Modus; Hard Sun; McMafia

“Modus isn’t clever, or subtle. It is bonkers, borderline preposterous, hammy as julskinka and out of keeping with the slot it occupies. If you were hoping for the three-dimensional characterisation of The Killing, the clever plot engineering of The Bridge, the political intrigue of Borgen, then you’ll have been disappointed. If you were after a pacy, undemanding thriller on a Saturday evening, you’ll have been happy enough.”
Sam Wollaston, The Guardian

“It rattled along entertainingly enough, though large parts stretched credibility and the dialogue in the English-language scenes was clunky. What’s missing is the original’s under-the-fingernails examination of Swedish society, with all its problems and contradictions. Though a subplot about a prime minister whose commitment to gender equality in his cabinet is barely even skin-deep shows promise.”
Jeff Robson, The i

“It is all extremely silly, not least because it expects us to take it seriously. I can no more think US President when I see Kim Cattrall than I can picture Greg Wise as G-man. If this adaptation does not dispatch our lingering Nordic Noir obsession to an icy grave, it should at least ensure we sniff further imports for traces of rotten herring.”
Matt Baylis, Daily Express

“It is a mad, knockabout plot, but it is rather watchable. The flaw is that Kim Cattrall, always an interesting screen presence, has disappeared so hasn’t been in it much so far. Bit of a waste, that.”
Carol Midgley, The Times

“It is preposterous, stunning and impossible to look away from. A brilliant final episode, stuffed with so much – further subplots and twists; the winciest look-away moment yet, a tarantula; revelations; maybe even the odd truth, like you only really appreciate the value of something when it’s about to be lost. That can’t be it can it? For the world, for us, for Hard Sun?”
Sam Wollaston, The Guardian

“Neil Cross’s Hard Sun has been the bonkers Saturday-night treat that kept on giving. Barking from the outset, Hard Sun will have tested the patience of anyone expecting their weekend drama to contain at least trace elements of plausibility. But viewers who kept faith were surely glad they hung in all the way to that gob-stopping denouement. It was a slog at times but you won us over in the end, Hard Sun.”
Ed Power, The Telegraph

“That was quite a finale. Things move like porridge for weeks, then everything bursts into life in the last hour, although Godman, played by the normally exceptional James Norton, still didn’t manage an actual facial expression. The final episode was cracking, but for many viewers it may have been too little too late.”
Carol Midgley, The Times

“This was a tense, twisting climax which cranked up the pace from the stately previous seven weeks, but it didn’t quite convince. Still, McMafia has been an absorbing and intelligent series, even if it didn’t fulfil the BBC’s high hopes of a Night Manager/Sherlock-level ratings hit.”
Michael Hogan, The Telegraph

“The series overall has been a compelling, globetrotting thriller. One that arguably got stronger as it went along. Not every sub-plot has felt essential, or even necessary, but McMafia has been consistently absorbing, and the cast have been impressive.”
Mark Butler, The i