Tommy Murphy (James Nesbitt) is a boozing, brash and brooding Irishman who does undercover work for the Metropolitan Police in London. Cut from the same cloth as San Francisco’s “Dirty” Harry Callahan, he is consumed by guilt over the death of his young daughter, slain by the IRA.

The higher-ups in the police department abhor Murphy’s roughish methods, but his direct superior, DI Annie Guthrie (Claudia Harrison), covers his back because he consistently gets results.

There are five 90-minute episodes in this 3-disc set, each one putting Murphy up against a totally unique kind of criminal.  In the “Pilot” episode, for example, he infiltrates a gang of diamond thieves that use a funeral parlor as a front, while in another segment, he goes undercover in a maximum-security prison in order to learn where a kidnapper has hidden his latest victim.

CRITIQUE

My feelings about this series are mixed.

On the one hand, I enjoy watching the two leading players. Nesbitt is a likable, bushy-haired cross between Hugh Laurie and Bill Nighy, and Ms. Harrison is a charmer with a beautiful smile.  They have excellent chemistry.

Some of individual sequences are also quite original, such as a scene in which Murphy, in order to prove to a crime boss that he will break the law, is forced to hold-up a convenience store.  He does this by trying to convince the store’s owner that they are on “Candid Camera”.

Another, more heart-breaking scene centers around our hero’s reaction when a friend accidentally tapes over the only video of Murphy’s late daughter. 

On the other hand, the cliché´-filled stories for this series seem like they were borrowed from old gangster movies made by Warner Brothers.  Yes, there are some interesting plot twists, but they don’t alleviate the “Been there/Done that” feel of this show.

To illustrate, in one episode, Murphy needs to gain access to a gang of thieves.  Thus, he has one of his fellow officers pretend to hold-up the leader of the gang, then Murphy appears on the scene and “saves” the crook.

How many times have we seen that ruse in a movie or television show?

I know that I saw something very much like that three days ago in Johnny Eager, a 1942 gangster movie that I was watching.

Another element missing from this series is a sense of tension and grit.  The directors have not endowed the show with any feeling of urgency, not even in an episode that involves a race-against-time to save a life.

I have the feeling that the producers of Murphy’s Law were hoping to achieve something akin to The Shield or, at the least, NYPD Blue, but the show is just too relaxed to even come close to those classic crime series.

THE VIDEO

The widescreen picture is broadcast sharp.  There are no noticeable flaws.

THE AUDIO

The stereo sound is fine, although occasionally it is difficult to understand the British and Irish dialects.

THE EXTRAS

A biography of James Nesbitt.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Good casting and some memorable moments cannot overcome the fact that this series lacks in its storytelling and direction.