The Killing Season 1 Overview: A S-L-O-W Burn But Definitely Worth The Watch

"The Killing" (based on a Danish series) originally aired on AMC in 2011. It's four seasons are currently available on NetFlix, "TK" tells the story of two Seattle detectives investigating the death of a young girl found in the trunk of a car. I had originally passed over the show but, after hearing good things, gave it a second look. I'm glad I did.

Mireille Enos stars as Detective Sarah Linden. Compare her work here with "The Catch" on ABC. Each character is radically different but Mireille pulls both off convincingly. See my reviews of the two seasons of "The Catch" here: The Catch Reviews

In "The Killing" Linden is a touch as nails cop with a troubled past. We're not sure of the specifics. She also has a son whom she loves deeply but is not able to properly care for. Sarah's partner is Stephen Holder (Joe Kinnaman). He's an ex drug addict turned police officer. Holder brings much needed street smarts to the team. The two make a good pair.

Season 1 of "The Killing" takes place over two weeks. Each of the 13 episodes covers a roughly 24 hour period. Rosie Larsen has been murdered and the answers are not going to come easily. We watch the Larsen family first frantically search for their daughter and next try to deal with the grief of losing her. Michelle Forbes and Brent Sexton (who play Rosie's parents) knock it out of the park. The scenes are very painful to watch. Mitch becomes despondent for a while and abandons the family. Her sister Terry helps out with the two younger children in MItch's absence

We're also introduced to politician Darren Richmond and some members of his staff. Richmond is running for Seattle mayor. This story eventually weaves into the Larsen investigation but IMHO "The Killing" spends WAY too much time here.

Everyone on this show is hiding a secret (including Holder who's acting super suspicious). The question is, which one actually killed Rosie. The are fake outs at every turn. At the end of the season we still dont have answers. The last scene of "Orpheus Descending" shows Richmond in a crowd of supporters. Belko (Stan's friend) is very upset over Rosie's death. He's convinced Darren is guilty. He walks towards Richmond and pulls out a gun. Fade to black. And the story continues next season.

Grade: 4 1/2 Monsters (out of 5). The creators of "The Killing" do an excellent job of creating the right atmosphere. Everything about this show screams isolation and depression-- the color palette, the weather, the music, etc. It's always raining. I cant say this is a positive for the Seattle Tourism Bureau but it's very effective story telling. Kudos also to a stellar cast-- especially Mireille Eros, Joel Kinnaman and Michelle Forbes.

In conclusion, "The Killing" is a slow burn but definitely worth the watch. Just dont expect answers quickly... cause you WON'T GET THEM. The mystery of Rosie's murder takes multiple seasons to unfold. And as I recall, when the season 1 finale aired in 2011, audiences were red hot about this. Luckily we're able to binge the series instead. Thank you NetFlix!