Luther: Series 3 Episode Guide
Episode 1
UK airdate: 2 July 2013
Luther returns to investigate a twisted fetishist who is murdering women in a horrific echo of an unsolved case from the 1980s. The team must put all their resources into finding the copycat killer, whose murderous spree has only just begun.
Luther’s focus is divided when a reluctant Schenk assigns him to another case – a malicious internet tormentor has been found murdered in his home, with all his possessions stripped from the flat. With so many people wanting the tormentor dead, Luther needs to apply brute force to a key witness for more information, unaware that every move he makes is being watched.
Pulled in every direction, Luther’s patience is wearing thin and a car crash, as he rushes to the second crime scene, is the last thing he needs – or so he thinks, until he sets eyes on the beautiful Mary Day. Could this chance encounter mean that Luther might just be on the verge of finding love?
But nothing ever comes easily for John Luther and other forces are at work against him, in the shape of Erin Gray, now a DCI in anti-corruption, and her boss, DSU Stark. Stark and Gray will stop at nothing to punish those who work outside the perimeters of the law and their furtive plan involves the man who is Luther’s colleague and best friend – DS Justin Ripley.
Episode 2
UK airdate: 9 July 2013
Luther’s date with Mary and the promise of romance is interrupted by the news of another murder. The killer has struck again; the number of victims is escalating and fast.
Faced with the repercussions of their public disagreement, Luther orders Ripley to investigate the Jared Cass murder on his own. Meanwhile, he throws himself into a mountain of cold case files, determined to connect the past and present in order to predict the fetishist’s next move.
In a care home a cancer-ridden patient, William Carney, eagerly awaits a visitor. It’s the killer, who has a present for him – pictures of his spoils and promises of more to come.
Ripley has to choose whether to turn a blind eye to Luther’s unorthodox policing or go on record. In turn, Gray finds the line between right and wrong is becoming increasingly blurred as Stark’s obsession with Luther deepens.
The discovery of an accomplice forces Luther to engage in a nightmarish duel. Can he win this battle of wits in time to prevent the next horror? Elsewhere in London a trio of girls look forward to a quiet night in, unaware the killer lurks in the shadows of their home.
Episode 3
UK airdate: 16 July 2013
Two young hoodies are shot at close range in what looks like a gangland crime. But when another man dies shortly after, Luther realises that what the three dead men have in common is a criminal record. It looks like a new killer is on the loose – a vigilante with a personal vendetta against all past offenders.
When the killer posts a video of himself online, calling for changes to the public justice system, Luther struggles to control the increased public attention. The killer’s clearly on a mission and it’s only a matter of time before he strikes again. The team struggles to predict who his next target might be with so many potential victims.
Luther’s investigation is interrupted by a distraught Mary. She has had a visit from Stark and Gray, whose dirty tricks seem to know no bounds. Mary doesn’t know what to think or where to turn but Luther can see that there’s now fear in her eyes where there had been love. Can he convince Mary to trust him again before he’s called to another crime scene?
When the killer abducts a known paedophile, he invites the public to decide his victim’s fate. Luther counter-attacks with a similar publicity stunt, but when it doesn’t go as planned, Ripley and Luther find themselves thrown into the middle of an angry mob, baying for a public execution.
Episode 4 (Finale)
UK airdate: 23 July 2013
Marwood makes his vendetta personal – targeting Luther and those closest to him, raining destruction on everything he touches. Stark and Gray arrive just in time to hurry Mary to a secret place, but is her safety really Stark’s priority or is she just a pawn in his game to lure Luther to him?
Luther, bereft of friends and support, is left broken when he is accused of crimes he hasn’t committed. But just as his situation seems hopeless, help arrives in the form of an unexpected ally. How can he stop Marwood becoming a public martyr, when he himself is on the run, forced to work outside the law?
Luther realises that Marwood’s desire to avenge his wife won’t be satisfied by punishing past offenders in this vigilante campaign – he also wants to punish his wife’s murderer. Luther’s private investigation leads him to discover that Marwood has kidnapped an innocent woman as leverage against the man who killed his wife.
Luther confronts Marwood with disastrous consequences. Marwood, feeling that his control has slipped, becomes more unpredictable and dangerous. He wants Luther to suffer the way he has suffered. Suddenly, Luther faces losing all that he holds dear and is forced to make an impossible choice.
