Vera (TV Series) Natural Selection (2017) User Reviews

A gritty series opener.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 8/10 · 3 February 2020]

The body of Gemma, a ranger is discovered on a remote Island, home to various species of wild birds.

It's a very solid episode, a good start to Series 7. It's a very visual opening, very dramatic with the boat approaching the island, and Gemma's body sprawled on the rockface. I was kept guessing until the last.

The visuals are awesome, gorgeous location work, love the lighthouse and scenes in the Island, the music is also terrific, adding to the tension and energy.

Very well acted, I thought Suzanne Packer was particularly good, she had some great scenes with Blethyn.

I love the dynamic between Vera and Aiden, she seems to treat him better than Joe.

Very good. 8/10

Many twists and turns

[epacrisimpressa · 7/10 · 5 April 2020]

Another serving of fabulous cinematography featuring the rugged coast of Northumberland, with a tortuous plot revolving around the mysterious death of Ranger Gemma. Good acting, some gruff humour from Vera and Sergeant Healy, and that splendid photography are not enough though. The problem is that the character of Gemma is all over the place and ultimately just doesn't gel. This happens a lot where the writer is trying to make the plot unpredictable and hide potential suspects from view. For my money, credible psychology is essential to really involve me emotionally. A person who loved animals and "always wanted to be a conservationist from childhood" doesn't usually display the qualities attributed to the central character here.

Great story which keeps you guessing

[boxyfella · 9/10 · 3 February 2022]

Superb cinematography as usual, the locations look stunning. Sadly this is Helen's farewell appearance. I always loved that character. This is one of those episodes where you actually feel sorry for the killer. The victim was a right nasty piece of work.

Natural Selection

[Prismark10 · 4/10 · 26 March 2017]

Vera is called in to investigate when a body is discovered on an island off the coast of Northumbria. Gemma Wyatt was a Wildlife Ranger who lived alone on the island for part of the year. Some years earlier Gemma was a witness to an accidental death, the victim's father has always been convinced someone was responsible. It seems Gemma had a nasty streak and might had forced another Ranger to retire early and there are other people resentful of Gemma.

Now Vera is a cosy ITV Sunday night drama, Brenda Blethyn's chatty Vera always had a steely and smart side to her. The episode was slow moving, immensely padded and really with Blethyn now hitting the age of 70 you just wonder that this policewoman would had been put out to grass years ago.