El deshielo

As Episode 1 of "The Thaw (2022 release from Poland; 6 episodes of about 45-50 min each) opens, we are introduced to Detective Zawieja. Much to her dismay, she is just informed that the recent death of her husband, a police officer, is ruled an apparent suicide. In a parallel story, a woman is found dead in a river. Turns out to be the woman is the daughter of the District Prosecutor. And she was 9 months pregnant. Detective Zawieja takes the lead in the investigation... At this point we are 10 min into Episode 1.

Couple of comments: this is a crime mini-series out of Poland, and other than recognizing Polish actress Kataryna Wajda in the lead role of Detective Zawieja, I can't say that I am familiar with anyone else on the production team or the cast. Based on the opening 2 episodes that I've seen to date, this is OK although still a bit tentative so far. Of course also plot-heavy so I'm not going to say anything about that. The production is sleek but I found the acting of some of the cast (not Ms. Wajda) slightly stilted at times. But here is the bottom line: we are in search of a killer and this whodunit has caught enough of my attention that I will check out the remaining episodes when they become available.

The initial 2 episodes of "The Thaw" were released this past weekend on HBO Max, where they are now available on demand. New episodes will be released on Fridays. If you are interested in a crime series that is definitely not your regular Hollywood fare, I'd readily suggest you check this out.

UPDATE 4/22/22 I've now seen all episodes. I've upgraded my rating to 7 stars. Things really get more interesting as the episodes roll along. All is revealed in the final episode. Check it out.

Deep characters, wonderful scenery and very engaging plot. The case of the missing child and a female detective who is looking for any piece of life in her job - This series will surely stay with me for a long time.

The cinematography was great, the pace was fine, although yes it is slow, I just don't mind that in this instance. The problem with this series is a police detective who does not notice that she is being followed day after day by the same car? That it is her young daughter that notices? And maybe it is just the polish culture but the detectives behavior toward each other and their suspects was inexplicable to me. Overall, it could have been great but the behavior of too many of the main characters was just, well, lame. Hence only 5 stars and that is mainly for the cinematography. I fast forwarded the last three episodes just to see what happened. Not a good indication.

The story is concise and goes straight to the point. Which is both good and bad, good because it doesn't feel stretched and you don't get to be bored, bad I will cover below.

The shots are nice, most of the time you can feel immersed thanks to the camera work, it doesn't feel static.

The setting is good, it creates a gritty mood and that works great with the story that's being told.

My main problems with this show are:

The ending, which I don't think was thoroughly explained, even though I had watched this show in two sittings, so I don't feel like I forgot or missed much.

There were no fillers and sometimes it felt a bit rushed. We didn't get to know anyone on a personal level, apart from a few flashbacks for the main character.

And while we're at it - the all-knowing main character. It felt like every call she made, even by coincidence, was correct and pushed the story forward. There was not a lot of mystery solving, it felt like she was supposed to find clues and answers and she did that easily, without much thought.

Overall I believe it's worth giving it a shot. Are there any better, short shows? Sure, but I don't think you will have a bad time with the Thaw.

I second my fellow commentor, smashcut' s review to the t as it voices common frustration of majority of us Euro-noir bingers. Creators need to decide whether the series will be a gripping, compelling thriller/police procedural or a cocktail of mainstream drama with thrilling crime infusions. And why resort to that kind of desperation when you have a such a compelling thriller with high potential at hand?

This is a much sophisticated screenplay to be wasted on cheap stereotypical soap drama. Please leave that to daytime...of course unless you wish to be in the same vagon with all mainstream H. Coben adaptations..if so we bid you Farewell.