Left of centre sure but suffers from the same flaw of all US cop/detective shows

satedmurray

The good things first, Hayley Atwell, Shawn Ashmore and Daniel Franzese are excellent. The show appears left of centre which makes a change from pretty much all other US cop/detective shows. The cases and forensics are explained so that anyone can follow them and are mostly engaging.

The poor bits next, other than the three above every character is so one dimensional to be nonexistent (the attempts to give them all back story are clichéd - don't know if that is the writers, directors or actors fault but I suspect it was a team effort), one characters sole role seems to be listing the left of centre facts that clearly put off other reviewers (or it could be that they are actual facts and not alternative facts that put them off). There really seems to be no chemistry between the love interests in the show. There are thirteen cases and only one of those wrongly accused isn't a literate, well spoken representative of the American middle class (even the token guy from the street appears totally middle class), which is too say nothing like the vast majority of actual prisoners in the US.

However the real problem with the show is the one shared by all US cop/detective shows. The lawyers and cops in this show break the law, cover up for each other (breaking more laws in the process) and of course get away with it. US shows regularly have the police/lawyers above the law and justified in breaking laws because they always turn out to be right and only ever trample on the rights of the guilty (who as I have learnt from US television have no rights). It is ironic that a show based on the premise of over turning wrongful convictions itself commits so many crimes in doing its job. The show is clearly intended to be left of centre politically but frankly ends up as right wing as any other US cop/detective show.

One star for each of Hayley Atwell, Shawn Ashmore (I admit I like Killjoys) and Daniel Franzese and maybe half a star for Richard Thomas.

score 3/10

satedmurray 8 February 2017

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw3635395/