Deadwater Fell

I found the opening episode a little slow but hooked me in just about enough and then it exploded with 2 really good episodes leaving me excited for the finale. Unfortunately the finale was very predictable and ultimately underwhelming but I fell that was more due to the level of the two previous episodes and this being average rather than terrible. Ultimately this was still a good series if unfortunately not reaching further heights that seemed possible.

I think everyone will guess the ending quite quickly in this slightly overlong show. The real standout elements are the cast and the themes ingrained in a semi derivative mystery wrapping.

There's some good depictions of how numerous kinds of abuse, the social dynamics at play in regards to toxic masculinity, trauma, and the madness of crowds. People can't usually recognize signs of abuse nor cries for help or look beyond the performance of social respectability when it comes to men. So, on that front I think the show is a success.

The problem comes from a lacklustre actual plot and its beats. This is almost quintessential now, and it does very little to muddy the issue of the mystery it purports to be actually about. Had the mystery been overtly secondary, it might have worked better. Or the mystery having a more nested and compelling set of clues and the ways in which they are rolled out.

As is, it feels like a long time to wrap up, and the highlights of the show are merely peripheral, which almost feels diminutive for such important issues.

I am very surprised to see so many negative reviews for the series, none of them seem to relate to the drama I watched. Clock developed very well over the four episodes we get the harrowing scenes in the first episode, and the next three episodes are spent solving the mystery.

The acting is first rate, Tennant does genuinely steal the show, but when is he anything less than brilliant? Cush Jumbo and Matthew McNulty are excellent also.

This isn't slow, it's measured, the characters and story are given depth, and chance to grow.

I thought it was excellent, 9/10.

Core of story was good and initially gripping as the real truths started to unfold. But too many inaccuracies and holes in the plot eventually started to grate and became a distraction.

I read a couple of reviews on here after the first show, as I was telling a friend to try it, and wanted a bit more info (as they always ask). So it was disappointing to read the low reviewer comments, and see their upset about the ending. I still watched it. I still enjoyed it. Found it compelling and intense. And have no issue at all with the way the story unfolded. The acting and characters were good, and the story held me. It kept me all the way to the end. Worth watching!