Inside No. 9 (TV Series) Love is a Stranger (2023) User Reviews

Love is a Stranger

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 12 May 2023]

Poor Vicky (Claire Rushbrook) she is frumpy, middle aged and now lonely after her mother died last year.

So Vicky has entered the world of online dating at a time when the real world has the lonely hearts killer on the loose.

So each online participant is encouraged not to reveal too many details such as their names. However everyone asks Vicky for her name such as landscape gardener Edgar (Mathew Horne) who wants to live dangerously but is not interested in Vicky.

Fussy Norman (Reece Shearsmith) wants a mother figure. Rubik's cube solving Manny (Steve Pemberton) is married. Lesley (Frances Barber) is more interested in selling diet supplements. Jai (Asim Chaudhry) has a facial disfigurement but shows interest in Vicky.

The question is, whether Vicky will be a perpetual victim as she prepares to meet one of the dates.

Shearsmith and Pemberton tackle the treacherous shallow and mendacious world of speed dating. There are elements of Psycho that I recognised. The clues were in the obsession with mother.

The twist was easy to figure but it is the journey that counts. The piece was excellently acted by Rushbrook.

Episode 804

[bobcobb301 · 7/10 · 13 May 2023]

If you have seen any Inside No. 9 before, or even a TV show before, I am sure you could see the twist coming from a mile away, but that did not make this any less of a quality episode. It was real and painful and relatable to anyone who has struggled in the dating pool in their lifetime.

The slow but subtle dialogue shifts is what the show does so well from Vicky borrowing jokes from other people to just outright lying as the night progressed.

This was a good episode and felt very Twilight Zone-esque, which is one of the highest compliments I can give. Disappointing to see some negative scores around it.

Fools Rushbrook in.

[southdavid · 7/10 · 19 May 2023]

I say this not to brag, (Indeed, I'm sure I'm far from the only people that predicted this) but to explain how I felt about this week's episode of "Insider Number 9" - I guessed the twist that was coming in this episode almost immediately and so the whole episode for me hinged not on the actual plot, but on whether or not I was correct.

Lonely since the death of her mother, Vicky (Claire Rushbrook) turns to online speed dating for potential companionship. After a series of disappointing times, where her matches tend to have ulterior motives, she finally matches with Jai (Asim Chaudhry) a similarly shy man and after their date goes well, they agree to meet up. The news though is reporting on a local serial killer, one who is claiming trophies and burying victims in shallow graves. Could Vicky's date be a graver danger than he appears.

Away from that issue with the reveal, it's actually a pretty strong episode. Claire Rushbrook is great, as she always is. Our principles appear as an elderly gentleman looking to replace his mother (Shearsmith) and an oleaginous man who it turns out is married (Pemberton). Matthew Horne is her first date, who also is a let down and Frances Barber plays a woman, 'accidentally' registered as a man who also has another reason for being on. They all have the odd funny lines and you can assess each one to try and determine whether they're possibly the serial killer.

The trouble is that it hinges on its twist and, having got one past me last week with that reveal, I spent all episode hoping that it wasn't what it actually turned out to be and then was disappointed that Shearsmith and Pemberton hadn't anticipated and circumvented that expectation with something better.

It's not a disaster, it's actually reasonably good - but in the pantheon of this series not near the top tier.

I refuse to be a victim!

[srrrrdjw · 6/10 · 13 May 2023]

This is hard to rate. It would be totally justifiable to give it a 4, or 5, or 7, or 8. The problem is that I wouldn't really recommend it to people who aren't (yet) fans of the show but I quite liked it. It's just a little footloose and fancy free.

We have a present day setting that goes back and forth between a virtual speed dating service and an IRL meetup, both from the perspective of Vicky. And before the evening begins, we learn that there is a serial killer called the Lonely Hearts Killer on the loose. From the brief scenes we get with Vicky and a mysterious man who has come to her flat, She seems to have met somebody who checked all the boxes, but it becomes increasingly difficult to believe she found the man of her dreams as she spends one 5 minute session after the next encountering a completely different kind of crazy. There's a cocaine fueled gigolo, a man more interested in finding a replacement for his mother, and a woman who claims to have been mistaken for a man by the agency. Each scene is very sharp, the writing is top notch, and there's so much wit and flavor to the dialogue that it really is a fun ride.

There is a big problem, however. Spoilers aside, this basic premise has been in every anthology show ever produced. The whole concept for the episode is unoriginal. And, less importantly, both Pemberton and Shearsmith do a pretty mediocre job as actors here. Vicky, on the other hand, is fantastic, and carries this segment to the very end. An average story told exceptionally well and a fine - but not outstanding - addition to the 8th series.

An instant classic. .

[Sleepin_Dragon · 10/10 · 12 May 2023]

After years of caring for her mum, Vicky is looking for love, and chooses an online speed dating site to find it, she meets all types. There is however, an element of risk attached, as the bodies of several victims, who've used the site are found.

I wonder if your ability to relate to this episode will lead to your overall opinion of it. As someone that's done a fair bit of online dating in the past, it was so relatable, there truly are some nutters out there, and as it goes to show, you never quite know who you're talking to, all you can do is take people at their face value.

I have to say I'd place it up there with the show's best, I'd call it an instant classic, I thought it was quite something.

Unsettling, disturbing, chilling, and of course there's an incredible twist.

Claire Rushbrook was expertly cast for the role of Vicky, not only is she a terrific actress, but she's always struck me as someone who seems like a lovely person, you can very easily empathise with her.

Every segment was great, one of those episodes that's Shearsmith and Pemberton light, but their phenomenal writing is ever present.

Superb!!!! 10/10.

Very unique concept!

[becky-92346 · 10/10 · 24 May 2023]

Love is a Stranger - Inside No.9 S8 E4 (2023) follows a woman named Vicky's who takes up online dating all while the Lonely Hearts murderer is using the service to find victims. This is yet another amazing episode with a crazy twist! I absolutely adore how Inside No.9 misguides the audience into thinking one thing, when in fact it's another.

The cinematography for this episode is definitely a stand out. It uses mood lighting to its advantage and the colour palettes really set the tone. The episode also includes some intriguing camerawork and detailed set design.

The sound design is very simplistic and subtle, setting a melancholic yet unnerving atmosphere. The score itself really works and helps the plot to flow.

The acting in this episode is great, with a phenomenal performance from Claire Rushbrook. Her character is very sweet and likeable, and Rushbrook manages to switch up her character incredibly well. She really sells her role! The actors are helped by the profound and in-depth dialogue.

Lastly, this episode has a steady pacing and an intriguing structure with a weirdly sad tone to it. I found the episode to be rather emotional and it made me tear up a few times! It also includes some brilliant tonal shifts, I never knew what was going to happen!

Not surprised at all

[MsShirlyS · 28 May 2023]

The episodes of Inside no. 9 always have surprising endings but this episode is sadly not one of them. I've literally known Vichy is the serial killer from the start, by reading her reactions to the news of the serial killer on the radio. There are definitely no concern of her for the news. Her peaceful reaction is definitely a spoil. It's a bummer as I had to go through the entire 30 mins with the largest surprise-to-be had been spoiled.

There are definitely still fun moments and surprises, and the performances are strong as usual, but with the biggest twist spoiled, I had less fun watching it.

Love is a battlefield

[safenoe · 8/10 · 6 November 2023]

It seems some reviewers respectfully speaking are all in a twist over the twist, and perhaps so.

Claire Rushbrook is amazing as she helms this episode based on speed-dating in a post-pandemic world, and she should have won acting awards galore playing the full-figured and lonely yet cheerful Vicky, who remains hopeful that she'll find the one for.

Clair's performance was outstanding and all credit to the casting director for casting her. We can emphathize with Vicky. Matthew Horne was absolutely brilliant and he almost stole the episode.

Anyway, the ending was a twist and I must admit, I didn't pick up earlier because I was so absorbed in the story.

Ending was obvious in the first 15secs

[syfb-49058 · 2/10 · 3 June 2023]

Episode was completely full with boring online-dating clichés.

They were so prominent that it quickly became apparent what the "twist" was going to be..

The use of "Internet lingo" and the explanations of what each ohrase meant, was unnecessary.

It was yet another plot of a murder mystery with a predictable ending.

There was no clever moment, there was no spark and there was no substance to anything that actually happened.

Did Vicky kill her own mum? Apparently the audience doesn't need to care about what happened, because it's not relevant to the plot... yet somehow Vicky's mum is mentioned about 10 times.

A Date With Dullness

[PurpleProseOfCairo · 4/10 · 13 May 2023]

Very poor. This series has been running on empty for a while to be honest. What started as a serviceable if unspectacular potboiler has become a dreary succession of cliches. They seem more concerned with style over substance - re-creating tropes and references cineastes will recognise and nod at approvingly. In this episode, the "twist" is telegraphed in the opening seconds. There are some laughs along the way (e.g. The arrival of the wife), but really, when you get to the "dramatic" final line, you realise that that was the first thing they came up with, then wrote the episode around it. It's actually embarrassingly lame.