In An Age of Copaganda, 'Blue Lights' Relevancy is Everything

Recalibrating the cop show in an age where terms like “ACAB” and “copaganda” have reached mainstream awareness is no easy task, but despite the vast majority of cop show audiences won’t, in all likelihood, care too much about systemic police corruption, producers and networks are always trying to convince skeptics that their new series has balanced the inherent flaws with finding police procedure exciting while also delivering that very same excitement. They never do, of course, but a procedural show must have a novel and resonant edge to its premise for it to be greenlit in Great Britain or Ireland.

Relevancy is everything, and Blue Lights wants to make it clear how thoughtfully it’s considered the pitfalls of modern police drama. In some respects, its approach to dramatizing police work is welcome; in others, it falls eye-rollingly short. Still, in trying to fill the shoes of dynamite Brit hits like Line of Duty and Happy Valley, Blue Lights proves exciting enough to warrant more six-episode ridealongs.

The new BBC series focuses on how three rookie constables accustom themselves to the intense demands of a Belfast frontline response unit, surrounded by hardened officers who remain more skeptical than welcoming to new recruits. With new blood filling out the precinct’s ranks, there are hot tempers, conflicting perspectives, and brash naivety – stemming mainly from middle-aged Englishwoman Grace (Siân Brooke), the younger Annie (Katherine Devlin), and sweetheart Tommy (Nathan Braniff).