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Well worth a watch. People saying the acting is poor are speaking too broadly. Most performances are good, except the cop's son who is not great. Anton Lesser is excellent as the retired bent cop; but then he is always good. It is a good story, some complexity to the characters, nobody is one dimensional. I don't really understand the really low raters. Not sure why Anton Lesser does not even feature in the IMDB cast list as he is the best thing in it. I didn't feel the accents were forced, I don't think any of the actors were using anything but their normal speaking voices. Make your own mind up.

The first 4 episodes were excellent, great production and acting all round. It wasn't anything new that hasn't been on before, hints of Line of Duty & Happy Valley storylines being woven in.

Also great to see Leeds having a huge part of the story, and about time West Yorkshire again got some screen time.

It's just the ending. I felt heavily let down as it built up to the final 10 minutes, as you kind of knew how it was going to wrap up. It could have gone many ways, but chose what now feels like an easy way out. It's worth a watch, only 5 episodes.

It just didn't get the ending it deserved in my opinion.

Good cop gone bad variation. A good cast, especially the lead roles. Andrew Buchan (Broadchurch) is particularly excellent in his role as drug gang leader. Not seen much of Leila Farzad but she does well as the detective Lou Slack who is playing both sides. Also nice to see Anton Lesser (Endeavour) in a different kind of role.

It all starts off a bit on the slow side but picks up in episode 2. This is not a shoot em up cop drama but more of a slow slide into a moral dilemma. The deeper detective Slack slides into the vortex of corrupt cop the tenser it gets.

My only gripe with the programme is that, for me, it should have ended at episode 4.

That, to my mind, would have been a perfect and more realistic, ending.

Episode 5 tried too hard to tie up loose ends and ended up unnecessary and unrealistic.

That said, it was definitely worth a watch.

Ignore the unfair critics who have rubbished this programme.

This was good. For the first four episodes. Great to see Leeds, good acting by Leila Farzad and Andrew Buchan. Interesting take on the police drama. After the first four good episodes, we were excited to see how it ended. Only to find a completely implausible ending, which totally ruined our enjoyment of the previous episodes. It would have been better if we'd just watched 1-4 and it had ended there, with Lou never quite sure whether they would come for her for the rest of her life. That would have been believable. The conclusion provided by episode 5 was no. Disappointed and felt a bit cheated.

Whilst I found this so engrossing that I binge watched all episodes (finishing at 5am). I have to say that the ending was amateurish, sentimental and totally unbelievable. I won't provide details of this let down because I was so engrossed until then that I would not wish to spoil it for others. MYOMU. Now.... I've actually said all I have to say but apparently in order to post any review I am supposed to write a minimum of 600 (superfluous?) characters! Why? Is there no merit in brevity and clarity over indulgent pomposity? (Answers appreciated but not required)😊.....OMG!!! I thought I had attained the minimum requirement already....but apparently not. Now trying again. Thank you for your patience in matching my persistence!🤣

The list of VERY GOOD British police crime thriller series that I have seen is really long, unfortunately I will not add this one to that list.

Leila Farzad has the right appearance to portray Lou. She does a good acting job, one moment she is unapproachable and self-confident, but later maybe the viewer also sees the doubt and moral conflict shine through. I didn't saw and felt that at all, for me she is simply a terrible woman, selfish as hell. Let's be honest, come on!, will she continue to be corrupt or make a new beginning after an incident involving a loved one? There's no way you'd dance with the devil if you had a family to protect.

By the way, I loved all the actors.

In general I enjoy the series, but it also left me a little dissatisfied, and I would have loved a more realistic and rougher ending, something more creative and raw, simply what they deserve. Behind the plot I think there is a psychological study, can people change? In this specific case I would say NO.

To finish, I recommend you see it. The dialogues and tension are palpable, I must admit that at times it left me on the edge of the couch. Despite its many flaws.

The only thing wrong with Better is that the BBC pitched it as "the new Happy Valley". And because they did, the show got a weird audience and critical reception.

Line of Duty is incredible, right? But if someone promised you Happy Valley and you sat down to watch Line of Duty, I don't think you'd like it much. That's what's happening here.

This isn't Line of Duty. It isn't Happy Valley. Better is in a category of its own, and it stands as tall as either of those shows do.

Leila Farzad is astonishing, like she is in everything. But this is a brilliantly written game of chess that has you emotionally invested in all the pieces on the board.

You haven't seen this character arc in a cop show, and you haven't seen this story in a drama before.

(Also, I don't know how you even begin to write a second season after that ending, but my god do I want to see it.)

As mentioned by quite a few reviewers it WAY better to watch this until the end of episode 4 and then just stop. It's almost as if it was written to end at 4, and 5 is when the interns took over and thought they'd write an alternate ending.

Ending at episode 4 I give it a 9 out of 10. Adding the interns episode I have to water it down to a 7, so just don't watch it.

I don't want a follow up season carrying on from where it left off. However another season where they go back in time to where when Col and Lou first met would be great. It should also include Lou's policeman father and Lou's friend the bent cop Vernon.

If it wasn't for the ending I'd score this at a 7, I finished the entire thing in just two days and had very high hopes.

Unfortunately the ending is bad, REALLY bad. There is no world in which this would happen... I've no idea what the writers were thinking.

It does well to keep you watching though and all be it until the very last scene it kept me interested and wanting more.

Anton Lesser was my favourite character by miles, Leila Farzad not so much, her character seems forced. A few elements throughout are silly and unrealistic but this goes for 90% of TV.

Give it a watch and make your own mind up.

I really enjoyed this, started thinking usual Line of Duty type show was going to happen but no.

Showed the vulnerable side of both police and criminals, it makes you sort of understand the circumstances of people that commit crimes and that the police do live in the environment they are trying to control and the difficulties that come with it.

The relationship between the leads worked well, they had obvious chemistry.

The story with old Marley was actually nice in the end, in a sad way.

Wish this had been an episode or two longer.

I hope they do another series, see what the fallout is from the end.

Noteworthy for performance of Leila Farzad, not much else. Twist on cop vs criminal. Bad ending. 6.3, if you like the Brit born Iranian actress. 5.6 if you dont. Or pass. Complete washout halfway through last episode. But up until then, it's a solid 6.9. If you like, Leila Farzad.

"Just like every cop's a criminal, and all the sinners saints. My friends just call me..." And I was so hopeful. May I suggest an obscure crime drama, on Amazon books, "North of Likely" which delivers a solid ending to the cop trying to fight his way back to the right side theme.

But, as BBC goes, this experiment may have been bogged down in its own need to appease the diversity parade and be PC enough for the social censors. Or, the writers can't write an ending.

Feels like it could go longer. But the lukewarm response, I imagine, based upon the aforementioned, may preclude that.

DI Lou Slack is a bent cop who decides she can be 'better' after her son nearly dies and she re-evaluates her choices.

I found the storyline far-fetched from the off, both leads were unconvincing, DI Lou Slack being paid off by local drug baron, Col McHugh, (who had all the menace of a school dinner lady). DI Slack spent more time with McHugh than she did at work or with her family, why would they even meet face to face in public?

Production values were OK, the cast was nothing special, score was run of the mill, the editing was a bit cheesy at times especially with her flashbacks, there was nothing that stood out especially.

A disappointment all round I'm afraid. If you want to watch a great show about dirty cops seek out the French show 'Spiral' its brilliant.

The acting is ok, some of it obviously scripted, especially from the lead actress in episode 5. I agree with another reviewer about the series being able to be wrapped up in 4 episodes not 6. It did feel like it dragged out a bit.

Col's accident is FANTASTIC. I am from Northern Ireland and I have never heard anyone nail the accent like he has. There is barely a single word uttered that isn't 100% authentic 'norn Irish' It is hard accent to emulate and he smashed it. So impressed.

The overall concept of the series is very guys but the execution is mediocre and a bit lukewarm. The acting often seems forced and the husband and wife are totally unbelievable as a couple.

First episode was difficult, I made it through and by second episode it seemed they might salvage it.

The plot was more than a bit fantastical, but with sophisticated dialogue and character development, and, good acting, that is tolerable and sometimes irrelevant to me.

This is the second British series I've recently watched (the other was Happy Valley) that seems to celebrate duplicity. I neither expect, nor do I want, all characters to be true and upstanding, etc., etc. I don't even care if there is not one character I find appealing.

But making heroines out of self-centered bullies is annoying and cheap. And that is at its best, because beyond that, it is boring.

#better @bbciplayer #drama #tense #betrayal #police #crime #crimelord #thriller #mystery - 5 episodes of about 1 hour each - we binge watched this - it's about apolice detective who has been best friends with a crime lord for over 20 years and has a moral awakening after an accident to her son and has to decide where she wants to go on - trusted police detective or corrupt detective paid by a ruthless crime lord ! The first episode was a bit over the place but we stuck with it - pleased that we did - the acting wasn't Shakespeare and finely polished but then it's a tv drama series so you sort of accept it - good story and surprised at the ending ! The guy that is the mani male character had a good Irish accent and did trellis it was the one who played in #broadchurch - you will hate the crime family though and it disgusts me that there are families like this who think and sometimes are above the law ! @leila_farzad_official @_andrew_buchan_ @secook90 @sir_hairahcaz @olivianakintu @celspellman @carolinstoltz @anthonylewis._

Did she ever do a days work?

Good series but plot holes all over the place. And the script kept twisting making the characters act completely different from episode to episode. Poor Ceri didn't know if he was coming or going.

But there was some rough justice and gritty plot lines. Makes you realise there is an underworld out there and if you get caught on the wrong side your life can get dictated and controlled by it - no easy options.

The final scene was UK police all over.

If I was watching this again I would focus on the non main characters because they are the ones that played their parts so well and didn't have to flip flop.

The only thing 'Better' about this rubbish would be in the phrase 'Must Do Very Much Better'. The storyline is ludicrous and the acting weak, The characters are utterly unbelievable and the dialogue ridiculous. That a D. I. can have such a friendship with a major villain and hide it from her colleagues and superiors, while meeting the villain and his employees in car parks and elsewhere is about as likely as my granny being on the next moon-shot.

How on earth can the BBC go from the brilliance of 'Happy Valley' to tripe like this ? Dull, boring, ridiculous, moronic, idiotic - do I need to say more ?

After her son almost dies Detective Inspector Lou Stack is tired of living in the pocket of drug dealer and villain Col McHugh, she chooses to leave but she is very much made aware that leaving is not an option.

I started watching it live, and didn't stick with it, I found episode one hard to get into, I took the advice of a friend of mine and gave it another go, I'm glad I did.

Episode one is a little hard to get into, it seems to skip any introduction or setting scenes, it instead jumps straight into the action, once it settles it's good, it's very good, episode four is fantastic.

There are a few scenes that are hard to swallow, the moment in the car wash for example, why on Earth did Lou feel it was safe to be seen out in public with such a known villain, if you can look past a few silly moments, you'll find it a rewarding watch.

Leila Farzad and Andrew Buchan are both very strong in their respective roles, I thought Anton Lesser and Zak Ford Williams were the standouts I thought.

I hope The BBC picks up another series of this, more Lou Stack please.

8/10.

The lead actress is really bad, the suspense is lacking and the storyline is boring.

Where are all the ingredients that make similar shows good?

NO acting that draws you in NO music to build suspense NO script to keep you watching NO sub plots that make sense NO action instead of endless conversations

They didn't build any character enough for you to care. The protagonist was one dimensional with no personality and Col was not shown to be the criminal mastermind he was supposed to be. The son was just "there", as was the dad. Nothing was planned out to keep you watching. Waste of time and careers might even suffer with how bad this is!

So yes, if you're looking for a gritty cop drama, this probably isn't the show for you. You can skip it and go watch something else (maybe The Gold?)

Sure, Better does have cop-drama stuff in it, but it's largely superficial -- the substance here is all about the power of family bonds to reform bad behaviour, which might be considered by some to be a bit dry and boring -- this is definitely not the show for them.

The protagonist could have been a Saul-style lawyer, a drug dealer -- honestly that part of the story doesn't matter that much. There's a 'devil' in the form of the antagonist with whom she's made a 'bargain' she must get out of. That's the plot in a nutshell.

But, Better has dressed that plot up in a reasonably attractive fashion, and so if you'd like to join our protagonist on her journey of redemption then you're more than welcome to come along!

Rated 9/10 for what it is. Which is not a cop drama.

I read that the BBC were calling this the next happy valley, it doesn't come remotely close. I was really looking forward to this as the BBC have come out with some absolutely brilliant dramas over the years.

Is it worth watching? Yes, just don't bother with the final episode.

The ending is unbelievable, unrealistic and plainly stupid. There's also a good few ridiculous parts throughout.

I think a child could have concluded this story in a better way.

The acting is okay, all be it unrealistic and the characters hard to believe at best. The story had so much potential that has quite simply been thrown down the toilet.

What a waste of time.