Whitechapel

 

ITV's Whitechapel enters a television landscape overcrowded with crime drama but seeks to stand out among the rest through the use of history as a means to solve the mystery. 

The first series follows a copycat of Jack the Ripper and with the help of a Ripperologist Edward Buchan played by Steve Pemberton, DI Chandler a fast-tracked detective played by Rupert Penry-Jones and DS Miles played most excellently by Philip Davis try to catch the killer before he completes Jack's canonical murders. I thought the show was brilliantly done. The plot kept me on the edge of my seat. Plenty of suspense even in the mere three episodes of the first series. Although the series was set in 2008 and not 1888 the aesthetic of the first series removed it from a total contemporary feel. The washout look and lighting techniques fit in well with the allusions to Jack the Ripper. I loved how the series brought the past into the present by way of editing and the repetition of Jack the Ripper shots which was used as a segue between scenes. The look of the first series is in big part thanks to S.J. Clarkson, who also directed episodes of Life on Mars including the two-part finale. Usually directors don't have much of a signature on television as they do on cinema because there needs to be a uniform aesthetic throughout the entire series, however, S.J. Clarkson is clearly there. Before I caught her name in the credits I thought that the style of the series was much like Life on Mars. Luckily it works for both shows. The second series, with a new director, not necessarily lacked the look of the first but was not able to execute it as well.

Even though Rupert Penry-Jones stands as the main protagonist I found it hard to warm to him until the second series when his facade crumbled and he allowed his OCD to control him. He was very stiff but he won me over when he bashed in the light switch as his OCD was preventing him from leaving. That I felt was the turning point. Philip Davis for me was a joy to watch and it was so nice to see him in a role where he wasn't the villain (Sherlock and Merlin). He was very natural compared to Penry-Jones and I think it helps that he looks like a normal person and fits the role of the hardened detective perfectly.

With the end of the first series and the evasion of the police by the copycat killer I didn't know how they would do a second series. Or at least how they could continue with the character of Ed Buchan who had devoted his career to Jack the Ripper which I felt made the second series a bit unbelievable with the continuation of the Buchan character. It's not that I didn't like him but I felt the second story connected with history was a little farfetched. The Kray brothers terrorized London in the 1960s and now the supposed twin sons of one of the Kray brothers has come back to continue the legacy of their father and uncle. Too consequential that buchan had done a documentary on the Kray brothers as well as being an expert on Jack the Ripper. 

Getting over the fairly weak plot line the second series was filled more with conspiracy which again had me at the edge of my seat. I'm quite forgiving of weak plot lines when the story grabs me regardless. Bad cops, bribes and the mystery of the Kray brothers kept the story going for again the three episodes of the second series. Craig Parkinson, who I only know from Misfits, was fantastic as Jimmy and Johnny Kray. He looked dangerous and insane. He was believable which made him a bit scary. The scene that stays in my mind is when Chandler is taken to meet Jimmy and Johnny for the first time and the camera is the twins. The subtle differences between Jimmy and Johnny that Parkinson portrayed were great and I suppose are needed for  twin portrayal by one actor. I would rather deal with Johnny than Jimmy based on that scene alone. Peter Serafinowicz also joined the cast a the head of the organized crime division. He definitely fit the role he played I didn't trust him from the beginning. A lot of that is due to the conspiracy nature of the second series in which really you/Chandler couldn't trust anyone. I'm not sure I really like his suicide. I felt it was a easy way out, too easy. I'm still not convinced that Commander Anderson is a good guy. 

Whitechapel will return for a third series, this time with six episodes and three cases, something to look forward to.