Judge John Deed: Season Six

In the sixth and final season of the BBC series, Judge John Deed (George Gently's Martin Shaw) takes on complementary cases involving Iraq War veterans. For the first two-part episode, "War Crimes," he travels to the Hague's International Criminal Court to decide the fate of Private Clark (Neil Grainger), whose attempt to stop a terrorist caused the deaths of 11 civilians (away from the United Kingdom, Deed gets to ditch the woolly white wig). The judge's girlfriend, barrister Jo Mills (Jenny Seagrove), defends Clark, while Deed stays in a hotel with police protection. Both Mills and the sexually aggressive prosecuting attorney, Marie (Kim Thomson), try to get him to recuse himself, but he refuses (and it's hard to believe a woman in Marie's position could be so unprofessional as to proposition a judge). Trouble, however, awaits when an attractive hotel guest (Juliet Aubrey) does her best to catch Deed's eye. A more cautious justice might put on the brakes, but Deed gets close to her just as the case takes a critical turn, a decision that could prove deadly since she has ties to a radical Islamic group. In the second episode, "Evidence of Harm," Deed returns home for a case concerning a soldier suffering neurological damage after a regimen of required vaccinations contributed to two deaths, including his own. With the assistance of his daughter, Charlie (Louisa Clein), and his trusty assistant, Coop (Barbara Thorn), Deed sets out to find why his legal aid ended just as the man was about to go public. Both episodes raise important questions about the way governments and corporations treat those who put themselves in harm's way for the greater good, but the judge's roving eye and overactive libido make him look foolish at times, even if Shaw's distinctive characterization remains engaging. --Kathleen C. Fennessy