S02.E01: Episode 1

[Miles]

I can understand Joe pleading not guilty. I'm not very familiar with british law, but there has to be a distinction between manslaughter and murder. What he did was clearly manslaughter and yet he was being charged with murder. Ofcourse it was stupid to not tell his lawyer beforehand, but oh well. (I know that's not the reason why he did it, but it's the reason I would have done it)

I like that they aren't just taking a new case, like you would expect from a detective show, but rather that they deal with the fallout from the previous case, and even a case before that, that we only heard about till now.

[staveDarsky]

Manslaughter would apply if Danny's death had been completely an accident. But Joe was trying to harm Danny. He may have lost control and not planned the killing in advance, but in the moment, he was trying to prevent Danny from leaving and telling other people about their relationship. 
In several jurisdictions what Joe did is classified as "second degree murder".

[Miles]

It seemed to be without premeditation and completely an affect reaction. Joe also didn't kill Danny to prevent him from leaving but as a reaction to Danny saying that Joe wanted to fuck him and probably wanted to fuck his own son, too.

That seems to be pretty cut and dry manslaughter to me. At least it would be in the USA and germany. Ofcourse I don't know that much about UK law but it would surprise me if it was different. Can you name some jurisdictions where this wouldn't be considered manslaughter?

Edit: Did some digging. Sounds like manslaughter under UK law as well: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2009/25/section/54 http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2009/25/section/55

Edited September 20, 2016 by Miles

[staveDarsky]

As I'm re-reading sources, I see that part of the judge's job is to decide the intensity of the provocation, thus determining whether the charge is murder or manslaughter. Chris Chibnall, Broadchurch's writer, claimed he got lots of legal counsel as he wrote the court proceedings. Whatever he was told, he decided the charge would be murder.
Danny had threatened to go and tell Mark and others. After one unsuccessful escape, Joe locked the cabin door. While it may not have been the final straw, it had started the escalation that ended in Joe strangling Danny.

[smorbie]

On 1/12/2015 at 4:35 PM, Pippin said:

This is one of the few shows on the tube I'm looking forward to.  Showcase just aired Episode One of Season Two and though the writer in me predicted that Joe would change his plea (the most logical, reasonable way to extend the story) I could still share the other characters' shock when and how he did it.

I wasn't shocked he did, either.  But, then I slooowly began to realize the ramifications that was going to have one everyone.  And I began to hate him even more.

The only thing I can thing of, other than that he is a completely despicable person is that he's covering for 

Spoiler

Tom, whom I totally believed had killed his friend

Spoiler

 

 

Other than that, I don't know.  But, I'm horrified at what this means to the rest of the community.

I didn't know whether to put that under spoiler tag or not since it was two years ago, and it was speculation, not really a spoiler.  But, what the hey.

On 1/12/2015 at 4:35 PM, Pippin said:

I loves me some David Tennant

I was a bit worried that he might seem like the doctor to me.  But he doesn't.  And the sadness and weariness in his eyes is heartbreaking.

He nailed this role.

[smorbie]

On 3/5/2015 at 11:35 PM, seamusk said:

d we saw where he was staying, so suddenly there is a big ass house he had rented or something? But he was staying in a hotel

In season 1 he was the detective on the case and being put up in the hotel.  He was deemed unfit for that position by the end of the season and given another position as an instructor.  Therefore, his residence was not being paid for the department and, as he was apparently living in Broadchurch now, he needed a more permanent home.

[Roseanna]

On ‎6‎.‎1‎.‎2015 at 9:29 PM, rozen said:

Mark is a douche, I never liked him. Danny's death is just a sanctimonious pedestal for him to weasel out of all of his nasty behavior. Agreed, Beth is the pot calling the kettle black. Husband missing at all hours and sitting there primly, pretending to be a healthy family. He could be doing anything, and even after all he's done, she's still too much of a wuss to push and find out. I think she's projecting her own weakness onto Ellie. Ellie is 100x stronger than Beth ever could be.  

Their son was killed which is a crime. He and they don't have to be saints, before or after it. 

On ‎13‎.‎1‎.‎2015 at 3:41 AM, ThomasAAnderson said:

I can totally understand being pissed at Ellie because I'm pissed at her. You weren't just his wife you're a damn police officer and you didn't see it. Her entire approach to the case was too emotional. After she missed that the killer was in her bed, it makes sense that she didn't get the promotion and her whining about it all the time in Season 1 certainly didn't endear her to me.

How could have Ellie known? Joe behaved quite normally. The audience wasn't shown anything suspicious until ep 7. 

On ‎5‎.‎3‎.‎2015 at 7:04 AM, SierraMist said:

I couldn't stand Beth in season one and I still can't.  Yes, shut up Beth.  You have no idea what your own family is doing and you have no business yelling at Ellie.  I hope we get to see Ellie give some back this season.  I just love Olivia Coleman.  She can act.  Watching Broadchurch again totally reminded me how poor all the acting was in Gracepoint (especially the Ellie character). 

 

On ‎5‎.‎3‎.‎2015 at 9:10 PM, pbutler111 said:

I hate to appear dense, but can someone explain to me why the dead boy's family is so enraged at Ellie? I don't remember Ellie having done anything wrong, and it seems kind of stretch for them to assume that she was somehow in on the crime. It could be argued (and some will violently disagree, I get it) that Ellie's lost a lot more than the Latimers: She lost her husband, she lost her son, she lost her job, and she lost her home. So what is it that the Latimers thinks she's done to them? She can't be held responsible for the inexplicable -- and certainly unprecedented and unpredictable -- actions of her husband. Hell, at one point Beth thought her own husband had killed their son, so how is it beyond her to understand that you could not really know the person you're married to? I just don't get this misplaced rage. Did I miss something?

 

On ‎6‎.‎3‎.‎2015 at 6:35 AM, seamusk said:

I just don't agree with folks criticism of Beth. I'm not saying Beth is right. But her behavior is really true to me. Ellie was her friend. She can't comprehend how Ellie didn't know about Joe. She is going to lash out at someone and when we do that, we don't typically lash out rationally.  Quite the opposite. And Ellie is a logical target.  Remember, Beth does not see what we see, so her perspective on Ellie in this is different from ours.

 

On ‎6‎.‎3‎.‎2015 at 4:28 PM, Wordsworth said:

Really, I think Beth is angry at herself.  She's angry that her family was able to keep so many secrets from her (Mark's affair, Danny's relationship with Joe, Chloe's boyfriend/the money/the drugs).  She believes a mother should know what's going on in the house, so she lashes out at Ellie who she believes should have known.  Yes, it's hypocrisy, but Beth is upset and looking for someone to blame.  I don't blame her for her initial hostility, but I would have hoped that six months would have given her time to think about it.

It reminds me of true crime shows I've seen where a serial killer is arrested (like BTK, etc) and his wife was completely clueless.  Inevitably, at least one victim's family member express disbelief that the wife didn't know.  But...I mean how many of us have spouses, parents, siblings, children that we trust?  How many of us would ever believe our father would murder someone?  Our brother?  Our son?  And it fit with the theme of how Ellie's view of Broadchurch the town was shaken through the entire case.  She told Hardy constantly how things like this didn't happen in this town, how she knew this person or that person.  As the case went on, she finds out Mark is an adulterer, Jack did jail time, Coates was an alcoholic.  The people - the town - she thought she knew didn't exist.  It must have been a comfort to go home every night to a husband and sons where everything was safe and where there were no surprises.

And in the end she had to learn what Susan Wright had tried to tell her...it is possible to be fooled by those you trust the most.

- - -

As to Joe, I get where he's going with this.  He felt guilty for killing Danny so he confessed.  But several months in jail have given him time to think about how he will be able to live in prison as a man who murdered a child.  He said so himself that he cannot spend the rest of his life in prison as a child killer.  I don't know much about the British penal system, but the American system is full of offenders against children who are abused by their fellow inmates.    Likely Joe got to thinking about his life behind bars.  He's willing to take a chance at being found not guilty to avoid that life.

Seamuk and Wordworth made a good interpretation about Beth and Wordworh about Joe.

However, Joe totally errs by believing that if he is released he can get his old life back.  

On ‎19‎.‎9‎.‎2016 at 2:31 PM, Miles said:

I can understand Joe pleading not guilty. I'm not very familiar with british law, but there has to be a distinction between manslaughter and murder. What he did was clearly manslaughter and yet he was being charged with murder. Ofcourse it was stupid to not tell his lawyer beforehand, but oh well. (I know that's not the reason why he did it, but it's the reason I would have done it)

I like that they aren't just taking a new case, like you would expect from a detective show, but rather that they deal with the fallout from the previous case, and even a case before that, that we only heard about till now.

 

On ‎20‎.‎9‎.‎2016 at 4:18 AM, staveDarsky said:

Manslaughter would apply if Danny's death had been completely an accident. But Joe was trying to harm Danny. He may have lost control and not planned the killing in advance, but in the moment, he was trying to prevent Danny from leaving and telling other people about their relationship. 
In several jurisdictions what Joe did is classified as "second degree murder".

Terms are different in Finland. It's not a murder but "a kill" if one kills without planning or without extra brutality and cruelty (or killed a police in his work or caused general danger).  Joe clearly didn't plan to kill Denny. On the hand, Denny's intent to reveal the meetings wouldn't be regarded mitigating, but the sentence would be harder than f.ex killing a man because Denny as a child was unable to defend himself. 

Also, in our country it's not enough to make a confession but there would be a trial where the evidence would be explored.