Smoke: Tracce di fuoco

Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine delivers an EPIC, ICONIC, SURREAL PERFORMANCE that is, by itself, AN OUTSTANDING REASON TO WATCH.

I am from São Paulo, Brazil, love tv shows and had not seen him on screen before.

WHAT A PERFORMANCE. He turned a secondary character into a OUTLIER. His delivery is as solid as Christoph Waltz in Inglorious Bastards, less verbal of course...but its a league of its own. Accent, tone, non verbal, alternating tones of voice in a extremely disturbing performance.

Saw him this week on Dexter Ressurection. ANOTHER OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE, SO GOOD and DIFFERENT it seems like a completely different actor.

THANK YOU SIR.

The woman in this series is pretty much invincible and never held accountable for any of her actions. She's the smartest, strongest and baddest character in the whole series. Everything is catered towards her and there are no consequences for her actions. Everything goes her way all the time. Taron Egarton plays the lead and the psychological twist keep you in suspense. Meanwhile Smolletts character trots around the plot doing whatever she wants whenever she wants and nobody seems to care. She's just the most intelligent corrupted cop to ever exist.

Novelist, Dennis Lehane, creates an intelligent series that deals with the demented mind of pyromaniacs, all disguised as a mystery melodrama with edgy characters. Taron Egerton delivers an engaging - and sometimes uneasy performance - playing Dave Gudsen, an arson forensic for the fire department who draws you into the mystic power of the uncontrollable force of fire, a most powerful drug addiction to some. Jurnee Smollett matches it with a brutal portrayal as detective Calderone, forced to partner with Gudsen in order to track down the sick arsonists. The biggest surprise is Greg Kinnear as the fire chief, that brings the right balance to the yin and yang of the two main characters. A series well handled by the creative technical team that really gets into the psyche of the troubled minds who worship the power of the fire and its devastating effects.

Dennis Lehane and Taron Egerton's follow-up to Black Bird is ambitious, uneven television that succeeds as psychological thriller whilst failing as conventional crime drama.

The Good: Egerton delivers a masterfully unnerving performance once Dave's true nature emerges. His portrayal of wounded masculinity and narcissistic delusion is genuinely compelling. The supporting cast - particularly Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine's tragic Freddy and John Leguizamo's bitter ex-partner - provides excellent dramatic weight.

Ep 6-7 represent television at its finest, with psychological warfare that's properly riveting.

The Bad: Severe pacing issues plague the series. Ep 1 feels generic, Ep 4 descends into ridiculous territory, and Ep 8 tests patience as obvious setup. The finale prioritises character revelation over narrative closure, leaving frustrating loose ends. The series suffers from identity crisis: never quite deciding whether it's procedural or character study.

The Verdict: When "Smoke" embraces its psychological complexity, it's genuinely brilliant. Unfortunately, structural flaws and tonal inconsistency undermine its overall impact. The series works best as an actor's showcase for Egerton, whose performance alone justifies the journey.

Bottom Line: Compelling but flawed... worth watching for the psychological depth and exceptional performances, but temper expectations regarding satisfying resolutions.

Ambitious television that doesn't quite achieve its considerable potential.

After 2 episodes I'm in. This is easily one of my favorites shows of the year so far, unless the rest of the season goes off the rails. The characters are interesting, the dialog realistic (I'm no expert on the subject but it all feels legit), and the story has me completely hooked.

I don't understand the poor reviews especially after only 2 episodes. Cliche'? Maybe to some, but I haven't seen any other shows executed with this level of style and edginess in a while. The characters are just beginning to develop and boy are they a puzzle. After the plot twist at the end of episode 2, I can't wait to see where this goes.