Rectify (2013) Season 1
Daniel Holden must put his life back together after serving 19 years on Georgia’s Death Row before DNA evidence calls his conviction into question.
My thoughts: Slow-moving laconic character drama.
3/5
Animal Kingdom (2016 – 2022) Season 1
Centers on a Southern California family, whose excessive lifestyle is fueled by their criminal activities.
My thoughts: A fine, L.A.-centered Ma Barker riff that feels a little bit too tepid and “networky” at times.
3/5
Narcos (2015 – 2017) Season 1
A chronicled look at the criminal exploits of Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar, as well as the many other drug kingpins who plagued the country through the years.
My thoughts: An interesting and informative dramatization of true events, but none of the peripheral characters are particularly interesting. Given the hype, I was expecting better.
3/5
Before We Die (2021 – ) Season 1
Detective Hannah Laing becomes deeply conflicted when she discovers her son is playing a crucial role as an undercover informant in the investigation of a brutal murder.
My thoughts: Dry. Perfunctory. Unremarkable.
DNF
Forhoret/Face to Face (2019 – 2023) Season 1
Bjørn investigates the killing of his daughter. People around him believe she might have committed suicide, but he doesn’t accept that. The stakes and suspense rise as Bjørn inches closer to the truth.
My thoughts: An interesting format but the show grows increasingly ridiculous as the big investigative breaks just fall into our protagonist’s lap. The coincidental connections between our various players also feels a little absurd after a while.
2.5/5
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One thing I’ve noted about many of these shows that you’ve reviewed is how even many of the good ones seem to deteriorate in quality over time. I’ve even noticed when watching movies that are good or even really good, I’ve been let down by the ending. Endings are hard, I guess. Maybe part of it is when creators don’t have a good map for where their characters are going and where they want to end up? Is creating a successful resolution to a story particularly difficult versus the rest of the process? I dunno.
Strongly agree. There were a few shows that I revisited for this Crime Binge that just haven’t held up.
I don’t know if you’ve considered watching “Midsomer Murders”. It’s a long running British murder mystery/police procedural series. I’m not suggesting watching all 22 seasons but you could pick it up when the current lead took over from the outgoing lead in season 14 or when the current sidekicks started in season 18. Having lived in a small English village I can 100% assure you that this is exactly what it’s like (except for the murders).
I have so many shows on my watch-list that I’m trying to focus on post-2000 series.