SummaryScottish police detective DS Karen Pirie (Karen Pirie) investigates a 25-year-old cold case in this British crime series based on Val McDermid's novels.
[Premiered originally in the UK on ITV on 25 Sep 2022 and in the US on BritBox on 25 Oct 2022]
SummaryScottish police detective DS Karen Pirie (Karen Pirie) investigates a 25-year-old cold case in this British crime series based on Val McDermid's novels.
[Premiered originally in the UK on ITV on 25 Sep 2022 and in the US on BritBox on 25 Oct 2022]
Karen Pirie is a pretty straightforward entry in the genre of British/Scottish police mysteries. But the first season presents a solid, twisty case and the title character is refreshingly young and not grizzled. Those two factors make the show an engaging watch.
I liked Karen Pirie, a creation of Val McDermid. It felt modern and fresh (well, as fresh as yet another cop show can be), which is how Lauren Lyle played the lead character, a sarky, baby-faced detective in a man’s world, underestimated by her peers.
This Tartan Noir drama lifts itself above the usual run of these cold case thrillers because the story is told in a refreshingly cohesive way – there are relatively few annoyingly random flashbacks and bewilderingly disjointed series. There’s a discipline about the scripting that is curiously absent from too many others of the kind.
Despite appearing to retread old ground of the murder of a young woman who was on her way home, Karen Pirie, with its distinctly female-driven lens, feels relevant and self-aware, with an understanding of the effects of trauma that is not always catered for by this kind of show.
With all three episodes under my belt, I can confirm that the twists and turns continue to ratchet up the suspense before the whole thing is satisfyingly resolved.