From 'Soldier, Soldier' to Profiler, Profiler (Wire in the Blood)

Member Name: pmcds

Product:	Wire in the Blood
Date:	27/02/09 (55 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great show

Disadvantages: Often disturbing material

Wire In The Blood is a series of dark and disturbing thrillers, aired on the ITV channels and based on the series of books featuring Dr Tony Hill, written by best selling thriller author Val McDermid. They have aired since 2002, and have featured adaptations of McDermid's books featuring Hill, as well as further episodes. There have currently been 25 episodes aired.

The episodes tend to involve some dark and distburbing, simply because Tony Hill is a psychologist used byh the police to get into the minds of killers. He is essentially a profiler, and through his endeavours, the police get closer to their mark. Robson Green plays Hill, and I feel his portrayal is very well executed indeed. Green was more known for his Soldier Soldier days and for other more light hearted roles, but in Hill he has found a character that he is excellent at portraying.

The first few seasons, and indeed the books, featured Hermione Norris as Inspector Carol Jordan, and the on screen romantic tension between the two of them was very well done. Other notable stars include Mark Letheren as DS Geoffries, who has been in all but two episodes, and Simone Lahbib, who plays DI Alex Fielding, a sort of replacement for Jordan when she left.

I find that each episode is just as much about the turmoil going on in Hill's mind as much as it revolves around the profiling of the serial killers the show often features. One episode took Hill across the Pond to the States to investigate someone he had briefly profiled when they were stationed in England, a few years previously. This was an excellently dark and unpredictable episode, and it was nice to get Hill out of the usual damp and closed English setting and into a more open place with a completely different style.

If you want to draw similarities between this and other Brit crime dramas, t's not a million miles from Cracker, with the focus of the show on the profiler and psychologist as much as the crimes the show deals with. The scenes are, however, a bit more disturbing than those in Cracker, and I definitely wouldn't advise letting younger viewers anywhere near this. I believe a lot of the DVDs contain a 15 or 18 certificate when they are released, and it is often just as much the subject matter as well as the often graphic nature of the show that warrants these ratings. However, this doesn't mean that it should put you off - you don't actually 'see' anything, and they do draw the line where they should.

Overall, I highly recommend this TV show. If you can get hold of the DVDs, or if they are reshown on TV at all, then I highly recommend watching any episodes you can. It would probably help to watch them in order, but this is definitely not essential, it would merely help you understand some of the undertones of the series.

Summary: Excellent crime drama series