(Review is of both parts).
A young woman is murdered, stabbed to death. Suspicion immediately falls on her boyfriend, a married professor, whom she'd just argued with and then tried to run over with her car. However, he has a solid alibi. Other than that, who could possibly have a motive to kill her?
I initially wasn't impressed with the new Lewis-and-Hathaway-as-equals structure that was revealed in Episode 1 of this season. It smacked of the producers trying to wring the last remaining dollar out of the show when its natural end was after Episode 6 of Season 7. Furthermore the plot to Episodes 1 and 2 of Season 8 was far-fetched and overly complex.
However, this, Episodes 3 and 4, gets things back on track, more or less. We still have the too-many-chiefs scenario with both Lewis and Hathaway handling cases while being the same rank. It seems to be working now though. Newcomer DS Griffin is a great addition and seems to make sure that nothing falls through the cracks due to the joint leader setup.
The plot is also very good. Intriguing, plausible and we have a good build up to the conclusion. No rabbits out of the hat at the last minute (unlike many Lewis, and Morse, episodes).
Great episode.