The Killing

Based on the critically acclaimed Danish TV show Forbrydelsen, AMC's The Killing blends slow-burning suspense with sharply defined characters to create a crime series that's more Silence of the Lambs than CSI. Sarah Linden (Mireille Enos) is about to leave rainy Seattle and join her fiancé in San Diego when she gets caught up in the murder investigation of Rosie Larsen (Katie Findlay), an unassuming teenager whose death implicates, among others, an underdog mayoral candidate (Bill Campbell) and a wealthy high school student (Richard Harmon). The one-episode-equals-one-day conceit allows for an uncomfortably close look at the Larsens' struggle to absorb and manage their grief, and helps the show strike an emotional balance between intimate character study and straight-ahead procedural. Though the series unfolds at a deliberately slow pace, the plot moves quickly enough to satisfy curiosity and debunk hastily concocted theories. The restrained and nuanced performance of Enos anchors a superb cast that includes a scruffy Joel Kinnaman as Linden's shady new partner and a devastating Michelle Forbes as Rosie's nearly catatonic mother. Filled with wry humor, subtle horror, and genuine heartbreak, The Killing is a beautifully crafted exploration of grief and a tragic examination of what happens to the people left behind.