Miss Scarlet Season 6, Episode 1 Review: Eliza's Whirlwind Romance Highlights A Deeper Issue

Warning! This review contains spoilers for Miss Scarlet season 6, episode 1.

The first episode of Miss Scarlet season 6 depicts a different side of Victorian-era London's pre-eminent lady detective, as Eliza learns to balance her case work with romance. That doesn't mean the new season of PBS Masterpiece's popular mystery series doesn't start with a bang, of course — quite the opposite, as Eliza (Kate Phillips) drugs a room full of men, carefully stepping over their unconscious bodies to reclaim a priceless artifact.

Though it makes for a fun season opening, this is par for the course for Eliza, and viewers won't be surprised by her unconventional methods. What they might be surprised by instead is her and Inspector Alexander Blake's (Tom Durant-Pritchard) romantic tryst soon after, as they kiss in Eliza's hallway with the door open to the busy London street below. At this point, they've clearly been involved for a while.

What sets this installment apart from any of last season's episodes is that Eliza and Alexander are rediscovering their footing as co-workers. The mysterious medicinal deaths of two women in season 6, episode 1, "Secrets and Lies," seemingly mark their first joint investigation since they became romantically attached, and Eliza has never been so flustered. How her blossoming relationship with the Inspector will affect her job remains to be seen.

The Case Is Secondary To Eliza's New Work Struggles

The episode's mystery is interesting enough, examining mental health and psychiatric treatments in Victorian London, as well as the effects of childhood trauma. However, Eliza's relationship with Blake is clearly the more important storyline, and as a result, the case's resolution feels overly swift.

They're keeping their romance a secret from everyone they interact with. At the start of the episode, Eliza hasn't even told Ivy (Cathy Belton) about her newfound happiness, which creates tension between the two women. Eliza's second in command, Clarence (Paul Bazely), suspects something is amiss as well, though this actually leads to one of the episode's most entertaining scenes in a London slum.

From the show's very first episode, when it was still titled Miss Scarlet and the Duke, Eliza has been forced to be (and arguably enjoyed being) relentless in her pursuit of detective work, fighting tooth and nail against a patriarchal society. She's smart, wily, and uncompromising, and even in the quieter moments she shared with the formerly titular "Duke," she always had an air of defiance about her.

Phillips' performance really sells Eliza's determination, but it's undeniably refreshing to see another side of her character in Miss Scarlet season 6's opening episode; a side that's freely joyful, flirtatious, and excited about something other than work. Trailblazing characters like Eliza are often forced to be one thing to avoid being perceived as being too weak or feminine.

Now, Eliza gets to be softer while holding on to her core sense of self. Her hesitation in making their relationship public is completely understandable considering her position in society, and it's clear that Phillips is still having enormous fun in the role, switching seamlessly from the Eliza we all know and love to this new, playful version.

Eliza Scarlet deserves a bit of romance and happiness. And yet, I'm still unconvinced by Eliza's new beau, Detective Inspector Alexander Blake.

Is Miss Scarlet's Leading Man The Right Match?

On paper, Eliza and Alexander are a match made in heaven. Their shared enthusiasm for detective work is infectious, and he clearly appreciates her talents while tolerating her eccentric detection techniques as much as a leading Inspector with Scotland Yard can. Still, there's something profoundly... safe about his character, and it's very apparent in Miss Scarlet season 6, episode 1.

Durant-Pritchard turns in a perfectly fine performance as the handsome, attentive, and righteous Inspector, a former soldier and a loving father to boot. Most Victorian women's dream, surely, and yet I can't help but feel that the show has taken his character too far in the opposite direction of Eliza's former love interest, played by Stuart Martin.

Eliza and Alexander's whirlwind romance highlights this — they managed to do in seven episodes what Eliza and Inspector Wellington never managed in four seasons — and their romantic interactions feel less impactful as a result. Their chemistry is more profound in scenes where they're discussing actual case work than when they're snuggled in front of the fireplace in Eliza's reception room.

Perhaps the issue is that Blake, as the Inspector, is no longer really a foil for Eliza during her work. Instead, their secret has become Eliza's obstacle, and there's no one else in the police force for her to really butt heads with. Even Scotland Yard's newest detective, George Willows (Sam Buchanan), is a fan of Eliza's work, loyal, sweet, and hardworking.

The only tension in the workplace now comes from Eliza's worry about her being discovered as the Inspector's new love interest, and that makes the proceedings somewhat duller. I won't say that Detective Phelps (Tim Chipping) was ever my favorite character in Miss Scarlet, but his gruffness is missed in the first episode of Miss Scarlet season 6. Everything feels quite easy, despite Eliza's understandable worry.

All in all, "Secrets and Lies" was a solid enough start to the new season, giving audiences a chance to get acquainted with Eliza and Alexander's new status quo and the potential issues in their relationship. Let's hope there's more to Alexander's character than meets the eye, however, as Miss Scarlet season 6 continues.

New episodes of Miss Scarlet season 6 air weekly on Sundays at 8 PM ET on PBS Masterpiece.