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At a time when it seems that every TV detective program offers over- the-top-heroics, impossibly good-looking characters, exaggerated Sherlock Holmesian deductions, and smug repartee, this British production comes as a wonderful surprise -- a superbly acted cop show, portraying tough, wise investigators picking through the detritus and debris of human life and trying to keep it all together until the end of their shift.

Although the show is named for the two partners, the dynamic detective duo who have been essential to all cop shows since "Dragnet," it's really a three-person team, since Detective Constables Scott & Bailey are shepherded by a been-there, done-that boss who keeps them from straying too far from the flock.

As a bonus, their patch is grand, gritty and grimy Manchester, where you have to strain sometimes to understand the dialect, but it's worth the work for the condensed wit and wisdom you mine.

You won't be satisfied with watching a single episode, but try to view no more than three at a single sitting, so you'll have something to look forward to next time.

Oh, by the way: the three alpha cops here are all female, so let's call it Womanchester.

Scott and Bailey's first episode was actually rather superb! OK so it was a little predictable but the banter between all of the characters and the clever questioning by Rachel Bailey at the end made this an enjoyable cop drama. To be fair, this series has a lot to live up to - it has a likable cast and its home, ITV, have a reputation for writing some very interesting and good detective dramas such as Morse, Lewis, Vera,Midsomer Murders and Law and Order:UK and, in my opinion, it continues ITV's success at writing and presenting detective dramas. I have a feeling that Scott and Bailey will continue to improve as the weeks go by...

If you know Sally Wainwright's writing, this will be familiar stuff. Scott & Bailey follows the various relationships within a police team, focusing on two women, one mature and stable, the other young, talented and often unable to control her personal life. Their boss, another woman (amazingly enough) is tough, sharp and also not without her own personal issues.

It all works remarkably well. The characters ring true, even if they are somewhat exaggerated. The police work takes a back seat a lot of the time, but it's intelligently presented, and more realistic than in most straight cop shows. The perpetrators tend to be mentally challenged individuals, and bringing them to 'justice' is often an unsatisfying business. The acting is superb throughout, which definitely helps.

There are just two flaws worth mentioning. First, there are almost no admirable male characters. Some are major jerks. Several are immature jerks. And one or two are downright evil... and jerks.

Secondly, the view of the police is sanitized entirely beyond belief. This team simply never gets the wrong man, and never fails to zero in almost immediately on the right man - who is generally the obvious candidate. It's just about exactly the view of the police that the police would like you to have, and it simply comes off as too good to be true, given the realistic settings and situations.

It's a slanted view, to be sure, but that's the format. In a less believable show, you'd never question it. Here, the sense of realism is vivid enough that its limits seem a bit jarring. But none of this spoils the fun. Scott & Bailey is a smart, tough and emotionally involving series. Bear in mind that it's basically a very female-oriented soaper, and you'll be thoroughly entertained.

I was a detective in a Northern force and this show truly captures the atmosphere of the team, the work, the passions, the characters and the full gamut of human life that you are forced to confront. Great to see such real women characters leading the show, all 3 leads are almost too lifelike, these are women I've known. It may still be mostly a mans world, but these women really are out there. Two criticisms, the only flaw in the real life tapestry, the absence of the other kind of policewomen, those that make it hard on this kind..... And why does it have such an unimaginative title, especially when it's really about three women not two! Don't miss the best of British.....

I don't know what others are watching but I'm an actor and I watch a lot of TV and Films (and have been in a lot as well) and this show which my wife and I just finished watching was amazing! Powerful women doing wonderful things without making a big deal out of gender is almost impossible to pull off and almost never happens in American TV. This is what Rizzoli and Isles could have been if they didn't have all the "funny" stuff and if they let their characters be true to themselves. This is what the Closer was at its best but finally I found the writing and the directing and the acting so much better in Scott and Bailey than well any other show of its type on TV on either side of the pond. Get a region free DVD and buy this series and tell me I'm not right. The relationships are sharp (better than Blue Murder which is also a good series) and the stories are valid and dark and the humor works cause it is not forced. The only Detective show I like better at the moment is Luther and it is not quite as good an ensemble show as this one. 10 stars easily

I couldn't stop until I've watched all 6 episodes in a row. Suranne Jones and Lesley Sharp give a brilliant performance alongside the other cast. I loved that it's one of a few stories set from women's point of view, dealing with the professional and personal issues. I think we should have more of that. I can't judge if the work of police was shown true to life, but it definitely seemed more realistic than the 'bang-bang-case solved!' sort of shows. Scott and Bailey has cross-cutting plot lines, which also makes it more interesting to watch. I want to also point out the beautiful camera work. I hope for the next season!

Update for season 2. Could I love them more? I already can't wait for season 3. None of the characters is flat, even if they appear for a couple of minutes, the cases are still interesting, and I was glad that we also looked into not only Janet's and Rachel's personal lives, but of other characters too.

I am thrilled I stumbled upon the first series and episode on PBS! Its heads above any crime drama here in the States. I'm not sure I love it so much because the title characters are women and the boss is also a woman, but it helps! Can't wait until the 3rd series! Hope to see it on my PBS station nit long after it airs in the UK. I've been an avid watcher of shows from Britain. I do not really watch much of shows here. Crime dramas in the US are full of violence, blood and just seem to be going for the shock factor, no substance. Granted Scott and Bailey had their fair share of some blood, but necessary to the plot. Inspector Lewis, Poirot, Wallander, and Morse focus on the process not the gore. I beg of you to allow our PBS channels get the next set of episodes as quickly as possible! Thank you

I have seen only two episodes so far of season 1, but already it looks like this female detectives duo is the among the best, definitely the best of the season. The chaotic private lives of DI's Janet Scott and Rachel Bailey and the solving of the cases are presented in a perfect mix. An especially good point: we are off dead bodies and CSI-like gore (at least for the first two episodes). They still exist, of course, but off-screen. The details are related to us in indirect ways, through the cops' case meetings, the questioning of suspects, conversations in cars, and walk-with-me talks. What we do see instead are the consequences of the crimes committed: We see them in the faces of wonderful hugely talented actors that fill even the tiniest role. It makes up more than enough for the only grievance I have: spoiled by the lavish period production of Inspector George Gently I was hoping to see more of the Yorkshire landscape.

... cop dramas have a great tendency to follow a formula script, and as a result after several seasons usually become tedious and boring, and audiences continue watching them mostly out of habit... Scott & Bailey is the huge exception to the rule, and I'm positive that those knowing just how good a program this is they're watching, want it to continue on indefinitely... there's actor after actor in this marvelous series that consistently do outstanding work.. and for it all to end, well, would just be criminal (pi)

.. it's one of the ironies that when it looks so easy, an enormous amount of talent and effort on all sides make it appear that way... all involved are producing top flight work, and deserve all the accolades they get.. watching Doctor Foster turned me on to one of the leads in this series... soooo glad I did... the final season was short.. and once again extremely good... know they wished to go out 'on-a-high'.. but this is another series that will be sorely missed.

Actually, I loved the show but got so tired of Bailey being an airhead, I had to stop watching it.

Wow! Discovered this Brit series by chance and got hooked immediately. Characters are written with depth and honesty, their private lives brimming with challenges and uncertainty, while the major cases they explore are are also pretty fascinating. Of course, the acting is terrific. Scott (Lesley Sharp) and Bailey (Suranne Jones) are an unlikely but compelling duo, one a dutiful wife and mother; the other single and screwed up. Their back stories are no less than riveting. Casting across the board is seductively brilliant, including, in recurring roles, Amelia Bullmore as SCI Murray, the detective in charge; Nicholas Gleaves, as another detective in the squad; and Rupert Graves as a sexy barrister who nearly destroys Bailey's career. By the time you get to episode 5 or 6 in the first season, you start worrying that there are only 3 more seasons to go in this wonderfully satisfying drama.

I started watching and thought well, maybe. However, I liked the crimes and how they were checked and got convictions. BUT the Rachel character got on my nerves with her neuroses. How they even thought she was doing ok as Sergeant is beyond me because she was petty, spiteful and mostly out of control. Loved Janet and wished I had such self control and most favorite was Gill.

I gave it a 5 because I began to want to slap Rachel in EVERY show starting with Season 3. I almost stopped watching because she was too neurotic.

I've watched this whole series a few times now, and enjoy it immensely. But this time I've been paying special attention to all the actors who play the suspects and perps. Where do they find these fantastic actors? They are so believable. A great variety of British types. Some of the credit must go to the director(s). It's hard to believe some of them are acting and not the real thing. Great show!

Solid, standard British detective show. Great to see strong female leads in a male dominated field. Amelia Bullmore as DCI Gill Murray is the standout scene stealer. Simply outstanding. The title characters are good, at times over acted. Story lines a bit unbelievable - hard to see why so many men would be obsessed with these two.

Just binge-watched this show on Netflix, and loved how well it dealt with relationships on and off the job - certainly the Bailey character stretches the limits of credibility, but for some reason, it works, and by the end of Series 3, you find yourself rooting for her, hoping that she works out the dysfunctional kinks in her personality.

I agree with other reviewers that the show is not kind to men - and it exaggerates the influence of women, in my opinion. Both female leads(boss Gill is a real scene-stealer, she ended up being my favourite)are decidedly not in the same realm as those who come from Hollywood's casting couch. Having been conditioned by the stiletto- heeled sex kittens featured in most US-based shows, I found myself having trouble seeing the Scott character as the alluring person the role was intended for, with men stalking her and wanting to be with her at any cost. Really?

So, yeah - smart, supposedly-irresistible women coppers, unimpressive, over-reactive and not-so-smart male colleagues... perhaps the show is a bit guilty of exaggerated stereotyping, but at least the pendulum swings us into exploring women as problem-solvers, and good ones at that.

As was said before in a couple of reviews...not one admirable male character. Not even close. They are almost all nasty, mean, stupid or useless. One or two very minor males are okay, but still very stilted. I enjoyed the writing and the acting, just the anti-male thing is off-putting. OI love Amelia Bullmore's character: cleve, funny, tough.

I don't like where they went with Rachel's character. She became very unlikable and it ended up just highlighting that as long as your attractive and do some of your job well that you can be a mess up and it's fine. Really disappointed from season 3 onward

The score of 5 is to take into account how good Season 1 is. It's worth zero after that. I'm not sure what happened but the production went up, and the writing completely bottomed out. They ruined a great drama and I am really annoyed and disappointed.

What started out as gritty and interesting, was then turned into a ludicrous caricature. The characters became 2D, their accents were amped up and they whipped out every stupid British quip they could come up with. The supporting actors (mostly the men) became idiots, and the main characters just as unoriginal as any American mainstream tripe.

Watch Season 1 - and then pretend it got cancelled like many other original and great shows have done. It would have been better that way.

The ups and downs of two fellow police women dealing with both their personal and professional relationships. Acted perfectly by the two main characters. Sorry the series came to an abrupt end

You'll enjoy it if you love man bashing. Over the top with female characters being the heros and ALL male characters looking like sex fiends, stooges or just plain evil.

/refers to all seasons and episodes/

As a man, I was not sure if I am "up to" this Series, but, on the other hand, I tend to like British crime series... So I decided to try... Even the Series has female touch almost fully (created by, mostly written by and produced by, all main cast), it became to my liking rather soon and watched all seasons/episodes in sequence (btw, recommendable to do so). True, not all cases are equally catchy and the course of events not always smooth, but strong women in the police world dominated by males and their own often weak coping with personal issues - this non-balance paved the way for versatile events in a small unit.

As to the cast, I liked Lesley Sharp as Janet Scott and Amelia Bullmore as Gill Murray most, plus some supporting cast provided memorable performances (Nicola Walker as Helen Bartlett, above all), seeming often catchier in 1+1 with the main cast. If you have seen dozens of British crime series, so you have apparently noticed most of performers in several other series as well...

All in all, 8 strong points from me. Yet Season 5 was evidently closed in a hurry - pity, 5 more episodes could have been created for a nice round-up as in previous seasons.