The story was a bit ridiculous, and the surprise twist was very lame. The only person that really seemed like a good soul was the in fact the killer. Like usual, Inspector Morse goes out with a suspect and it blows up in his face. Morse has the worst instincts when it comes to women.
The rest of this episode in regards to tracking down the mystery killer is pretty spotty. Nobody can see who drops off the secret poison pen letters in a town that looks like it has about a hundred people tops.
The beginning of the episode stretched credibility. A fat old man kills his incredibly young and beautiful wife because he gets a message that she is cheating on him. When the scene began with the young woman, I presumed she was his daughter, not his wife. Any old guy that marries a woman less than half his age should be overjoyed that she comes home at all. Why would he kill her?
The meat of this episode came in the sad surprise that Chief Bright discovers about his wife, and the other heart-breaking surprise that DCI Thursday discovers about his wife. Add in Morse's tragic relationship, and it was a grim episode for all of them.