GRACEPOINT: Small Town Murder Most Foul {Recap}

Last year I (and more than a few others) were captivated by BBC America’s Boardchurch, about the murder of a young boy that rocks a small town. Fox capitalized on the success of the show and starts telling their America version of the show this week in Gracepoint.

Still featuring David Tennant (Doctor Who) as the lead detective with many secrets, this version features Anna Gunn (Breaking Bad) in the role first portrayed by Olivia Coleman.

For those who haven’t watched the BBC original, these recaps won’t play into what was the whodunnit there.

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The episode opens up with the town – everyone knowing everyone’s business and talking friendly as the day begins. One boy in the family hasn’t been seen, but no one in his family notices.

When Detective Ellie Miller (Gunn) returns from her vacation she learns that a promotion that was promised to her went to another man, Emmett Carver (Tennant) before the two of them are forced to work together as a body is found on the beach.

The boy, Danny Solano, is friends with Miller’s son Tom, and the town soon learns who had been found on the beach, even if the town is small enough that the news will spread far too quickly. Carver’s past with a bad case at his old job has the police chief question if Carver should stay on the case, or if Miller should take the lead.

Investigations go as they always do, and Carver and Miller meet Jack Reinhold (Nick Nolte), who runs a spot for boats and things during the season. Danny was meant to have been there in the morning looking at birds.

Neither Carver nor Miller are sure if any other children are in danger, but everything about this death is suspicious and unnerving. Danny’s sister, Chloe, is pretty upset by everything. Owen, a local reporter, puts together who the victim is from seeing Chloe at the site, going so far as to use his aunt, Miller, to help him with his story and the response (he sends the information down to a big paper in San Fransisco for more coverage).

Owen’s leaked information puts Carver on edge and Ellie in a mood too.

The journalist from San Fransisco, Renee, remembers Carver from a case she remembered from her days in Rosewood, and she wants to investigate what happened, just as Owen’s decision to leak Danny’s name has him in trouble with his editor.

Already both the Miller home and the Solano home are in tatters – the investigation making Ellie’s life difficult and the idea of Danny’s death putting a rift between Mark and Beth. Once Tom knows about Danny’s death he goes through and deletes all his old texts from Danny and the contents of his entire hard drive.

Danny was last seen riding his skateboard into town and he was found without his cell phone, even though Ellie knows he had one.

The last scene has Detective Carver imploring the town to come forward with information that anyone might have to catch Danny’s killer, and there are so many people in town who could have been the culprit.

Gracepoint airs Thursdays at 9 PM Eastern/8 PM Central on Fox.