I’m amazed at the consistency of high quality product coming
from Acorn. Each new season of a show or each new show of theirs I watch I’m
stunned at not just the production quality of the show but the originality of
the stories being told. With the release of NO OFFENCE SERIES 1 they tackle a
group that is rarely discussed or shown in any television shows and in most
shown only as helpless. That’s people with Down syndrome. As someone with a
family member who has this the series held a personal interest for me.
The story here takes place in Manchester and focuses on the
detective bureau of the fictional Manchester Metropolitan Police. D.C. Dinah
Kowalska (Elaine Cassidy) has just missed out on a promotion and her colleague
DS Joy Freers (Alexandra Roach) has been chosen for the post. The head of the
squad, DI Vivienne Deering (Joana Scanlon) explains her reasoning to Dinah but
soon that’s shelved as a case comes in.
Investigating a drowning incident of a young woman with Down
syndrome, Dinah connects the death to another case that was similar. As she
puts the pieces of the puzzle together it appears that there is a serial killer
on the loose and his focus is on women with Down syndrome. The investigation
eventually leads to a prime suspect but finding enough evidence to be certain
and to convict is something else altogether. In addition to that, as the series
moves forward we begin to wonder if any of the suspects the present is the
actual killer or if it’s someone else. Each episode provides information but at
the same time has you guessing.
In addition to the main focus of the eight part series other
crimes are investigated as well. There is also the drama of police political
interference going on from the start as one higher up demands to take over the
investigation from those who found the case to begin with. It doesn’t stop the
team here from following up on their own and eventually getting the case handed
back to them.
There is also the story of one of the potential victims, a
young woman saved before she was murdered. In this case the killer made an
error and the girl in question didn’t have Down syndrome at all but appeared so
because of facial surgery she’d just had. Surviving she becomes the only
potential witness to the murderer but suffers from a mind block that prevents
her from recalling details. Coming from a home of drug addicts adds to the
problem and Dinah takes her under her wing to help.
The series works on all levels here. The characters as
written all have their pluses and minuses. I know myself by the end of the
first episode I couldn’t stand the character of Vivienne but by the end she was
the most thought out character of the bunch. Other members of the team have
personal problems that at times interfere with their work. Some have interpersonal
relations at work that cause problems. Each has more depth than most in a
series like this.
But those characters would amount to very little in the
hands of actors who weren’t at the top of their game. Fortunately each and
every actor in this drama is superb, down to what might be considered a bit
part. Scanlon is amazing as the brash, mouthy boss who rules with an iron fist
but is filled with compassion at the same time. Cassidy does a great job of
showing the hardnosed officer who has that soft spot in her that needs
attention. And Roach does a great job of appearing to be in over her head only
to show she has what it takes for her new role at the station.
As I said from the start there is a certain amount of
twistedness that goes with their chosen storyline here, a serial killer who
targets Down syndrome women. Not only is he killing them he’s raping them as
well, a particularly heinous crime in anyone’s book. It makes we the viewer
look at each suspect with a high level of disgust until their innocence can be
proven. That someone would do such a thing is stomach churning.
While extras don’t amount to much that doesn’t matter. What
does is a solid series with 8 episodes that will leave you wanting more. Thank
goodness a second series is already in the can and hopefully will make its way
to disc as well. One can only hope it goes past that.
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