While the killer's identity in Netflix's Detective Forst was revealed to the audience, the ending left the titular detective with the blame.
Based on the book series Forst by Polish author Remigiusz Mróz, the first season of Detective Forst follows Detective Wiktor Forst's pursuit of a serial killer known as the Beast of Giewont with the help of journalist Olga Szrebskaasda. As they hunt the murderer down, they discover a decades-long conspiracy of revenge.
Despite discovering the serial killer's identity and how Forst's past is tied to him, audiences were left with major questions at the end of the season. Specifically, questions about the fate of certain characters, the elaborate plan set in place by the Beast of Giewont, and their motive for tormenting Forst.
Who is the Beast of Giewont?
In Episode 4 of Netflix's Detective Forst, Forst and Olga finally come face to face with the Beast of Giewont, whose real name is Iwo Elijah.
Seemingly under the control of Halina Sznajdermans, Iwo quickly disposes of her with Forst's gun and ties him to the scene of the crime.
After being brought in for questioning and now becoming the only prime suspect in the murders, Forst, in a last-ditch effort to clear his name, has a street artist make a composite sketch of Iwo and sends it to Inspector Edmund Osica.
Unfortunately, in the penultimate episode and just before a press conference about the murders, Prosecutor Dominika Wadryś Hansen sees the sketch first and realizes with horror that the Beast of Giewont is none other than her husband, Gjord Hansen.
What Was Gjord's Motive?
Gjord Hansen was originally an orphan named Iwo Elijah alongside Forst, who was under the care of Halina, the director of their orphanage. One day, as children, they decided to steal something of hers, a coin necklace.
Iwo took all the blame, which labeled him a thief and barred him from being adopted alongside Wiktor. Since then, he has harbored intense anger towards Forst for his betrayal and wants nothing more than to ruin his life.
While Halina saw an opportunity to mold Iwo into a tool of vengeance, he saw it as a chance at revenge and used his killing of Halina's enemies to lure in Forst. Once he had disposed of Halina, he set about framing Forst not only the murders of the Beast of Giewont but also those of Agata, Staszek, and Nina.
What Happened to Detective Forst in the Ending?
After failing to save Edmund Osica's daughter, Agata, from Iwo and fighting him nearly to the death, Detective Forst's ending sees the show's titular character rush back to Nina's home to see if Olga is safe. It is not until he notices a bloody coin on Olga's pillow that he assumes that she has become another of Gjord's victims.
Gjord, meanwhile, is unconscious in the backseat of a car being driven by Olga, who seems completely unharmed. Does this mean she's been working with Gjord the whole time? It'd certainly make her meeting with Forst in the first episode make more sense, especially how she knew a body was on top of the mountain.
The season ends with Forst sitting dejected, perhaps realizing Olga's betrayal, next to Nina's dead body, possibly killed by Olga since Gjord was still injured and unconscious in her car. The police are seen arriving in droves outside the house, but audiences don't know whether Forst waited to be arrested out of guilt for his failure or slipped away to continue his pursuit of Gjord and Olga.
Detective Forst is now streaming on Netflix.
