Touching Evil

OK - Having just finished watching the second episode in the new run, I think I'm justified in saying that this has to be the best series yet. I had absolutely no idea which way the episode was going to go (a common trait with this series), and although you begin to piece things together, you never actually know how they're gonna get to the conclusion, that is assuming that there will be a nice conclusion, and that everyone will get there in one piece.

It's a show which isn't afraid of pulling the punches (stabbings, shootings or any other kind of dispatch method available to a crazed killer), but a strong stomach is required for some parts. However, it is a show which is very intelligent in its storylines, and the characters have enough depth to them to make you wonder how the writers managed to do this alongside a storyline. Plus the realism is enough to send you screaming for the teddybear you've had since you were a baby (I know it's around here somewhere....)

I actually saw part of this series while in London, and about a year later, PBS's Mystery! series picked it up (thank God) and was lucky enough to see all of the "Touching Evil" movies. While I only caught part of it in London, I was immediately compelled by what I saw -- gritty and dark storylines, pushed by characters that were convincing in that you really felt like they witnessed some of the most vicious aspects of human nature. The plots orbit around Robson Green's portrayal of cop Dave Creegan and his serial crime investigation unit as they barrel through London, tracking down serial killers. It's easy enough to say he's the archetypal anti-hero -- he's just gone back on the job from a near-death gunshot wound to the head (he's got a little scar), his family life's gone down the crapper (wife and kids left him), and he really is married to his work. But he's the anti-anti-hero; a Dirty Harry who's a real person. He struggles with his personal life as he tries to be emotionally supportive of his ex-wife's new life (what a concept, eh?), and you can see the pain on his face as he watches his small children with first-hand knowledge of the real evil out in the world. All the "Touching Evil" movies are well-done; each story is unique in its serial killer's modus operandi -- all very macabre. The moody filming adds to the bleakness. The deadpan cold moodiness is very similar to that "X-Files" ennui, and its gritty perspective of policework is very "Prime Suspect". The characters are all believable -- serious, professional, and very real. No ex-Playmates or pretty-boy faces, just compelling acting against some pretty grisly storylines.

The other commenter was correct in saying that it's not a show for the kiddies, and yes, I don't know how PBS managed to broadcast it without the FCC stomping their heads in, but it's a fantastic show, so hurrah for them!

And as for the comparison to "Prime Suspect," it's apples and oranges. "Touching Evil" is more stylized and less procedural. The title is apt, as its focus is less on the evil itself or the process of combating it, and more on the damage it does to those who touch and are touched by it. The protagonists grow harder, more detached, more despairing, and more absorbed by the horrors their occupation revolves around, and the grief of the victims is almost palpable.

If it suffers from the occasional bout of unrealism, I didn't notice. I was too absorbed by the atmosphere and the pathos. It's superbly done and well worth watching. The acting is stupendous, the characters intriguing, and the production brilliant. It's one of the finest crime dramas I've ever seen.

I stumbled over this one on a Sunday afternoon during a top-ot-the-hour channel surf. Readjusting my American viewing apparatus to accept a cop drama that was cut at less than 10 edits a minute, this baby snared me hard. I drooled until I was able to catch the rest of the episodes, and I found myself moving through the day hungering to answer the phone, "D.I Creegan..."

This show rocks in that the viewer is REQUIRED TO WORK to figure out the details of the backstory, relationships that existed before, and to hang onto a storyline that is not concerned with over-explaining; you need to keep up with the pace. This story is real and happening, transferring a realistic impression of copwork from the inside, tempered with just enough "X-Files" in their "Elite Special Ops Force (or whatever it's called)" to be convincing not in the fantastic/horrific, but in The REALITY. No passivity in attention here; snooze=loose.

Think the complex, multi-episodicness of "The Prisoner" with the acting/directing savvy of "NYPD Blue" and the cinematic re-par-te of, say, John Sayles if he were to shoot contemporary London. (The EXT. - NIGHT's are a little too blue for me, but hell, I ain't the shooter...)

"Touching" is pretty dang good, guv-nuh, as hard-boiled as you'll get across the Pond.

Touching Evil is a remarkable mystery mini series. One of the best I've seen. It is gripping and compelling. The main character, Kreegan, is complex, enigmatic and sympathetic. The mini series is composed of 5 seemingly disparate episodes that somehow come together at the end in a way that is unique and satisfying.

It made me eager to see the next installment: Touching Evil 2, which was a disappointment.