DS Alison “Tosh” McIntosh does not die in Shetland season 7, but she does have a near death experience that she needs to recover from mentally.
Shetland is BBC One’s hit crime murder mystery series which is defined by the twists and unexpected turns throughout its six hour-long episodes in every season. Season seven, the latest season, did not disappoint in this regard.
Many wondered whether DI Jimmy Perez would be killed off as actor Douglas Henshall has decided to leave the series during the season finale, but even during the season seven run, fans were worried about the fate of DS Alison “Tosh” McIntosh as it seemed that she was also going to die.
But fortunately, Tosh survived her near death experience, though it left her with post-traumatic stress.
Who dies in Shetland season 7?
When Shetland season seven started, it focussed on DI Jimmy Perez and his team investigating the missing case of Connor Cairns, who was an outsider from the island, but was respected and welcomed by the community.
But the missing case quickly changed into a murder investigation after Connor was discovered dead.
But his death was one of three in the season which included his girlfriend Byrd Fleming, and US-eco terrorist, Bill Rogers.
While Connor and Byrd were murdered by the same person, Bill was not, which resulted in the confusion about the identity of the real killer of the season right up until episode six.
Does Tosh die in Shetland season 7?
Season seven, episode three of Shetland ended with a cliffhanger which left viewers on the edge of their seats as they wondered what DS Alison “Tosh” McIntosh’s fate would be.
This is as Tosh discovered the location of the isolated caravan that Connor Cairns used as his studio. Following up on the lead herself, Tosh went to the caravan alone.
However, she did not know that the caravan was booby-trapped with explosives and upon entering the caravan, she triggered one of the explosives.
In the final moments of the episode, fans watched as he attempted to get out of the caravan, but to no avail, and the episode ended with visuals of the caravan exploding.
It took the fourth episode of season seven to confirm that Tosh got away from the danger with just an inch of her life.
While she survived fairly unscathed, except for cuts and bruises, she did experience post-traumatic stress. This played out as she did not talk about the matter but opted instead to throw herself into her work.
While it seemed that Tosh would not recover anytime soon as the more her team pushed her to speak about her ordeal, the more she withdrew.
She eventually started her journey to healing when she opened up to Donnie about her experience and the trauma she faced afterwards, considering that she almost died.
Tosh’s most traumatic experience before season 7
Before her near death experience in season seven of Shetland, DS Alison “Tosh” McIntosh’s most traumatic experience was in season three, episode five.
Ironically, Tosh’s traumatic experience was responsible for some of the most compelling thought pieces in the season.
This is as the episode showed the trauma and fallout that rape victims experience while not showing the actual sexual assault.
This was considered a brilliant motif as it did not sensationalise the actual experience for visual appeal. But it went to show what is less spoken about, which is how the victim deals with the trauma and subsequently heals.
Why Tosh could not die in season 7
Season seven of Shetland was two seasons in the making as Douglas Henshall had made his intention clear to leave the show after filming season five.
BBC One has confirmed that the two subsequent seasons were created to give Henshall a proper send-off to honour his contribution to the success of the series.
As such, if Tosh had died and left the show before Henshall’s fate was revealed in the season, this would have most probably taken away from Henshall’s swan-season. As such, season seven was not the season for the main female lead to die.
Alison O’Donnell uncertain on Tosh’s future
It has been asserted that Shetland will return for an eighth season, which is set to commence filming in spring of 2023.
Furthermore, it is believed that Alison O’Donnell will return to the series for the first season without Douglas Henshall as the lead.
O’Donnell has shared that she is uncertain about how long she will play the beloved character after this fact.
But considering that she is touted as the new lead of the upcoming season as teased by the end of season seven, currently, it is a game of patience and seeing the reception of the new season amongst fans of the series.