BBC viewers have been left 'disappointed' just two episodes into the latest season of hit crime drama Ludwig. The murder mystery show received overwhelming praise when it launched back in 2024, bagging two BAFTA TV nominations. Now it has returned for its second outing, with David Mitchell playing the title character, John 'Ludwig' Taylor.
Wedding murder mystery
In the second episode of season two, the puzzle-designer-turned-detective is invited to solve a strange murder that was witnessed by an entire wedding party. The victim, who was stabbed to death, had some enemies in attendance, which complicated the case. What's more, the investigators suspected the killing took place during the wedding dance and everyone somehow missed it.
With this major case on his plate, Ludwig goes in circles trying to uncover exactly what happened. And after sitting through the episode, viewers at home have complained that the murder mystery wasn't very convincing.
Forensic evidence questioned
Writing on Reddit, one viewer explained: "The deduction in this one felt a bit unnecessary since based on what we saw of the murder there should be an enormous amount of forensic evidence." Someone else agreed, replying: "Seemingly, forensics doesn't exist in this world. I'm finding this season more annoying than the first."
It is revealed in the final minutes of the episode that the murder actually took place before the victim joined the rest of the wedding party. The crime was completely unplanned and the suspect simply ran away after stabbing his victim, meaning there would have been forensic evidence on the deceased.
Mixed fan reaction
Other fans joined in to agree that this episode's mystery didn't live up to other instalments. "This episode wasn't my favourite - purely because the murder of the week wasn't as strong compared to others," posted one. Yet another viewer shared their verdict on the series thus far, stating: "So far somewhat disappointed in this series compared to series 1."
But the show has also received some praise, with an X user raving: "Another fab episode of #Ludwig this week! The writers of this show are totally knocking it out of the park, I love immersing myself in this world weekly. More of these witty slick shows please."
The first three episodes of Ludwig season 2 are streaming now on BBC iPlayer.
