The Long Call is adapted from the first novel of a new series by Ann Cleeves (Shetland & Vera) so comes from a fine pedigree.
The show follows a gay male detective, (amazingly for the first time on UK TV) Matthew Venn as he returns to a strict evangelical community in Devon to attend his father's funeral before investigating a murder.
It was stylish but the direction was poor technically and trying too hard to be edgy it ended up being distracting. The scene in the first episode between Neil Morrissey and Pearl Mackie was bizzarely shot, you'd think they'd let a passerby have a go behind the camera...
Main problem though was that the lead actor Ben Aldridge was too ineffectual and bland, he spent most of his time standing still and thinking aloud with his hands in his designer trouser pockets. The story would have been better told in fewer episodes or over 90 minutes. The script was ponderous.
New detective shows do need time to bed in - and I do hope they get a second series to try and nail it. The ending was good and satisfying but sadly this series was very much style over substance and too slow. I can't blame the many viewers that abandoned ship.
