Mitch Cordover

I watched this first episode setting aside any association with the prior incarnations of the Perry Mason. So let's set that to rest. This man is not and seems incapable of ever becoming that polished attorney. This is a film noir done with a kind of richness and style that the original hard boiled detective films could never have achieved. The sleazy jazz is on target. A few predictable lines notwithstanding, the writing stands up to the best of the genre. The acting is excellent and the main characters are for the most part three dimensional. First episodes are unavoidably taken up with introductions, but there is enough here to wonder how this down-on-his-luck and war-damaged guy will prove to be a crime solving prodigy. My only complaint is that Matthew Rhys is so sympathetic that seeing him get kicked around by alcohol, his girlfriend, his ex-wife, cops and Hollywood studio bosses is painful. The only thing that makes me hesitate watching the next one is now wanting to see him abused. The things that spur me on is the promise of the who done it and to see him stand up for himself at some point.