The Bridge

Geez. Most people clearly have no clue what people on the autism spectrum are like. Sonia cross has what is formerly known as aspergers-now it's reclassified as a form of ASD-autism spectrum disorder. As someone who deals with this, I can say that Diane's performance is SPOT on. The first episode may have been a little shaky-but after that it's all good. I also want to point out that further in the series you do see her character get emotional-and I've seen people complain about that, because they claim it's "innacurate". It's not. People on the spectrum are prone to meltdowns and sometimes innapropriate emotional reactions. This can easily happen when it's something that's emotionally connected to them. Diane does a great job with this role.

SPOILER: Being intimately familiar with Asperger Syndrome (AS), I think it would be extremely difficult for an actor to play. Kruger did a reasonably good job in the first episode and I think that's actually why some people were turned off by her performance; AS is often characterized by the flat affect that she is exhibiting and it doesn't make for the kind of dynamic character that people are usually drawn to.

This show should spark a lot of discussion and raise awareness of AS. The plot piqued my interest and I'll definitely continue to watch.

(Note to director: Shot of victim's eyes fading into headlights was cool!)

The first season is a remake of the original Danish-Swedish version of The Bridge but they do enough differently to make it interesting. The show uses the story of the bridge murder to explore the dynamic between the US and Mexico and the corruption and helplessness felt in the face of the powerful narcos.

The first season does a good job with the remake and then the second season dives deeper into the narco state and the people that are corrupted or left dead in its wake. Some great characters pop up and there is no black and white, only interesting shades of gray among them. I really enjoyed the second season which started to remind me of Breaking Bad a bit, both in the descent of a particular character into corruption and just in general great quality of the show.

In summary the first season was an 8 for me and the second season a 10 so I landed on 9 for the series grade. Too bad they didn't go for more seasons but they went out on top quality which is rare, so thanks to all involved.

A woman's body is found on the bridge between El Paso and Juarez on top of the border. Sonya Cross (Diane Kruger) is a cop from the American side and Marco Ruiz (Demian Bichir) is from the Mexican side. They are forced to work together. Lieutenant Hank Wade (Ted Levine) is her supervising officer. Charlotte Millwright (Annabeth Gish) owns a ranch at the border and finds a tunnel on her property. Daniel Frye (Matthew Lillard) is an American investigative reporter on the edge.

The first season is mostly about one serial killer investigation. It's somewhat boring. I don't buy Kruger's performance. I like Bichir's performance much more. It moved fairly slowly and unconvincingly. Millwright's storyline never really connected. Then the show changed right before the end of season 1. It added quite a few weird characters. The best one is Eleanor Nacht (Franka Potente) as the unemotional disturbed hired killer. The second season is definitely crazier, and weirder. It feels almost random as the show gets wilder. At least, it gets more interesting. With the show changing over the two seasons, it feels unstable and never really settled down. I do find some of it very interesting.

People seem to be split over "The Bridge" which makes sense for a TV show that probes the dialectic between North and South, white and brown, rich and poor. On the positive side we have an important contemporary topic (the slaughter of young girls in Mexico), some really interesting photography, and a lead character who is struggling with a mental health problem (think "Monk" as another of those rare TV shows that deal with this). Then there is some good acting, from Demian Bichir (he played Castro in "Che" and was nominated for an Oscar for "A Better Life") who plays a Mexican detective, Diana Maria Riva who plays receptionist Kitty, Ted Levine (the serial killer from "Silence of the Lambs") as the haggard Police Lieutenant, and Annabelle Gish (from "The Brotherhood") who plays a widow just learning about her life.

On the negative side, some of the scenes are a little gruesome to say the least, there is a lot of sex which may turn off some viewers (even while it turns on others), and the plot is complex, with multiple story lines that I suspect will ultimately intersect, but which can be burdensome to keep up with at this early stage. And of course, many people find Diane Kruger's Detective Cross a little disconcerting.

Personally I like the discomfort this show brings. I also like not having another one in an endless stream of attractive bouncy policewomen detectives. Co-creators Meredith Stiehm and Elwood Reid gave us another unusual female series star in Kathryn Morris's work in "Cold Case" (2003-2010), and that show was very memorable. So I'm prepared to stick with this one too. I give it an 8, which is probably more than it deserves at this point, but I think it has the potential to develop into a 10.

FWIW - If the multiple story lines confuse you, I suggest you record 3 or more shows before you watch them, and then have a marathon session in which you watch several in a row. This will make the multiple story lines easier to understand.