Cleddau

Just finished the English language version. Starts well, good cast, typical but credible murder mystery. Sadly many of these shows seem to be written without planning a proper ending so get lost in the woods. After a dozen red herrings it becomes obvious who dunnit. Why? There's only one person left! The ending is utterly ludicrous. Save your time by watching something better. The cast is excellent and do their very best to rescue this turkey from the mess it sinks to. You can actually see mike's in advance what's going to happen next. I feel sorry for the actors who have to wade through this bilge.

We like so much British TV we thought this would be good. It has Erin Rhys and she was great in The Mallorca files and there were other competent actors in the cast. The downfall begins in the "Welsh noir" of the writing and kinda twisty romantic sidestory and the plot of the murders. The colors and scenes in the filming are too dark or somber,, The sidestory in the end becomes the main plot and the solution to the mystery becomes more clouded or uncertain and for these reasons it leaves one very unsatisfied. It is similar to the Welsh series Hinterland or Y GWYLL which also started with promise and interesting quality but just got depressing. We were let down by the ending and twists in the storyline and abruptness of the finish and lack of resolutions.

Like many BBC productions ir started strongly, slowed over the next few episodes and descended into predictsble garbage. Every few minutes I'm describing what's gou g to happen next, and I'm right. It's a boilerplate script cobbled together from every low level cop drama that the BBC has access to. I really wanted it to be good but I'm sorely disappointed. The romantic machinations are so obvious they're laughable. What a waste of licence money. After the first episode i struggled to keep going. Episode six was so corny I've taken a break and can't decide whether to bother with the rest. Porr show BBC.

Brits are pros at this - well-executed police procedurals. You can rely on them to have solid plotting and carefully planned dramatic arcs, capable actors, and three-dimensional characters with realistically grounded problems.

I enjoyed that the pacing wasn't rushed - however, the series could've been an hour shorter. (It annoys me that it appears "compulsory" nowadays to have at least 6 episodes for one story.) There were some unnecessary coincidences, and to be fair, all and all the series wasn't really that groundbreaking.

However, it was still a good binge with lovely Welsh scenery to boot.

This six part Welsh drama is set in the town of Pembroke Dock. When a nurse is found murdered in Cleddau Woods police are reminded of a similar case that occurred some time ago. Since a man is already in gaol for the previous killing it looks as if there is a copycat at work... or they got the wrong man before. DS Rick Sheldon is leading the case but when links to the old case are found DI Ffion Lloyd, who also worked that case, is called in from Cardiff. This leads to some tension as they had been involved with each other before he left her for the woman who is now his wife.

I thought this was a solid addition to the 'Cambri-Noir' genre; I'm certainly glad my newspaper recommended it as I doubt I would have seen it otherwise. The case is interesting as are the main characters. There are a good selection of suspects which should keep the viewer guessing. The relationship issues are perhaps unnecessary but don't detract from the story too much. Pembrokeshire may be an attractive part of these islands but the way this is shot manages to create an ominous feel. The cast does a fine job bringing the characters to life; most obviously Elen Rhys and Richard Harrington who play DI Lloyd and DS Sheldon respectively. As the story approaches its conclusion there are some nice twists and turns. By the end the case may be wrapped up but it feels like we might not have seen the last of these characters. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to viewers who enjoyed shows like 'Hinterland' from a few years ago which also starred Richard Harrington.

These comments are based on watching the series in Welsh with English subtitles as shown on S4C. I believe an English version titled 'The One That Got Away' will air later, presumably on BBC4 if it follows the pattern set by 'Hinterland'.