The Vanishing Triangle

I am a crime writer who has studied the individual cases that are commonly associated with Ireland's so-called Vanishing Triangle.

This show basically just took the phrase and spun it into yet another far-fetched, cliche crime drama series.

It's a cash grab by someone who realised that the title would garner some interest.

Another reviewer said that it is based on true events. This statement is so false that I suspect it was written by someone who is associated with the series.

The vast majority of the women who went missing in Ireland's "Vanishing Triangle" are believed to have been killed by someone who was well-known to them. There is a very strong suspect in each case.

Only two are believed to have been the victim of a stranger abduction.

When I first heard that someone was creating a series called The Vanishing Triangle, I thought that we'd get an in-depth look at the victims and their cases. Or at least a factual dramatisation that accurately represented their stories.

Instead, we got a series about a journalist taking a murder investigation into her own hands and some lad running around in a balaclava.

The plot and acting is compelling enough, but the whole thing is badly let down by the sound quality. Background noises and music are always twice the volume of the actual voices making it pretty wearing to listen to.

If you can bear the sound the then whole thing is fairly watchable, if a little improbable. Journalist turns police woman in a brooding, slightly gritty drama. Nothing particularly new or novel but okay

It has an 18 rating but I'm not entirely sure why. There aren't really any scenes that are worse than you'd get in a typical fictional TV police series.

In summary an okay watch if you can bear the sound mix.

It's rather daring. To execute this crime story in a manner we remember from the 80's. The 1980's that is. But, it works. Up to a point. They manage to stir up the tension and keep it boiling until... the famous final scene. Where it gets a bit slow and archaic.

Yes, it is a relief to escape from mobile phones and computers. That world of instant messaging that kills most of the excitement. And we get a lot of passionate acting in many supporting roles. And India Mullen fights for her life surrounded by soggy memories.

This is strictly watching the Detectives. The old-fashioned police & thieves saga.

Twisty plot contrivances get a little unhinged in final episode, but creepy tone and excellent performances particularly from the two lead actors kept us glued to the screen.

Based on true still unsolved murders, this show depicts a what-if scenario to try to explain the disappearances of missing women in Ireland in the 1990s. The feeling of dread and tension doesn't exactly fit in with Irelands identity as a charming friendly country.

The unique element of the show is that it doesn't just search out the bad guy serial killer. It also shows how the institutions of the time were totally corrupt.

The story, pacing and video side of the production including the acting were very good. However, the overall experience is let down by some rather shoddy sound engineering. Within the first 10 minutes, it should have been obvious to the Director that there was a shortfall. Considering the fact that I grew up in in Dublin and that I had to have sub titles switched on should be indication enough that there was something not so effectively done.

As stated in another review, the sound separation was abysmal for a modern production, even Smart TVs with Dialogue Enhancers and various surround enhancing alternatives did not do enough to help.

The Dublin dialect can be difficult to understand as certain words roll into others so it IS important. The speech coach should have realised this on first review as well and questioned whether it was actors' failings or inadequate sound capture and/or separation.

Interestingly enough, the actor that stands out as being the most articulate is the one who worked on Downton Abbey. Possibly the bigger a production is may demand more resources thrown at actor articulation?

Otherwise, as I said, I found the story very intetesting.