Dept. Q Series: Clean, Crisp, Brilliant Thriller on Netflix

I started watching Dept. Q, a quietly released series on Netflix, without much contextual marketing coming my way. Having seen a well-known name, Matthew Goode, in the very first scene, it got me hooked. What kept me going is the brilliant intro, and background music- and I kept watching until the very damn end. It did not disappoint!

TMJ Rating: 🍿🍿🍿🍿🍿/ 5

The Plot of Dept. Q Netflix Series

Carl Morck, played to absolute perfection by Matthew Goode, undergoes a traumatic experience while on the job as a highly regarded detective, investigating a murder scene. To bring him out of his funk and back on track, solving cases, his boss, Detective Chief Superintendent Moira Jacobson, played by Kate Dickie assigns him cases under a brand-new department that he will head.

Meanwhile, a Syrian national in Edinburgh named Akram is trying his best to get his foot in the door in the police department by using his wife's sweet treats as a lure, given to the weakest link in the station, named Rose.

Gradually, a team begins to form, starting with Akram, a case being chosen by sheer coincidence, and both of them going about chasing cold leads, warming them up. With each passing minute, it just keeps getting better.

Dept. Q. is based on a series of novels by the Danish crime fiction author Jussi Adler-Olsen. The only major difference in the Netflix adaptation is that while the novels are set in Copenhagen, the series is set in Scotland's capital. I personally love the Scottish accent in this series, it sounds like speaking with a mouthful of carrot cake!

You might like Totenfrau Staffel 2, Woman of the Dead Season 2 Review

The sound design in the Netflix series Dept Q. is clean and clear, with background music used efficiently and to obtain maximum impact. A part of the background score sounds like a prominent section of the James Bond theme. You will also love the bagpipes, which blare right into the background music gradually, sometimes building the tension and sometimes just carrying the story forward.

Serious Issues Addressed on Dept. Q

The entire series has a warm core that you might not grasp immediately, but the more you watch, the more you recognize the showrunner Scott Frank looking at the characters with compassion. Every character is given adequate space to breathe and grow, and unwind at their own pace.

Carl Morck's Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ( PTSD ) is shown when he is trying to get back to work, heading his new department. Things such as panic attacks, anxiety, frustration, and rage, all manifestations of PTSD, are shown realistically in this series.

Check out Anatomy of a Fall Movie Review

Other issues include how Moira is working extra hard to ensure that she isn't affected by the extra judgment by the patriarchy to keep her job, and ensures that another woman who steps into her shoes would not pay for her sins.

There is also the undeniable bond between brother and sister in the case of Meritt, which seems heartwarming. Although I am yet to come across such enduring love in tough circumstances, and seems to be the most optimistic part of the series.

Check out Your Friends and Neighbors Apple TV+ Series Review

But let's face it: People use, deceive, cheat, and trick each other, be it family, friends, or anything in between. There is only money and power; everything else is just a means to one or the other - the sooner you realize this, the better. This isn't me or my opinion, it is what the world rewards these days.

The Cast of Dept. Q Series on Netflix

Matthew Goode as Carl Morck, the Detective Chief Inspector ( DCI ), is the grizzled police veteran trying to deal with a stepchild he didn't exactly sign up for, an absentee wife, and frustration with a world that is constantly trying to catch up with him. Then there is his rag-tag team of two, including him, a Syrian immigrant, and a personal assistant who is reluctantly helping him in his shaky cause.

Chloe Pirrie as Merritt Lingard plays the hardened prosecutor whose allegiance to justice is only matched by the bond with her brother. I have seen quite a few lawyers in my day, but I am yet to come across an advocate with the values displayed by Merritt in all its glory.

Kelly Macdonald as Dr Rachel Irving does a good job of portraying the psychotherapist who has had her share of tough patients, knowing how to deal with cops who don't wish to share much with her. A psychologist such as her will tailor each of her methods according to her patient, so it is fun to see how she handles Carl Morck.

Alexej Manvelov as Akram Salim does an "admirable job," as Akram would say in character, playing a Syrian refugee who is stoic and mysterious, and skill sets which are quite different from the job profile of an IT admin, he displays when pressed.

Shirley Henderson as Claire Marsh, I immediately recognized as the spirit Moaning Myrtle in the Harry Potter franchise, with her ever-so-distinctly squeaky voice becoming a part of her character, whether she wanted it to or not.

Kate Dickie as Moira plays the gutsy Detective Chief Superintendent who does not want to lose her job over any screw-ups in the department and fights to get more resources in the station.

Jamie Sives as DCI James Hardy is one of the other coppers who gets shot in the same incident, along with Carl Morck, and ends up bedridden in a hospital in active recovery with the help of physical therapists and nurses on call.

You might like Mission: Impossible - Final Reckoning

Mark Bonnar as the easy-to-dislike Stephen, the Lord Advocate, who is in charge of all legal counsel for the Scottish Government.

Leah Byrne as Rose is the weak link in the police department, whom Akram Salim targets ever so delicately with his homemade sweets, to ensure his request for a job stays at the top of her mind. Rose's "The Sun'll Come out tomorrow" hair is in stark contrast to her will, maturity, and persistence.

Should You Watch It? Hell Yes!

This is one of those series that boasts an amazing screenplay, driven by a great plot based on a good book, and acted out by a stellar cast with unique chemistry that adds significantly to the storytelling. Watch this series as it is simply one of the best thriller/mystery series in a while.