The Bridge - America

Matthew Lilliard makes this series worth watching. Not since the character Jeff Spiccoli has there been a more hilarious druggie. Aside from the tons of humor created by Lilliard, the story itself is riveting and gives a close-up look at Mexican cartels and American corruption. The many death scenes are not for the weak-minded, reminding one of Criminal Minds (but not as weird).

First of all it's not possible for me to compare this series to its original Danish version because I didn't see it. Most of the time the original versions are better but honestly for this one I don't really care because this show is good enough for me to be well entertained. And I am sure that the Danish/Swedish conflict could not be compared to the American/Mexican conflict. And that's just the point that makes this series highly enjoyable. The whole connection that two different detectives from different countries have is a delight to watch. Diane Kruger (as detective Sonya Cross) puts down a good performance playing her character with Asperger Syndrome. Demian Bichir (as detective Marco Ruiz) is perfect in his role, trying to keep his integrity as much as possible in an environment where corruption rules. The plot has enough twists to keep you intrigued. A good show for those who like crimes and mysteries.

Geez. Most people clearly have no clue what people on the autism spectrum are like. Sonia cross has what is formerly known as aspergers-now it's reclassified as a form of ASD-autism spectrum disorder. As someone who deals with this, I can say that Diane's performance is SPOT on. The first episode may have been a little shaky-but after that it's all good. I also want to point out that further in the series you do see her character get emotional-and I've seen people complain about that, because they claim it's "innacurate". It's not. People on the spectrum are prone to meltdowns and sometimes innapropriate emotional reactions. This can easily happen when it's something that's emotionally connected to them. Diane does a great job with this role.

While in the original TV series Sofia Helin gives an outstanding, sometimes funny, always compelling portrait of a police detective challenged with Asperger syndrome, her US counterpart takes out most of the fun by making her personality quite unbelievable.

The same goes for Demian Bichir. His complex character of the Danish Cop in personal troubles becomes the caricature of Latino clichés similar to the perception the US has about their southern neighbor as a whole.

The crisp design of this former superb Scandinavian TV series turns into a the the kind of blunt, boring, mediocre, dark mash of cop series that swamp TV sets world wide.

If you have the possibility, see the superb original to appreciate what TV can do.

Although it's an acquired taste, any fan of AMC's "The Killing" will quickly pick up on the parallels in this unusual murder mystery. It features two oddly paired police detectives, one from the El Paso police and another from Ciudad Juarez. As in the killing, the female detective is dedicated but personally challenged by an imbalanced personality and a singular drive to follow her leads to the bitter end. Unlike other viewers, I like Diane Kruger in the role and think we're only seeing the beginning of her personality development: I do believe she is an Asperger's sufferer and captures the traits of one afflicted with this quite well. There are many high-functioning and accomplished individuals with these symptoms all around the country, and in many ways, her focus on the details and minutiae of this case will help rather than hinder her along the way.

As her mismatched Mexican partner in the investigation, Demian Bechir possesses all the odd charm of his counterpart in "The Killing," the streetwise and pragmatic Detective Holder.

I've never seen a TV program that focuses on a sensitive border issue or the tragedy of so many murdered girls in Juarez, so I applaud FX for giving us something truly original. "The Killing" is the only thing remotely comparable to it, and I actually like the same type of slow unraveling of a gripping mystery we're being drawn into. I'm so weary of the CSI and Law and Order one-hour quick kill and wrap-up compacted into one hour of predictable procedural. I'll definitely keep watching!