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The Last Detective

British mystery series starring Peter Davison as Detective Constable (DC) "Dangerous" Davies; based upon the novels and characters of Leslie Thomas. Davies is a gentle, somewhat old-fashioned officer who clashes with his Jerkass colleagues, and is a rare example of a Butt Monkey protagonist, facing a separation with his wife and various incidents of ill-luck along with his colleagues' taunting. Despite this, he is a clever detective and always solves the case, often aided by his genius slacker friend Mod.

"Dangerous" because he's not, and "The Last Detective" because he's the last detective they'd send on a case.

There had previously been a Made for TV Movie called Dangerous Davies, the Last Detective starring Bernard Cribbins.

Tropes used in The Last Detective include:
  • Actor Allusion: Greta the German manager from "Lofty" is probably more familiar as Grete Grotowska, the girlfriend of Stephen Daker (Davison) in A Very Peculiar Practice.
  • Butt Monkey: Dangerous
  • Candlelit Bath: In the episode "Tricia".
  • Cowboy Cop: Dangerous' DI is a washed-up, alcoholic Gene Hunt type who misses the good old days of honorable London Gangsters and Police Brutality. He's also an interesting version of Noble Bigot with a Badge though, as he's actually less prejudiced than Dangerous' fellow officers who are modern police and often defends Dangerous from their taunting.
  • Deathbringer the Adorable: Dangerous is called that "because he's not".
  • Dead Person Impersonation: The episode "Lofty".
  • Dirty Cop: Any officer considered a mentor or friend by Dangerous' DI will turn out to be one of these.
  • Embarrassing First Name: Mod is short for Modesty (after Tchaikovsky's brother).
  • Enhance Button: Used somewhat realistically in the episode with a Snuff Film.
  • Eureka Moment: Dangerous has one at least once per episode, generally during conversation with Mod.
  • Gag Penis: One episode has Mod's current girlfriend inform Dangerous' wife that Mod is rather well-endowed.
  • Good Cop, Bad Cop: With Dangerous as the good cop and the other officers as the bad ones.
  • Genius Ditz: Mod is extremely well-read, but lacking in practical social skills.
  • Identical Stranger: One episode has Dangerous investingating some gangsters, aided by an informant who looks a lot like Mod. Mod ends up getting badly beaten by the gangsters, who mistake him for the informant.
  • Kavorka Man: Mod frequently manages to hook up with gorgeous women (sometimes shown on camera, sometimes not) despite being an utter slacker.
  • The Last DJ: Dangerous himself.
  • London Town: Set in unpicturesque Willesden.
  • Male Gaze: The episode "Christine" has Davies and DI Aspinall interviewing a financial advisor with a very short skirt. Several shots were from behind her legs and showed (as well as the aforementioned limbs) the DC and DI with suspiciously rigid expressions.
    • The same episode presents a gender-flipped version in which Mod's legs get an airing. Viewers may differ as to the results.
  • Motive Rant: Averted as generally the criminals (generally murderers) will have understandable reasons for their crimes and accept arrest with calm resignation.
  • Murder.Com
  • No Name Given: Dangerous' real first name is never revealed. His dog's name is never revealed, either.
  • Overtook the Series
  • Plucky Comic Relief: Mod
  • Real Life Relative: Georgia Moffett, star Peter Davison's daughter, had a guest role in the Series 4 episode "Once Upon A Time In The Westway". The producers wanted her character to flirt with his, but one or both of them (wisely) refused.
  • Snuff Film
  • Stalker with a Crush: The title character of the episode "Tricia" who almost messes up Dangerous' life as badly as she had that of several previous men.
  • Tarot Troubles: At the beginning of the episode "Dangerous and the Lonely Hearts". As is common for this trope, Dangerous' card isn't as bad an omen as the script seems to think: he gets the Hanged Man, associated with (among other things) transformation and hard-earned wisdom.
  • Those Two Guys: DS Pimlott and DC Barrett, Dangerous' rivals on the force. They're not nice guys.
  • Yandere: The eponymous character in "Tricia" is also one of these.
  • You Do Not Have to Say Anything: In the first episode, Dangerous starts saying this after chasing down a perp, but is so winded the perp completes the reading for him.
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