I usually don’t write TV reviews because I mostly like what I see and I have run out of ways to say nice job, great production, outstanding acting. I am trying to learn how because I think it is important to be able to write about anything but good TV, I am afraid, leaves my writing stilted. On the other hand if it is problematic or bad TV, I can write. Fasten your seat belts I have found a show that really irritated me and believe me there will be spoiler alerts so, if this bothers you, stop reading now.

Any way, there I was enjoying Lazarus, a 6 part English series. I get to the final episode enjoying this problematic but somewhat entertaining show and then the god damn thing goes completely off the rails. There was a new plot twists with each scene. He is the murderer, no she is murderer, no murdered some of the victims but not all of the victims. It felt very much like someone who was an uppity up at the studio, after viewing 15 minutes of one of the episodes decided there weren’t nearly enough plot twists. So as you near the end of the episode, you sort of know who committed some of the murders but kind of don’t know about others and it is the fucking last show so this is it. If you don’t know for sure now, you have lost the plot.

An example might help you understand my plight here. There is a serial murder loose and we assume he has been killing for a long time. You go into episode 6 thinking it was the crazy neighbor who killed everyone. But we find out really fast that no the police detective in charge of every last investigation might have done it. But wait, then we find out, through Lazarus’ communication with the dead, more on that later, that it is really Lazarus’ father.

Now this would be a good opportunity to wrap up the show letting the audience know all the whats and wherefores. Sometimes a nice bow tying up all the plot devices is needed. It would certainly be helpful here. Instead they throw in yet another plot twist that has nothing to do with any of the previous murders and looks like an incredibly lazy set up for another season. Lazarus discovers that his son, which for the record he didn’t know about until the middle of the season, has inherited his grandfather’s predilection for murder. Shades of the Bad Seed. WTF and why?

Then there is the unfortunate character of Lazarus (Sam Claflin) who sees dead people which allows him to discover clues that reveal murder victims and suspects. Since he is getting his clues from ghosts, Lazarus has a difficult time explaining to the police how he is getting this information. This means for much of the show he is hysterical because he is fucking seeing and talking with ghosts which he finds disturbing and he can’t very well explain this to the police who will think that he is crazy if he is seeing ghosts. So instead he just acts crazy without the mitigating factor of him explaining why. So, in trying not to appear crazy, he is acting crazy to hide that fact that he is talking with dead people. The police, quite rightly, question his sanity and suspect his motives.

The behavior of the ghosts is odd. Most of the ghosts believe they are talking to Lazarus’ father as they are patients or employees of his father. They really don’t explicitly give him information. They relive their encounters with his father. Lazarus acts like his father for the dead people while the ghosts show him what happened to them in the past. They supposedly are trying to point out who the murderer is even thought they actually know, at least in some cases, that the murderer is Lazarus’ father and they could just relive the moment when they were murdered. This would save everyone a lot of time but no the ghosts are coy and would rather just drop hints. Hints that are absolutely no help to Lazarus in finding the real murderer and would wrap up the show a little too quickly. Like in the first episode. The answer to keep the show going is plot twists, there needs to be more plot twists.

Lazarus’ father, unlike all of the other ghosts, actually talks to Lazarus. Why he can actually communicate with Lazarus while the other ghosts can only show what happened to them in the past is never explained. Since the whole purpose of the ghosts is to determine who the murderer is and the Lazarus’ dead father seems to be the head ghost trying to reveal this mystery, it begs the question why doesn’t he just tell Lazarus who killed who. This would be too easy, so, the father just lets him make a lot of wrong assumptions and endanger himself and others for no apparent reason other than it keeps the series going for another episode. The father isn’t shy about confessing to his murders at the end so why not just get it over with when he first appears to Lazarus. Plot twists baby, there has to be plot twists.

And finally, I can’t help myself, it is a small complaint but nonetheless irritating, so I have to mention it, the policewoman who Lazarus suspects of being the killer (she is only a killer) outruns the much younger Lazarus through the empty lunch time streets of London. Yes, empty streets at lunchtime in London. Not a moving car in sight. The woman, who has to be, at least, in her late 40’s and probably older, runs like an Olympian, gliding effortlessly from deserted street to deserted street until she hits a main avenue where, of course, a bus hits her. What do you expect when you are running down the middle of the street in broad daylight in a major metropolitan area like London. I was surprised she wasn’t mowed down when she stepped off the side walk. So was I shocked by her fate? Can’t say that I was. I have seen this trope so many times that any time a character, particularly a villain, finds them self stopping in the middle of the street, I know that the jig is up and a vehicle is heading their way with deadly consequences.

It is just too much and too unbelievable but I have wasted my time on worse. It is totally up to you but you might keep searching for another show and, if you still can’t find anything to your taste after 15 minutes or so and you find yourself back at Lazarus, you can give it a go knowing my concerns. It might help you to cut loose more quickly than I did.