His & Hers - Episode 1

Adapted from Alice Feeney's novel, the opening episode of His & Hers introduces us to a sleepy small town in Georgia which has had its first murder in a decade. Our two main characters, each presented to the audience as likely suspects with something suspicious to hide, are the local investigator (Jon Bernthal) and his estranged wife (Tessa Thompson) attempting to jumpstart her career after a year off following some kind of tragedy and breakdown.

Thompson is good here as the ruthless reporter with a menace and anger boiling under the surface that could easily paint her as a suspect while Bernthal's detective feels a bit too bumbling to be taken seriously (despite the lengths the opener goes to showcase means and opportunity for both to separately have committed the crime).

While "Episode 1" works well enough, the sequences involving events of that rainy night feel a bit unnecessary at only an hour in. That, along with some erratic behavior and some old home movies certainly suggest either one equally capable of having committed the crime without presenting any other likely suspects. Given this setup, and the sequences that play like either reveals or ridiculously strong red herrings, I fear the show falling fast and hard into dumb thriller territory. However, with these two stars (who both are better than the material), there's every chance it could still surprise.

• Title: His & Hers - Episode 1
• IMDb: link