In the era of “my TV show is really just a long movie,” a significant issue has emerged where a script’s content is stretched across an entire TV season. With the demise of mid-budget movies and the migration of such projects to TV, numerous shows suffer from being the wrong length, often resorting to repetitive ideas to meet a predetermined episode count.
This becomes particularly problematic in genres like murder mysteries, where the meticulous pacing of mysteries and reveals is crucial. Picture a 10-hour rendition of “Knives Out,” and you’ll understand why “Death and Other Details” becomes frustrating, especially after a remarkably enjoyable series premiere. Despite initially enjoying the new Hulu show, the realization sets in around episode four that it’s stuck in a loop, akin to a three-hour tour forced to stretch and vamp for ten.
Mandy Patinkin channels his inner Hercule Poirot in the role of Rufus Cotesworth, once celebrated as the world’s greatest detective. Imogene Scott (Sophia Reid-Gantzert), who once held high hopes for him, sought his expertise in solving her mother’s murder, a case involving a car bomb.
Disappointment followed when Cotesworth could only provide a mysterious name without an actual arrest. Now, as a charming young woman (Violett Beane), Imogene finds herself on a luxury ocean liner with the affluent family that essentially raised her, only to be startled by the reappearance of Cotesworth. The shock deepens when a disruptive passenger is murdered, compelling Imogene and Rufus to join forces in investigating both the new crime and, potentially, her mother’s case.
Patinkin injects plenty of flavor into Rufus, embodying the classic “bumbling genius” reminiscent of characters like Monk, Columbo, or certain versions of Poirot. He meticulously takes notes, employs coded writing, and encourages the intuitively perceptive Imogene to focus on details. With lines like, “The truth will come out sooner or later. I prefer sooner. Because I like a nap,” the talented actor excels in the role. However, the show’s issues arise from nearly everything else, particularly the mundane supporting characters that take center stage, relegating Patinkin’s engaging performance to a frustratingly limited role.
Initially promising, a group of suspects in “Death and Other Details” falls short, stuck in basic character descriptions. The potential culprits include power broker Lawrence Collier (David Marshall Grant) and his Lady MacBeth Katherine (Jayne Atkinson). Their daughter Anna (Lauren Patten) awaits the family fortune, impatient for her turn.
Thin allusions to “Succession” don’t favorably contribute to the show, which often reminds viewers of superior options like “Poker Face” or “Only Murders in the Building.” Additional characters, including Anna’s mysterious wife Leila (Pardis Saremi) and troubled heir Tripp (Jack Cutmore-Scott), add to the crowded ship, but few make a significant impact as the narrative revisits the same mysteries and reveals repeatedly.
Following a promising start, “Death and Other Details” appears to exhaust its creativity, introducing a refugee subplot and an unconvincing romance between two performers lacking chemistry. The cast, including Scott and Rahul Kohli, isn’t inherently flawed, but the repetitive beats in the writing hinder their potential. Patinkin, ever reliable, delivers a commendable performance. However, the overarching issue lies in the writing’s inability to sustain rhythm or depth across ten hours of TV. Even the show’s good ideas, like a cleverly structured seventh episode, seem more suited for a brief movie segment rather than an entire hour of a season.
Perhaps the real mystery is finding a detective adept enough to solve the problem of this bloated TV era. We may need someone more skilled than Rufus Cotesworth for that task.
Eight episodes screened for review. Premieres on Hulu on January 16th.