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- PBS
- Jun 3, 2021
- PBS
- Jun 3, 2021
Summary Jasper Tempest (Ben Miller), a Cambridge University professor with OCD helps his former student, Detective Sergeant Lisa Donckers (Emma Naomi) with some of her cases in this British series based on the Belgian series of the same name. [Premiered originally in the UK on BritBox on 3 Jun 2021 and in the US on PBS on 11 Jul 2021]
- PBS
- Jun 3, 2021
- PBS
- Jun 3, 2021
Professor T
Season 1
Season Premiere: Jun 3, 2021
54
User Score
Available after 4 ratings
tbd
Where to Watch
Summary Jasper Tempest (Ben Miller), a Cambridge University professor with OCD helps his former student, Detective Sergeant Lisa Donckers (Emma Naomi) with some of her cases in this British series based on the Belgian series of the same name. [Premiered originally in the UK on BritBox on 3 Jun 2021 and in the US on PBS on 11 Jul 2021]
Where to Watch
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Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 6 Critic Reviews
54
17% Positive
1 Review
1 Review
83% Mixed
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 6 Critic Reviews
54
17% Positive
1 Review
1 Review
83% Mixed
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Professor T doesn’t tread new ground. But the writing is solid and Miller and the rest of the cast do a good job of making the obsessive detective trope entertaining to watch.
Unfortunately, it felt as if something had been lost in translation. That was despite a deliciously quirky performance by Ben Miller as cranky Cambridge criminologist Jasper Tempest.
Sometimes the conclusions to the crimes can feel secondary to the driving personal stories. But when the balance works, such as with the siege story from the third episode, it’s a really strong combination – and makes for a fine addition to the detective genre.
The premise is promising, and the cast – Miller, Naomi and de La Tour especially – give it a good shot. But there’s something disjointed about the way it all hangs together. To emphasise the sense of loneliness, the direction often frames speakers in conversation one at a time. It comes at the expense of camaraderie.
It is as if two different dramas have been melded accidentally. Or if Death in Paradise (which Miller used to star in) had decided to show a full-on chainsaw massacre. Miller's acting skills save it, assisted by Emma Naomi (Bridgerton) as his detective sidekick, Lisa Donckers.
If only the writers had embraced the quirkiness and made this a gentler affair it would have been fine. There is promise in Tempest’s story, but, please, can this be the last time that rape is used as cheap entertainment?
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