 by Kathira

[Guest]

Gaaaahhhh!   

 

So, with not one prior hint to suggest it, Joe turns out to be a pedophile and Danny his target.  Talk about God in the machine!  Tom accidentally brains Danny, and Joe decides to cover it up.  So, for the rest of the season Joe lolls about the house while Tom sneaks about in the woods trying to plant evidence.  Tom destroys his computer out in the open, instead of asking Joe to help, and when ShamanPaul catches him, he doesn't say "I'm doing what my dad told me, and if you don't believe, go ask him, so fuck off!"

 

the most transparently false confession in the history of the cinematic arts, and Carver the Great doesn't catch on until way later.   Even when Tom says " I didn't see anybody else hit him..." and blows a trumpet and waves a flag to help emphasize the "else". 

 

No reason given for Joe's late-night visit to the shack.  CrazySue is still crazy, Coke dealing officially tolerated, Vince still suspicious, no explanation for the psychic, either way, and the only type of wrap-up being a mini-moment of redemption for creepy ShamanPaul, in the form of a few bonfires.  And of course, an ending just wheedling for a second season.

 

Officially, one of the shittiest piles of steaming shit I've wasted time on in many a year. 

I totally agree.  But I think Joe did tell Carver he went to the hut that night to confess, but he ran because he expected Carver to show up alone and he couldn't do it in front of Ellie.

 

Other than to set up all the red herrings and plot misdirection, it doesn't make much sense for Joe to have taken Danny down to the beach and arranged him like that. Since he was killed by a blow to the head, why not stand him at the edge of the cliff and drop him off? That way at least there would have been some question about whether Danny committed suicide. The CSI people might have figured it out from footprints, etc. at the crime scene, but at least it would have made more sense as a cover-up. In Broadchurch, where Danny was strangled, there was no hope of it seeming like suicide.

I totally agree about the cliff.  I think in the original the excuse for the whole boat ride and display on the beach was that Joe intended to dump him at sea but then decided it was too cruel to the parents or something.  

[LisaM]

I knew that Tom and Joe were both involved but the pedophilia part came out of nowhere. I literally gasped when Joe touched Danny's face. There have been hints of pedophilia with the priest and sexual abuse with Susan's husband so I guess that the point is that pedophiles can be anyone and everywhere. I really thought that Joe was going to be involved in killing Danny to protect Tom with respect to drug dealing. Did we ever find out why Tom and Vince were so secretive behind closed doors at the shed?

 

The Susan Wright "you don't know what lurks in your own family" was way too big of an anvil pointing right at Ellie's family.

[Guest]

The lousy detective work that bothered me was that Carver totally missed the "I didn't see anybody ELSE hit Danny" the first time.  To me it stood out like a sore thumb.  Not even a 12 year old would speak like that, I don't think.  Tom didn't 'see himself' hit Danny.  

 

But I assumed he was implying he'd seen Mark hit Danny, or knew Danny said Mark did.  Maybe that's what they hoped we'd think, but that Carver wouldn't think?  

[ZoloftBlob]

Here's why I hated that ending... Joe, the husband of a cop and an EMT, witnesses an innocent accident where a boy is killed and he decides to cover it up?  As if... his 12 year old would go to jail for that accident?  Like they couldn't leave out the almost-pedophile part of the story and just say it was what it was... an accident?

 

Well, I think the problem is that Joe would have a great deal of difficulty explaining why he was out meeting Danny in the middle of the night with Tom in some abandoned cabin.

 

Yes, Danny's death was an accident but why was Tom waving an oar around? To stop his dad from *doing something* to Danny. The circumstances surrounding Danny taking an oar to the head weren't innocent.

[Primetimer]

The town of Gracepoint has to deal with a disturbing revelation.

Read the story

[truthaboutluv]

Yes, Danny's death was an accident but why was Tom waving an oar around? To stop his dad from *doing something* to Danny. The circumstances surrounding Danny taking an oar to the head weren't innocent.

 

 

This. I could totally buy Joe's panicking in that moment and thinking to just cover up the whole thing because accident or not, the reason he and Danny were even out there that night was decidedly "not innocent" on his part. I can completely buy him thinking it was better to just cover it up than have the police naturally ask a lot of questions and dig deeper if he went to them saying what happened. Because there would naturally be questions about why Danny and Tom were out there that late at night, why was Joe, did Tom call him after he accidentally killed Danny, how did that even happen, etc.

 

And coming forward would require Tom, a 12 year old kid to stick to the story no matter how much pressure the investigators put on him. Granted I think he could have done it because I still say that kid gave me Damian from The Omen vibes. But I can see how Joe would think it was too risky and that it was better to just cover everything up.

Edited December 12, 2014 by truthaboutluv

[Quality]

So all the actual suspects and people looked into were misdirection.

And all of the actual police work was pointless because Joe just ended up turning himself in by turning the phone on.

And the writer's didn't need to come up with a motive because it was just an accident.

And Joe suddenly became a pedophile despite there being no prior indication of that.

And I wasted 10 hours.