The cast are uniformly excellent, and from one scene to another my favourite changes, and then changes again, from the stoic, gum-chewing, jumper-wearing police heroine Sara Lund, to the heartbreaking eyes of Pernille Birk Larsen, the grieving mother or Theis Birk Larsen the troubled father, both of whom hold so much simmering beneath the surface and say so much with their faces. Lund's begrudging partner Jan Meyer is gleefully grumpy, but as he learns to respect Lund and her methods, he thaws and becomes a really likable character, so when his time in the story comes so suddenly it's a massive shock, and I didn't believe it at all!
And then there's the other half of the story, following the mayoral campaign of Troels Hartman who becomes embroiled in the murder investigation at various points, along with his sneaky sidekicks Rie and Morten. Oh and the wonderful Bremer, current mayor and possessor of flexible morals. While this half of the story perhaps didn't have the same emotional punch as the investigation, except where the two intertwined (which was most of the time), it was still a thrilling watch. As new evidence came to the fore, each episode, which more or less followed a 24 hour period each, threw up new suspects in the case. Red herrings, lies and suspicion abounded, while Lund and co all kept it real and had a distinctly 'un-Hollywood' approach to police work. So much worked unspoken, with not a boring second to be found. Revelations worked, characters acted within the bounds of their emotions and did things you didn't want them to do but knew they would.
I'm going to avoid the American remake, it just can't be this good. I think one of the reason's it's great is that the actors are unfamiliar, thus it is much easier to suspend disbelief and 'forget' these characters aren't real and lose yourself in their lives. The Killing ranks in my top 10 best shows, and it is with feverish anticipation that I look forward to the second series on BBC4 later in the year.
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