The Bridge

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.

SPOILER: Being intimately familiar with Asperger Syndrome (AS), I think it would be extremely difficult for an actor to play. Kruger did a reasonably good job in the first episode and I think that's actually why some people were turned off by her performance; AS is often characterized by the flat affect that she is exhibiting and it doesn't make for the kind of dynamic character that people are usually drawn to.

This show should spark a lot of discussion and raise awareness of AS. The plot piqued my interest and I'll definitely continue to watch.

(Note to director: Shot of victim's eyes fading into headlights was cool!)

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).

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!

A woman's body is found on the bridge between El Paso and Juarez on top of the border. Sonya Cross (Diane Kruger) is a cop from the American side and Marco Ruiz (Demian Bichir) is from the Mexican side. They are forced to work together. Lieutenant Hank Wade (Ted Levine) is her supervising officer. Charlotte Millwright (Annabeth Gish) owns a ranch at the border and finds a tunnel on her property. Daniel Frye (Matthew Lillard) is an American investigative reporter on the edge.

The first season is mostly about one serial killer investigation. It's somewhat boring. I don't buy Kruger's performance. I like Bichir's performance much more. It moved fairly slowly and unconvincingly. Millwright's storyline never really connected. Then the show changed right before the end of season 1. It added quite a few weird characters. The best one is Eleanor Nacht (Franka Potente) as the unemotional disturbed hired killer. The second season is definitely crazier, and weirder. It feels almost random as the show gets wilder. At least, it gets more interesting. With the show changing over the two seasons, it feels unstable and never really settled down. I do find some of it very interesting.