When it comes to character deaths, there are some that we immediately expect to happen. That’s especially the case with book adaptations, because we know the deaths happen there. However, Down Cemetery Road season 1 episode 7 brought us a death that doesn’t happen in the books.
At the end of the episode, Sarah and Dinah believe that they are alone. While they didn’t see it happen, Sarah knows that Downey had to die, considering Amos remained a threat. She also saw Zoe rushing across the landmine-filled beach as Amos shot at her, leading to the belief that Zoe is dead, too.
All we know for now is that Downey is dead, killed by Amos in a dramatic and heartbreaking way. Down Cemetery Road made a change from the books, and when it comes to TV, it was a needed sacrifice.
Down Cemetery Road needed the dramatic finish
Mick Herron told TV Insider that he understands why the show changed his storyline for the TV, and it’s all due to the way a TV show needs to be a little more dramatic than a novel. There needs to be these climactic moments, especially when it comes to the penultimate episode, and that meant Amos killing Downey.
It’s not like there was going to be hope for Downey. In the novel, he is dying, suffering from the same condition that he’s had from the beginning. In the TV series, he’s given a dramatic sendoff that sees him make a sacrifice for a child who may or may not be his.
Throughout the show, Downey’s arc was building to the death. Nathan Stewart-Jarrett was prepared for that death, considering the way the book plays out, and he shared that it made sense as there is hope for Dinah’s survival in Sarah’s hands, and so he’s met his “purpose.”
“I felt like Dinah being safe is, Downey is now allowed to die,” explains Nathan Stewart-Jarrett. “It didn’t matter what Amos said. As long as he’s talking, Dinah is safe. As long as he’s with Downey, Dinah is safe. … It’s a very heroic moment. He knows that he’s going to die. The whole point is that he loses and that she wins.”
There is a sense of closure for Downey
Not only does Downey’s death make the show more dramatic, but it is also better in terms of closure. In the novel, he’s left just suffering. We all know there isn’t any hope for him, and so, his fate is just left there.
On Down Cemetery Road, there is the closure that we need as an audience. While it’s not the closure that we would like, there’s a sense of peace that comes for a man who has been suffering from a neurological condition due to his time in the military.
Now Sarah has Dinah, and the two made it to the dingy they needed to so they could get away from Amos. The question is whether Zoe is dead or not after those moments on the beach!
Down Cemetery Road airs on Wednesdays on Apple TV.
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