71 of 73 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
British Crime Drama at its Very Best!, January 7, 2006
Based on the novels by Val McDermid, Wire in the Blood is a gritty, rivetting, suspenseful psychological crime drama; it is also, without a doubt, one of the best series of that genre around. Robson Green (Touching Evil, Reckless, Me & Mrs. Jones, The Student Prince, The Gambling Man, Grafters, Soldier Soldier) stars as Dr. Tony Hill, a clinical psychologist who moonlights as a criminal profiler for the police. Tony is brilliant in his ability to gain insights into the criminal mind, but his brilliance comes at a cost, compensated as it is by an equal degree of social ineptitude. Like an absent-minded professor, Tony has a mind so focused that he easily becomes oblivious to his surroundings and to those around him. It doesn't help matters that he talks to himself or that he finds it helpful to physically act out various aspects of the crime in question--things that are best NOT done in a public place! Though the storylines are very serious--even chilling--the very nature of Tony's character provides the occasional welcome moment of lightness and humour. Those familiar with Robson Green will know that this is the type of character at which he excels--characters which are, at the very least, just a little bit odd.
Tony's connection with the police is via Detective Chief Inspector Carol Jordan (Hermione Norris--Cold Feet's Karen Marsden), a shrewd, hard-working cop, who is well aware of Tony's brilliant mind and of his value to the police. There exists almost from the start--and always beneath the surface--a mutual attraction between Tony and Carol, and it is here that Tony most poignantly feels his lack of social skills.
There are, at the time of writing, two sets on dvd (with set three due for release in February 2006). Set one contains three episodes (each presented as two back-to-back 50 minute episodes); set two contains four 100-minute episodes. DVD extras on set one are limited to brief text-based bios, but set two consists of interesting and informative interviews with Robson Green, Hermion Norris, author Val McDermid, and the production team.
Though this is a series, each episode is movie length, and I would challenge anyone to find a Hollywood crime drama as good as any one of the episodes in this outstanding series. If you enjoy top quality, impeccably-acted, gritty, dark, intelligent psychological crime drama which draws the viewer right in--shows like BBC's Waking the Dead, for example--you will definitely enjoy this series, and I recommend both sets without hesitation. I enjoyed the series so much that I bought McDermid's latest Tony Hill novel, The Torment of Others (2004), which I also thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend. Personally, I can't wait for the release of set three, and I hope Koch Vision continues to release future sets as they become available!
Very highly recommended!
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51 of 54 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
If only American television could be this good, July 6, 2004
This review is from: Wire in the Blood - The Complete First Season (The Mermaids Singing / Shadows Rising / Justice Painted Blind) (DVD)
Shown on BBC America a few months ago, this is a series worth owning. Based on Val McDermid's book series, the shows are a trimmed down version of some of the stories. I recomend the books and the television series as they both hold their own.
The Wire in the Blood television series is dark, creepy, gritty, and compelling. These are psychological dramas that don't sugar-coat the crimes, the people, or the situations. They're not for everyone, but the majority of mystery/crime drama fans will find them more than satisfying. The characters are well written and acted without being standard or cliche and the stories, while dark, are a compelling look into the psychology of criminal profiling and anaylysis.
Good characters, strong writing and high production standards is what really sells this series.
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27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Absolutely FANTASTIC entertainment!!!, October 6, 2004
This review is from: Wire in the Blood - The Complete First Season (The Mermaids Singing / Shadows Rising / Justice Painted Blind) (DVD)
I am a person who reads copiously and I am invariably disappointed with the TV adaptations to my fave books - but not this time.
Robson Green is brilliant as Dr.Tony Hill. The stories are portrayed as grittily as they are on paper.
The same suspense, excitement and horror is there. Some of Val Macdermids Tony Hill series have been scaled down for television, but the ensuing TV versions make for exciting viewing. Realistic without being depressing, Violent without becoming nauseous, I would reccommend the Wire in the Blood series to any crime drama buff. Those of you who loved Prime Suspect will not be disappointed with this.
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