'The Responder' Is a Martin Freeman Tour De Force

It is not an accident that Line of Duty, a fast-paced thriller with an ever-shifting cast is one of the most popular in the U.K. In a TV landscape full of mysteries (and a culture of a surveillance society), having a story focused around the premise that someone is watching the watchers and keeping them accountable is a comforting fairy tale. Add in a leader who assures us those watching out for us are governed by an innate sense of justice and a self-righteous moral certitude, and it's a show that helps people sleep better at night, despite its pulse-pounding pacing.

The Responder is not that show. If anything, it's the anti-Line of Duty, bursting that bubble of pretense that the people on the force are somehow better than your average person. Most are nothing but petty and self-serving, people who choose the profession because they are insecure bullies or power-hungry monsters. Even the ones who initially get in for the "right" reasons find themselves caught in a job that doesn't pay enough for the sheer amount of horror it entails.

The series is hailed for being a "gritty" and "realistic" portrayal of the police force and boasts of being written by a former Merseyside Police officer, Tony Schumacher, who rose through the BBC writing program looking for works by new voices. It is not an easy watch, from its opening moments in which we see star Martin Freeman (Sherlock) as Officer Chris Carson, close to a nervous breakdown in his therapist's office, to its dramatic end.