S01E01

This is a fairly decent, if uninspiring, opener to BBC’s new spin on the classic Jekyll and Hyde story. James Nesbitt, in the pivotal dual role, is a perfect bit of casting. As Tom (aka Jekyll), he is rightly understated and morose, but he really burns up the screen as the charismatically malevolent Jekyll.

Some nifty camerawork and washed out colours give the episode a good visual feel, but the narrative seems to lack that definitive hook at times, although Hyde’s confrontation with the knife-wielding Billy is superb. Tom’s domestic situation seems fairly tedious and the scenes with Miranda, the private detective agency owner, lack any spark or tension until the end of the episode.

However, this opener is setting up events for later episodes, so has to carry the burden of much exposition and unravelling the back story. Whether it succeeds or not will be discovered in the upcoming weeks…