Tara Moss

Indignation versus Disintegration….Martin Freeman’s melancholic eyes staring unblinkingly back at his therapist and Us pull you into his world of torment. The Responder, so far, is the antidote for the formulaic good against evil dramas we’ve seen before, compelling us into Carsons (Martin Freeman’s character) realm of intensity, pungency and agonising reality of working the streets and gutters at night. As this policeman heads into his ‘office’ armed with his version of the law you find a forgiving understanding of how he efficiently and erratically gets the job done. His rules, his understanding, his way. Hargreaves’s (Adelayo Adedayo’s character, fledgling police officer) bemused ‘by the book’ approach simply has no dignity or gravity, it’s like watching a kitten cross a motorway … you want her to make it across but wince at every near miss! So far there’s two bad guys Carl Sweeney (Ian Hart) everything you want or imagine of a drug dealer, and Ray Mullen (Warren Brown) who’s far more frightening … not only has he been the architect of Carson’s demotion but he’s also interested in ruining what’s left of Carson’s life and relationship with his wife Kate (Myanna Buring). You can keep your faux coppers … this is an authenticity masterpiece.