Single-Handed is filmed on location on Ireland's west coast. I just visited there back in September, so it was really cool to see places that I had been to. The scenery is just beautiful and they do a wonderful job of showing off the natural beauty of the Irish countryside. Sgt. Jack Driscoll (Owen McDonell) is a cop who has gone back home to the western Ireland coast to take over for his father, Gerry Driscoll (Ian McElhinney), who has just retired as head of the small police department. He's been a cop in the big city though and is quickly learning that the rules of rural Ireland aren't like the rules of the big city of Dublin.
In the first episode, "Natural Justice," an immigrant girl names Sylvana (Martina Navratilova) dies. It looks like suicide or accidental death from carbon monoxide poisoning. Either is likely given that the gas fireplace was still on, but Sgt. Driscoll suspects foul play. While investigating, he finds that the exhaust pipe to vent out the gas was clogged with a rag that had to have been stuffed in there, so he declares it murder. Upon further investigation, it seems that the poor girl was stuck in several bad situations and there is more than one person who could want her dead. The further Jack digs, the more he finds out about his hometown that he didn't really want to know. His mother Eithne (Ruth McCabe) tries to temper the arguments between father and son, but Jack just can't reconcile himself with his father's way of life.
In "The Stolen Child," Jack investigates the disappearance of a young child taken from his home while his mother was outside doing the laundry. The first suspect in a child kidnapping when the parents are separated, of course, is always the father. In this case, there seem to be several possible suspects for Jack to track down. While Jack is busy working, his father is dealing with his own problems. The elder Driscoll has to go in front of a tribunal for quite a few of his past actions. His methods may have produced results and kept people in line, but the methods that he used were appalling. Smooth talking Gerry always an answer (or rather excuse) for everything.
In the final episode, "The Drowning Man," Jack has to pull the body of Danny O'Malley (Gary Robinson) out of the water in the middle of the night. His friends describe Danny as a good kid. He was supposed to be out playing poker with friends, but no one knows why anyone would want to drown him. Jack has a friend come to visit, Maura Dooley (Marcella Plinkett). Jack seems to go through women pretty quickly. He doesn't look like a ladies' man, but he's always got a new one. Well this time, the woman seems to have a something to hide in her past and it looks like she knows something about the case. She is living right across the street from where Danny went into the water with a man that she claims is a work associate. There are not a lot of city noises out there in rural Ireland, so it's odd that they didn't hear anything that night. They also have binoculars and a camera pointed at that exact spot. Unfortunately, Jack can't find out anything from her since she's working undercover and he's told to leave them alone. Jack is really going to have to dig up more buried dirt to get to the bottom of this case.
Single-Handed proved to be a wonderful mystery series. Unlike so many shows today, it was difficult to figure out who the culprit was in each episode. The plot twists were perfectly done to provide just the right amount of intrigue. If you're looking for a good mystery that will keep you guessing, I recommend that you pick up Single-Handed: Set 1 today!
