Very well executed

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

I can suspend disbelief for any movie to a point. But a movie that is supposed to represent gritty police work can push me only so far. Why would a cop left to guard a witness go into a panic when she realized an intruder was in another room? Do they really carry no weapons at all?? I am neglecting to mention that she had just been doing cocaine in the bathroom. All she had for defense was a phone?? Really, it was all just too much to take. It was like the Keystone Kops but with British accents. And that was only one of the events I found unbelievable. Performances were fine. Just terrible writing.

A few reviewers here have rated this as a 1 which I really don't understand. The performances from the actors are first rate and the direction is superb for a TV series. If you compare it with Luther which, don't get me wrong, is wonderful, it's far more believable and better acted. Alright, it has the annoying tendency of all British cop shows to have a "damaged" police officer as the main protagonist, and yes, the procedures aren't exactly accurate, but this is a TV series, not a documentary. If it followed a police officer's role to the letter it would be pretty damn boring. If you want to see something like that then the nearest you'll get to it is the excellent Scott and Baily. Everybody in this show shines. It even has the superb Eddie Marsen in it! I suspect that followers of the books will be a little miffed but as I haven't read the books I couldn't give a monkey's. It might be worth bearing in mind that a book and a TV series are two different things. As for me, I'm gutted they decided not to make more series.

I have to say this about this series. First, I'm glad it didn't continue. Secondly, if the police in Britain are this inept and incompetent, crime is bound to soar. How any self-respecting writer or producer could sketch out this storyline is beyond me. Thorne has no more business being the head of a crime unit than the man in the moon and the portrayal is an insult to the police of that country. Ms. Oh's character should have gotten a slap in the face and boot in her butt, but apparently continued on. I couldn't stand to watch this indigestible pap any longer than the scene in the car. I"m not sure why British crime series seem to take such miserably incompetent characters as realistic. Some idea that flawed characters acting out make good television? Wouldn't be too off the base except for the fact I can not in my mind picture any self-respecting police force putting up with these losers. Is this supposed to be realistic? And don't get me wrong, much American television is simply too perfect, but somewhere there has to be a meeting ground. This obviously wasn't it. "Rosemary & Thyme" "Broadchurch" are far better examples of good television.

Let's first ignore the fact that you have flashbacks from a suspect, and you can't determine if the suspect is really guilty of murder or just covering up for some buddy from his childhood. The chief character is detective constable Thorne who operates on the basis of instincts and is always arguing with his obnoxious, naturally stupid superiors.Then there are his two subordinates, of which one is a an Asian woman who is a cocaine addict who does lines every chance she gets. The other subordinate is an African-Brit and when they have a free half-hour in the middle of the night, they have a go at some sex. After the sex, he then goes to the bathroom where he finds her doing lines and her response is, "Don't you knock before opening a bathroom door?" That's the end of that scene.Later that evening she is supposed to be guarding the key witness, who might be a killer (since no one has established clear evidence, but he confesses to killings presumably because he wants protection from his buddy from 10 years ago who might be the killer of women.) She sends another cop who is to help her guard the suspect for coffee, and while he's gone, she ducks into the bathroom for some more coke. She then hears noises coming from the bedroom and is terrified. Since she's not a judo expert, she tries to escape through a window or door, neither of which will open, and whispers into a cellphone for help which does arrive.Of course, this being Britain, even cops protecting someone from a killer don't carry guns. I guess that, in the UK, when a killer points a gun at a cop, he or she is supposed to do a flying tackle and hope that the criminal drops the gun. At this point, I couldn't stand the stupidity and confusion any longer and shut it off.