Dept. Q Episode 1 recap: DCI Morck returns to work, while Salim chooses the new squad’s first cold case

British crime thriller Dept. Q premiered on Netflix in May 2025 and quickly became one of the streaming platform's popular thriller series. Based on Jussi Adler-Olsen’s book series, the show tells the story of Detective Carl Morck and his unusual team, who come together to solve high-profile cold cases.

Carl returns to work after a shooting incident and is made the head of a new department by his superior, Chief Superintendent Moira Jacobson. He is joined by Akram Salim, who works in IT but has exceptional detective skills that he developed while living in Syria.

Their first case is about the disappearance of Prosecutor Merritt Lingard four years ago. In the present, where Salim suggests taking Merritt’s case, the episode moves back and forth to depict Merritt’s life days before her disappearance.

Here’s what happened in the premiere episode of Dept. Q.

Disclaimer: The article contains spoilers. Reader discretion is advised.

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Dept. Q Episode 1 recap: DCI Morck and Hardy are shot

At the beginning of Episode 1 of Dept. Q, we see DCI Carl Morck and his partner, James Hardy, reach a house to investigate a murder. They meet Constable Anderson, to whom Carl seems to be a little too rude. As Anderson informs them that he found the door open while the duo investigates around the room where the body of the stabbed man was, Carl harshly asks him if he has checked everything, including windows and other rooms.

Anderson tells him that he was waiting for backup to arrive, to which Carl reprimands him for not learning anything in his three months of work as a patrol officer. As Anderson leaves to check the other rooms, a man wearing a Balaclava shoots him dead and approaches Carl and James, shooting them both.

This leaves James paralysed while Carl suffers from PTSD.

Also Read: Dept. Q cast and character guide: Who plays whom in Netflix's new series

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Dept. Q Episode 1 recap: Carl becomes the head of the new cold case investigative department

After the traumatic incident that took place at the beginning of the episode, Carl comes back to his police work after four months. He is suffering from PTSD but is too uptight to share this with his therapist, Dr Rachel Irving, in his mandatory post-shooting therapy sessions.

While at work, he is given the task of leading a new investigative squad by Moira Jacobson, the chief superintendent. Carl is permitted to use the basement as the office of the new department that would investigate high-profile cold cases. Akram Salim, an IT professional with a mysterious past, is assigned to Carl to manage the administrative work.

However, due to his mysterious working background in his native country, Syria, Salim was more than equipped to help Carl in the cold cases, and picked up the case of Merritt Lingard, as he thinks she is still alive. Carl dismisses his attempt and asks him to concentrate on just organising the case files.

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Dept. Q Episode 1 recap: Merritt Lingard is still alive

While depicting the present day and life of DCI Carl Morck, the premiere episode of Dept. Q also switches to a different time, before Merritt’s disappearance. It is shown that she was fighting a case to convict Graham Finch, a businessman. However, she failed as the jury did not find him guilty, and he walked free.

Merritt is frustrated, and we learn that she had been receiving anonymous death threats. Merritt lives with her brother, William, who suffers from a neurological condition, which left him nonverbal. The brother sister duo was on the ferry when she received another death threat, and chucked her phone into the water.

William tried to imitate her and threw his hat, and when he tried to retrieve it, Merritt stopped him, which made the duo struggle, and William, out of irritation, slapped his sister. She is last seen walking away from William.

In the present day, Merritt is shown to be alive and held captive in a hyperbaric chamber, in an unknown location, proving that Salim was right.

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Also Read: Netflix orders Dept. Q Season 2 after strong debut, with key cast returning