In our recap and review of Episode 1 of “Chemistry of Death,” we said that the series felt like old wine in another adaptation. We stand by that, but Episodes 2 and 3 made us realize how a fresh package can actually make things interesting if the sensibilities of the audience are kept in mind. The pacing of the series is excellent, and the cinematography is beautiful. Something else we have started to understand is that the series is not really as much about the mystery and suspense as it is about Dr. David Hunter’s fight with his demons. We learned the identity of the killer in the middle of the second episode itself, and the way the rest of the story unfolded cemented our opinion. It looks like this series has found a way to set itself apart from the others. Let us take a look at the events of “Chemistry of Death” Episodes 2 and 3 to see how it does that.
Spoilers Ahead
What Happens To Linda?
Picking up where Episode 1 left off, we find that the body the dogs had sniffed out did not belong to Linda, as we had speculated, but to an unidentified male. The body had been there for at least 4–5 years. Back to the current murders, the detective tells David that Sally has not been seen since the barbeque. But since David had speculated that she must have been killed 4-5 days after that, it meant that Linda might also be alive, giving her the same amount of time. True to their speculations, in the next scene, we see Linda tied up, sensing her kidnapper in the same room as hers, though he doesn’t harm her then. It soon comes to light that the dead body found in the woods belonged to Alan Ratcliffe, who was a close blood relative of Sally, probably her brother. The next day, when David and the detective try to further analyze the crimes, they deduce that a medical professional must be involved, considering the way the wings were stitched onto the backs of the victims. They also figure out that the murders are connected when they notice that the way the stones are placed around the body’s head is similar to that of the other victims.
The plot thickens when Tina, one of the residents, tells David that Gary spent the night at her place when Linda went missing. He hadn’t been at work like he had claimed. This, along with the discovery of Linda’s body, led the police to the arrest of Gary Yates. Though he claims innocence, he still acts suspiciously by trying to run away when they come for his arrest. Considering the case solved, David goes sailing with Jenny, where they come close to each other. Jenny is a sensitive woman, and she understands David’s hesitation. She reassures him that she is not going anywhere. But sadly, fate is not always in our hands. Jenny goes to meet Dan but falls into the water when trying to retrieve her hat. Dan hands her a pair of dry clothes, but when Jenny sees dried blood on them, she is suspicious. When she asks him where he got them from, he points toward a trailer room. If this wasn’t a murder mystery, Jenny would have immediately called the police, but in this case, she goes to inspect it herself and gets locked inside by Dan. When she comes back to consciousness, she finds carcasses of dead birds around her and Dan who keeps talking about what someone is telling him to do.
Meanwhile, the police have noted that Jenny is missing and are looking for her. They narrow down her location to Ben Ander’s bird sanctuary through her coordinates. As for David, he goes to check on one of his patients, George Mason. At his house, he finds his dead body hidden and arranged in the same way as the rest of the victims. Deducing that Dan, who is Geoge’s grandson, must be behind the whole thing, he informs the police of the same. That’s when he hears that Jenny is missing. He finds her in the trailer-like place, and when trying to rescue her, he runs into Dan. Nevertheless, he rescues Jenny and takes her to Dr Henry Maitland’s house, as she is in need of emergency medication. But the real twist in the plot happens when Henry knocks Dan out with a sedative. He was the orchestrator behind Dan all this time. In a flashback scene, it is revealed that Alan Ratcliffe had an affair with Henry’s wife. Henry discovered that and murdered Alan. When disposing of his body, he ran into Dan, who offered to do it for him. It is clear that Dan was the one who gave the bodies some ritualistic significance whenever Henry murdered someone. While going back home with his wife, it is clear that she has had enough of him. She unbuckles her seat belt and causes the car to swerve by trying to take control of the wheel. That was the accident that caused her death and bound Henry to the wheelchair.
While Henry and David are struggling, the police arrive right on time and rescue them. The murders had been committed by Henry to cover his tracks from when he had killed Alan, and Dan was a means to an end. The bodies were arranged that way by Dan because he thought he was sending them back to nature. He would need a complete psychiatric evaluation before he was sent to trial.
‘Chemistry Of Death’ Episode 3: Ending Explained: Who Is Alice? What Is David Hunter’s New Case?
David asks Detective Mackenzie to get him a new job, as his past trauma is coming back to him in that place. The detective gets him a gig in Runa, where he needs to go immediately. One might think that the change of scenery is helping him, but we have a feeling that things are going to get worse. David is called to investigate another unusual case: a burn victim whose remains are little more than ashes. He figures out that the body belongs to a woman. It also looks like she was burnt, rather slowly and deliberately, by wrapping her up in body fat, likely after her death. From a few other clues, David concludes that the woman was killed with a blow to her head before she was set on fire.
In the new place that he has moved to, the police are not as sharp as Manhan, but he makes do. The biggest challenge for him is an emotional one. The owner, Ellen, of the place he is living at, has a daughter named Anna, who reminds David of his dead daughter Alice. Seeing her seems to bring David closer than ever to his demons and prevents him from getting the respite he had moved there for. When driving, he hallucinated that he saw her, which caused him to swerve his car. David is a doctor, so one would assume that he would be aware of the tricks his mind played on him. But vulnerability and untreated trauma can get the best of us, and David feels like Alice is on the top of the plains, and he cannot stop himself from looking for her. He is literally in the middle of nowhere, looking for a person who is no more. “Chemistry Of Death” Episode 4 will probably see him battling some of the dangers of the elements so that he can reach safety and move ahead with the case.
What To Expect From ‘Chemistry Of Death’ Episode 4?
The first case followed Simon Beckett’s book “Chemistry of Death,” whereas the new case follows “Written in Bone.” This case promises some significant subplots, more so than the previous one. We already know about the affair Ellen is having and have understood that Maggie, the journalist, might turn out to be a bit of a menace in the coming episodes. There is also Sergeant Fraser, who has an issue with the changes on the island. There was a mention of the Strachans, who have been changing things around the place. We sense a conflict in the works, which will be presented in the next episode. For now, we can say that we love the pace “Chemistry of Death” is moving at while managing to look so beautiful on the screen. The interest that the first episode could not generate, the second and third ones did. This is an adaptation that we don’t mind recommending to others.
