Outlier

I loved this because it's a departure from the predictable series out there.

The central character is not likeable throughout, which is what I believe explains some of the poor reviews on this list. (Lots mention bad acting and directing, but I disagree. Both were very well done.)

Genuine disagreeableness on the part of the central character was like a breath of fresh air for me. I prefer characters to be flawed and intriguing rather than statically heroic. Just be prepared to pay close attention as you're watching. This isn't the sort of series you can have on in the background while you're making supper.

The series is also slow-paced, but not boring. The psychological theories expressed by the central character, Maja, were technical but also interesting and kept the tension taut. The subtext that budget restrains were hampering proper policing seemed very true to life and added a layer of complexity that is often left out of more action driven series.

Ultimately this show is worth it. It is very slow in parts. I mean even for a Nordic drama it is slow. It does have a decent pay off, but they could have sped up the pacing some.

There are several large plot holes. If you can forgive a few glaring "no way would the police allow that" moments and the pacing you will be fine.

Really though Maja was guilty of the same thing she was blaming the local police for. So maybe she doesn't know everything?

The setting in northern Norway with the midnight sun is very interesting, the shots are cinematic, young Elle is portrayed well but... Vvveeeeerrrryyyyy slow paced, Main character Maja is annoying - partly because the script lets her down but I suspect that it's simply poor acting. In addition the head of the local police (Johan) is frustrating to watch and listen to. Plot holes. Constructive criticism: new lead character and reduce number of episodes from 8 to a maximum of two.

Don't understand the 'bad acting' comments. I've seen many Nordic/Scandi shows and I need the subtitles. Perhaps it's hard to judge properly but the voices have all the right tones and pitch for the lines I'm reading and the on screen events at the time.

If it's bad acting then all of those shows would be full of bad acting.

I did think that when the lead character was speaking English it didn't sound quite right, but that could just be because it was a second - or third - language.

This is an area of few people, few resources, old fashioned attitudes and so on. I think people are mistaking the characters and their attitudes for bad acting.

I really don't understand how everytime I read reviews on here people are just trashing everything. If you don't like it, don't watch it.

This series is really good and well acted as most Norwegian shows are. I sometimes wonder if these people even watch the shows or just decide to write fake bad reviews! Just say you didn't like it that is enough.