The BBC’s The Tunnel features brilliant and sadistic arch villains being pursued by a team of dogged French/British police detectives. The criminals generally have a societal, moral or vengeful bone to pick. In other words, “the world sucks and it’s somebody’s fault and I’m going to conceive a diabolical plan that will terrorize an entire nation.” You can be sure the motive for mass murder is presented in such a way as to suggest it has some legitimate cause. In other words, the crazies out there do have justifiable grievances against greedy institutions like evil corporations who poison the air, food and water. In this type of scenario, the fiends naturally are multi-skilled, technological geniuses who lead the trudging cops on a merry chase. Not unusual for Brit or U.S. TV drama. The good guys have to be on the losing end of every episode until the final episode when miraculously an underdog hero, and often heroine, cop saves the day. The Tunnel is just one drama. There’s a bevy of others — well done, well acted, complete with lesbianism, homosexuality, mixed race lovers and every other social category that Brit entertainment loves to promote in its passion for diversity. But you couldn’t care less about the virtue of TV screenplays. What compels about Brit crime fantasy is the matter of Brit crime reality — which is — detectives and other law enforcement personnel don’t in fact bear arms — no guns, Mr. Dillon. No, these Sherlock Holmes wannabes enter worlds of demonic evil, armed simply with cell phones and the full backing of Mother England. True, charmer that he was, Andy never carried a gun, and Barney did have only that one bullet (in his shirt pocket); but Mayberry, circa 1960, ain’t 21st century London. You will continue to tune into BBC’s The Tunnel, Shetland, Endeavor, Midsomer Murders and other thrillers because the products outstrip America’s shopworn whodunnit programming. Still, you cringe when film directors must insist on ruining an otherwise good story by including a nonsensical scene. For example, a highly experienced, young, athletic detective gives chase on foot, his quarry a bad guy (in this case, a woman) who carries a rifle with attached wicked bayonet. There the two stand on high ground, facing each other. Doubtless, your detective is at risk, not even carrying a taser. The assassin walks up to him quite deliberately. He stands immobile as if hypnotized and watches as she sinks her 18 steel blade to the hilt, in his gut. Mortally wounded, he begs for mercy, as she callously rolls him off a cliff top. Captivating scene, yes. Dumb, yes. Dumber than dumb, yes. Your highly trained hero, skilled in self defense, didn’t weave, didn’t dodge, didn’t run like hell. Which is what the BBC director should have done, as far away as he or she could from a scene that caved in what otherwise was a good episode of The Tunnel. After countless reviews, the producers let the scene stay in as is — you assume their argument has merit. This actor had to leave the show permanently — let’s make his exit particularly gruesome and build viewer hatred for our vicious assassin. Whatever. Despite criticism, you continue to have high regard for much of what is good about Brit film making. For England itself (and Ireland, Norway, New Zealand and a handful of other domains), you can only shake your head in dismay at policies that embolden evildoers as they weaken the arms of justice. Some say England remains true to its un-armed tradition. Explain tradition to Nicola Hughes and Fiona Bone, Brit officers killed in the line of duty — defenseless.