Detective series are doing really well these days, and while I’m not a fan of true crime, a really good crime show can easily keep me glued to the TV for several seasons. I’ve collected 3 series where you can’t immediately tell who the killer is from the get-go, and not only are there strong and well-developed female characters, but some LGBTQ+ themes are also included in the story.
Under the Bridge
Lily Gladstone – one of the most promising nominees of this year’s Oscars, and who could have been the first Native American actress to win the award – plays one of the main characters in the series, and frankly, she was the selling point. The drama is set in a small Canadian town. This is where the writer Rebecca (Riley Keough) returns to gather material for the story of a missing Indian girl. The clues lead to the girls living in the local orphanage, but Rebecca, a writer, and the official investigation often don’t come up with the same results. Cam (Lily Gladstone), the lead investigator at the police station, is forced to team up with Rebecca soon enough, and it is revealed that the two women knew each other relatively well as teenagers. Throughout the investigation, they work together almost constantly employing the good cop-bad cop routine to piece the puzzle of Reena’s disappearance together.
The series plays very well on the fact that we don’t know more than the two detectives, in the second episode we are as blind as the police or as Rebecca, and although we see all the characters, it is only in the last episodes that the full story is revealed. The cast is well put together, the nostalgia of the 90s is not overpowering, it is just present enough to frame the story. Because of the depth of the story, you may not want to binge the whole thing in one sitting on AmazonPrime, but if you can deal with it, well, it’s best to stay put in this heat anyway.
Bodkin
There are periods in my life when I overdo American content, so sometimes it’s nice to watch a non-US show I find easier to relate to. That’s why I chose Bodkin, and also because I’ve really enjoyed watching Irish series since Derry Girls and Bad Sisters. Bodkin is a backwater Irish village. This is where Dove (Siobhan Cullen), who has been working in London as an investigative journalist with Gilbert (Will Forte), an American true crime podcaster, is exiled. The duo is joined by Emmy (Robyn Cara), a jack-of-all-trades who starts out as a sort of secretary at the beginning of the story. The team, led by Gilbert, is supposed to produce a podcast about a disappearance case from years before the beginning of the story, but the investigation points towards a much more extensive crime. The totally different personalities of the main characters are one of the driving forces of the story, as well as the basis of the humour of the series. The more we learn about the village and the crime, the more bizarre the story becomes, and the more unreasonably the main characters behave. The overall European feel of the series and the green Irish countryside are so refreshing that it’s easy to binge the whole thing on a regular Sunday afternoon on Netflix.
Deadloch
This Australian series on AmazonPrime was also put on my radar by my quest for America-free content consumption. Lesbian couples move into the small rural town of Deadloch. They integrate into the life of the town, some working in the police force, some opening restaurants. The story of the series, which labels itself a feminist noir, kicks off with a corpse found on the beach, an overzealous cop and a burnt-out detective. The corpses become more and more abundant, the mystery becomes more complicated, the relationships between the characters paint an increasingly interesting picture, and all of this is wonderfully matched by the dysfunctionality of the male characters. Kate Box, who plays the lead character Dulcie, made a big splash in lesbian circles with Wentworth back in 2020. This story is the least mysterious of the three, but the rest of the world-building makes up wonderfully for the shortcomings of the crime thriller aspect, and there will be a second season!
