Truth and Consequences: notes on Shetland, Unforgotten and Black Snow

Last January, the Doomsday Clock was reset at 89 seconds to midnight, the closest it’s ever been to human extinction. Meanwhile, I turn on the TV, and it feels like every third drama is post-apocalyptic. Maybe some people find that comforting — that whatever happens, at least we get through it, even if we’re hunted by zombies, stuck in a silo or trapped underground. Me, I prefer not to think about the end of the world, thank you very much. I haven’t written about TV since May of 2024, so here’s the first in a series taking on nine shows I watched over the last year (none of them set in a dystopian future). Some of my favorite series — The Pitt, Adolescence, Ludwig — were just as good as the critics promised, and I have nothing to add, so I won’t be writing about them here. I’d rather focus on shows that came and went without sufficient fanfare, or ones where my opinion differs from popular consensus. Let’s start with a trio of procedurals.

The Fatal Blow: notes on Dark Winds, Black Snow and Blue Lights

My screwball comedy essay in February gave me such pleasure that I decided to tackle another type of film that plays well on the small screen. I chose film noir, and between February and July, ended up watching 283 of them to properly prepare. Once the film noir essay was posted, I found I missed having a new noir to turn to whenever I was in need of distraction; I’d grown strangely addicted to the themes of alienation, fatalism, entrapment, obsession and despair that I’d wallowed in for months. I missed having haunted characters to visit on a regular basis. Fortunately, the TV landscape is currently littered with them.