The Bridge

Although it's an acquired taste, any fan of AMC's "The Killing" will quickly pick up on the parallels in this unusual murder mystery. It features two oddly paired police detectives, one from the El Paso police and another from Ciudad Juarez. As in the killing, the female detective is dedicated but personally challenged by an imbalanced personality and a singular drive to follow her leads to the bitter end. Unlike other viewers, I like Diane Kruger in the role and think we're only seeing the beginning of her personality development: I do believe she is an Asperger's sufferer and captures the traits of one afflicted with this quite well. There are many high-functioning and accomplished individuals with these symptoms all around the country, and in many ways, her focus on the details and minutiae of this case will help rather than hinder her along the way.

As her mismatched Mexican partner in the investigation, Demian Bechir possesses all the odd charm of his counterpart in "The Killing," the streetwise and pragmatic Detective Holder.

I've never seen a TV program that focuses on a sensitive border issue or the tragedy of so many murdered girls in Juarez, so I applaud FX for giving us something truly original. "The Killing" is the only thing remotely comparable to it, and I actually like the same type of slow unraveling of a gripping mystery we're being drawn into. I'm so weary of the CSI and Law and Order one-hour quick kill and wrap-up compacted into one hour of predictable procedural. I'll definitely keep watching!

I watched the Danish version of the bridge and am a big fan. The premise of the American version HAD me really excited. The fact that they tried to copy exactly the Danish version was a complete disaster. Diane Kruger is horrible in this role. I don't doubt she has talent but they should have allowed for her to play the role in her own way instead of copying an unforgettable role that was already done (and done well).I had a hard time sitting through the 1st episode. Demian Bichir is the only redeeming quality in this show and might be the only reason I continue to watch. The female lead in the Danish version is extremely hard to pull off, so they shouldn't have even tried. I'm seriously saddened since I had high hopes for this show. Did no one watch the reels before putting them out for human consumption? Was there not a test audience?

The first season is a remake of the original Danish-Swedish version of The Bridge but they do enough differently to make it interesting. The show uses the story of the bridge murder to explore the dynamic between the US and Mexico and the corruption and helplessness felt in the face of the powerful narcos.

The first season does a good job with the remake and then the second season dives deeper into the narco state and the people that are corrupted or left dead in its wake. Some great characters pop up and there is no black and white, only interesting shades of gray among them. I really enjoyed the second season which started to remind me of Breaking Bad a bit, both in the descent of a particular character into corruption and just in general great quality of the show.

In summary the first season was an 8 for me and the second season a 10 so I landed on 9 for the series grade. Too bad they didn't go for more seasons but they went out on top quality which is rare, so thanks to all involved.

While in the original TV series Sofia Helin gives an outstanding, sometimes funny, always compelling portrait of a police detective challenged with Asperger syndrome, her US counterpart takes out most of the fun by making her personality quite unbelievable.

The same goes for Demian Bichir. His complex character of the Danish Cop in personal troubles becomes the caricature of Latino clichés similar to the perception the US has about their southern neighbor as a whole.

The crisp design of this former superb Scandinavian TV series turns into a the the kind of blunt, boring, mediocre, dark mash of cop series that swamp TV sets world wide.

If you have the possibility, see the superb original to appreciate what TV can do.

Matthew Lilliard makes this series worth watching. Not since the character Jeff Spiccoli has there been a more hilarious druggie. Aside from the tons of humor created by Lilliard, the story itself is riveting and gives a close-up look at Mexican cartels and American corruption. The many death scenes are not for the weak-minded, reminding one of Criminal Minds (but not as weird).