The 2014 Masterpiece Mystery! season kicked off with a one-shot story in two parts, The Escape Artist, starring David Tennant.
Tennant plays Will Burton, an up-and-coming defense barrister who has never lost a case. He gets Liam Foyle, who is accused of a brutal murder, off on a technicality, but seems to have some doubt in his mind as to Foyle's innocence. The creepy and aggressive Foyle is offended when Will won't shake his hand after the trial and starts to stalk Will's family.
From there, everything that happens includes major, major spoilers, but I'll give you a hint of a few elements. There is an element of tension between Will and his rival, the 2nd best barrister in the land Maggie, especially when she becomes Foyle's counsel on another case. There's lots of justified paranoia. And there's a big focus on the morality of people getting away with crimes by manipulating the legal system through legal means (such as technicalities and rules).
All the main characters give a good performance. Will Burton is a genius and a genuine family man until he is forced into crisis mode. Foyle is super-crazy, feeding his tons of pet birds while saying "Everybody's hungry!" and manipulating his adoring neighbor. Maggie is a mirror image of Will before he became personally involved in a crime.
This was a nice little mini-series leading into all my upcoming favorites like Endeavor, Poirot, and Lewis. Makes me wish Silk was coming back so I could get some more courtroom action! It's fun to watch, but ultimately not some great show I'll always remember. It does make me interested in Tennant's next crime mini-series, Gracepoint, which will be on Fox this fall. The escape artist is a great show, Tier 3.
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