The Killing

Stunning, brilliant, searing and unending emotional commitment from stars Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnaman. Kinnaman has gone on to a little project called Suicide Squad and is leading man material - I like that he is a unorthodox hero that's been dragged thru the gutter, an ex-junkie with a heart of a lion. Enos is the surprise here. Feral, caustic work and she is often unlikable and yet you love her for her humanity. The series has tough police work and tough cases that are unflinching and, at times, stomach churning. Excellent supporting work from Billy Campbell (career best) and Brent Sexton and Michelle Forbes' scenes - particularly early on is literally the best thing you will ever see on television. She and he both deserve Emmys.

The best season is Season 4 and it is heartbreaking and breathtaking at the same time. I will not spoil the ending, but I will say this. I was sobbing as it came to an end hoping and wishing it would not conclude with such adroit and dry-eyed heaviness and I was rewarded. I cheered thru my tears. I cheered for my television. I cheered for writers that found humor and home and love in this mess of a show and that's why I am rating it 10 Stars! The Killing wears it's heart on it's sleeve and beats you senseless and - at the end - gives you the one emotion that truly matters. Watch and you'll know what I mean.

I am not someone who typically watches a lot of the new crime investigation shows, most of them are very similar and repetitious however The Killing was really able to catch and keep my attention from the very beginning. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact this show doesn't jam one case into a 1 hour episode with little to no character development. The Killing focuses on one complex murder case per season with many surprising twists and turns that will have you continuously asking who did it?

Joel Kinnaman plays a very likable, colorful detective who is somewhat new to his life of sobriety. Due to his past drug use he has a very keen eye to what goes on in the streets which has allowed him to become very good good at his job and a very useful player on the Seattle police department, he also has some of the funniest one liners that he deliver without coming of corny. Mireille Enos is his partner who also at times is haunted by her past and when initially watching this show her amazing acting really stood out, she was a great pick and fits the role perfectly.

The 1st season was a breath of fresh air in the crime drama genre, the second season was tasked with a sub par storyline, but season 3 I must say has had the best start of the whole series that has me counting down the days till the next show. I highly recommend The Killing and after almost being canceled I hope this show finally gets the views it deserves!

I had to watch this twice, the two hour premiere that is. I think what struck me most was the calm and slow storytelling. When TV is drowning in unrealistic CSI's et al (where investigators cook up fingerprints to techno music in dimly lit rooms), every time we pass a CSI on channel surfing my husband always says 'don't they ever turn on the freakin lights in that office?' and we both laugh.

This is police work as it really is, plodding, unexciting, procedural, a lot of driving, mixed with a bit of clever intuition, slammin good.

Every character is a suspect, the story can go anywhere, so promising.

If anyone was worried about the state of the serialized TV drama going too far down the f-word/porn route, all arguments that only subscription HBO or Showtime dramas were good bc they used nudity or cursing bc 'that's how real life is'...this is yet another AMC show that shuts them all up. Don't get me wrong, I love my Trueblood and huge fan of Sopranos et al, but this show isn't a 'guilty pleasure', its just a pleasure.

Having watched the Danish original "Forbrydelsen" it was with great anticipation and some apprehension that I finally got to see the American adaption to this outstanding and huge successful drama. I was both surprised and amazed. "The Killing" has managed to maintain the somber and somewhat dark ambiance of the original while still incorporating enough elements to make the current version plausible. Kudos to the cast of this version which has kept the integrity of the original and so far, it looks every bit as good as I could have hoped. Although the plot takes its time to unfold, it's well worth the wait. Soon you will be trying to guess who killed the beautiful High School student and realize that nothing is as it seems, each episode offering a different perspective (and suspect) until the tantalizing conclusion. Get hooked!! ;)

Suda has created a sublime mystery/ thriller. This series has excellent direction, cinematography, writing, setting, score and acting. All the actors involved deliver superlative performances. Enos and Kinnaman command the series. The plot is set in a rainy and dark Seattle which sets the mood for the series. The plot revolves around the mysterious murder of a young women. Teaming up to solve the case are two detectives with much different styles and both with turbulent backgrounds. One is a seasoned by the book detective, Sarah Linden and the other is a younger street smart detective, Stephen Holder who is transferred from the narcotics division. Together they make a perfect team viewing the mystery from different perspectives and styles. During the case they encounter obstacles at every angle and the case reaches as high as the most elite individuals in Seattle. The plot is consistent, flawless, intense, clever, ingenious, violent, memorable and unique. The series is duplicitous and a has a cathartic ending that brings complete closure, including the partnership of Sarah and Stephen. This remains one of the best series in it's genre to this day.