Death in Paradise season 13 finale spoilers follow.
Fans have been passionately rooting for Neville's (Ralf Little) romantic happy ending almost as enthusiastically as they rooted for Harry's return.
Well, those shipping a Neville and Florence (Joséphine Jobert) union will have been elated during that final moment when the two set sail, hand grazing hand, exchanging dreamy looks that would have put Martha (Sally Bretton) and Humphrey (Kris Marshall) to shame.
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The gleeful peace on Neville's face was almost enough to convince us this was the right move for beloved DI. Almost. Accept that his last-minute declaration of love completely undermines his earlier triumph (a brave moment full of self-love and respect).
It's fair to say Florence has put Neville through the emotional wringer. Though there was no malice or gameplay in her respectful honesty when she rebuffed his affections in season 11, it still stung.
Despite trying to get over her, Neville has undoubtedly worn his arm out carrying that torch for her, so when she finally confesses her feelings for him this season it should have been a moment of pure euphoria.
Sadly it was chiller than the latest Saint Marie cold body thanks to the thread of selfishness that ran through Florence's words.
With little time to go before Neville planned to embark on his brave, solo travelling adventure, Florence admits she thought about him during her absence.
She confesses that she wants to spend more time with him, stopping short of actually revealing she has feelings for him.
In place of, 'I want to give this a chance,' she tells Neville "I don't really know what I'm saying, I'm just liking back here with you."
During her non-committal speech you can see the rise, fall, then middling of Neville's hopes. It's almost too unbearable to watch.
She then follows up this tepid display of adjacent-affection by saying: "I can't make any promises," citing that she didn't wish to hurt him like before – but during her 'honest' 'contrary' spell of figuring things out, she expected some sort of enthusiastic response.
Kudos for the transparency, but why should Neville give up his search for a genuine, true connection for this uncertainty? Surely he deserves more, and in knowing this Florence shouldn't have burdened him with her feelings.
Though it was painful not to see the two get the grand-sweeping romantic treatment, we must admit, a tiny part of us gave a fist-pump in solidarity of Neville's gutsy Florence-rejection.
"I'm going to have to respectfully decline," he told Florence with all the effort of someone trying to get their words out while grinding pebbles.
He explains that while he really wants them to have their chance, "I want you to want it as much as I want it, and I don't think you do."
Placing his "self-preservation," ahead of this idealised version of what they have, was a huge leap for Neville. Taking a chance on the unknown instead of the comfort of the familiar is also a huge achievement for the DI who showed up in Saint Marie all those seasons ago and refused to eat anything but chicken and chips – English-style.
His bravery is slightly spoiled by his friends' disappointment in his choice – but since they don't voice it with him during his victorious moment, we let it slide.
However, things go disastrously wrong when Neville is in the back of the taxi, about to embark on his new wanderlust life and he is chased down by his so-called 'friends.'
They all club together to tell him what a mistake he is making.
Though their hearts are in the right place, they steer Neville down the wrong path by getting him to focus on his feelings for Florence (which have never been the issue) but fail to acknowledge her wishy-washy affection towards him.
In the end, they convince him that fear is ruling his decision when actually, turning down Florence is one of the bravest things he's done since coming to Saint Marie.
In any case, it works. One Neville's-greatest-hits montage later, he's convinced that he has slipped into his old risk-adverse habits and heads to the ferry port to meet Florence, who is leaving.
He tells her: "If the unknown is all you have to offer then that's good enough for me," and the rest is history. Neville abandons his travel plans and the two sail away towards a destination of her intention.
It sounds romantic, but it's as lukewarm as their lack of embrace and as tentative her hand pausing slightly before resting on his.
Not quite the final outing deserving of the show's longest-running on-screen detective.
All episodes of Death in Paradise and its spin-off, Beyond Paradise, are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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TV writer, Digital Spy Janet completed her Masters degree in Magazine Journalism in 2013 and has continued to grow professionally within the industry ever since. For six years she honed her analytical reviewing skills at the Good Housekeeping institute eventually becoming Acting Head of Food testing. She also freelanced in the field of film and TV journalism from 2013-2020, when she interviewed A-List stars such as Samuel L Jackson, Colin Firth and Scarlett Johansson. In 2021 she joined Digital Spy as TV writer where she gets to delve into more of what she loves, watching copious amounts of telly all in the name of work. Since taking on the role she has conducted red carpet interviews with the cast of Bridgerton, covered the BAFTAs and been interviewed by BBC Radio and London Live. In her spare time she also moonlights as a published author, the book Gothic Angel.
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