Thorne: Scaredycat

I have to say this about this series. First, I'm glad it didn't continue. Secondly, if the police in Britain are this inept and incompetent, crime is bound to soar. How any self-respecting writer or producer could sketch out this storyline is beyond me. Thorne has no more business being the head of a crime unit than the man in the moon and the portrayal is an insult to the police of that country. Ms. Oh's character should have gotten a slap in the face and boot in her butt, but apparently continued on. I couldn't stand to watch this indigestible pap any longer than the scene in the car. I"m not sure why British crime series seem to take such miserably incompetent characters as realistic. Some idea that flawed characters acting out make good television? Wouldn't be too off the base except for the fact I can not in my mind picture any self-respecting police force putting up with these losers. Is this supposed to be realistic? And don't get me wrong, much American television is simply too perfect, but somewhere there has to be a meeting ground. This obviously wasn't it. "Rosemary & Thyme" "Broadchurch" are far better examples of good television.

The first season wasn't too bad. But the second one was pure garbage. Sandra Oh? Really?? Omg she's terrible. Her accent is horrendous. I agree with the reviewer who complained about Thorne swerving around with the suspect in the back seat. Just ridiculous. I only gave two stars for David Morrissey.

Ummm, some usually good actors in a really BAD movie?

I can suspend disbelief for any movie to a point. But a movie that is supposed to represent gritty police work can push me only so far. Why would a cop left to guard a witness go into a panic when she realized an intruder was in another room? Do they really carry no weapons at all?? I am neglecting to mention that she had just been doing cocaine in the bathroom. All she had for defense was a phone?? Really, it was all just too much to take. It was like the Keystone Kops but with British accents. And that was only one of the events I found unbelievable. Performances were fine. Just terrible writing.

A few reviewers here have rated this as a 1 which I really don't understand. The performances from the actors are first rate and the direction is superb for a TV series. If you compare it with Luther which, don't get me wrong, is wonderful, it's far more believable and better acted. Alright, it has the annoying tendency of all British cop shows to have a "damaged" police officer as the main protagonist, and yes, the procedures aren't exactly accurate, but this is a TV series, not a documentary. If it followed a police officer's role to the letter it would be pretty damn boring. If you want to see something like that then the nearest you'll get to it is the excellent Scott and Baily. Everybody in this show shines. It even has the superb Eddie Marsen in it! I suspect that followers of the books will be a little miffed but as I haven't read the books I couldn't give a monkey's. It might be worth bearing in mind that a book and a TV series are two different things. As for me, I'm gutted they decided not to make more series.