What Is the Story About?
Bodkin follows an American podcaster named Gilbert Power who travels to Bodkin, an Irish coastal town alongside a Dublin born investigative journalist Dove Maloney to investigate a cold case involving mysterious disappearance of three people. Dove is relegated to a podcast assignment after the death of her source – a government whistleblower, while Gilbert – a one hit wonder podcaster is on the lookout for his Irish roots joined by a rookie podcaster. The series superposes the cases the trio investigates while peeling off layers of their pasts and skeletons.
Performances?
For a show that deals with an explosive mystery, people-relationships in a small-town and three fresh off-the-shelf investigators (podcasters), the most important aspect is the cast and their chemistry. Bodkin has a charming star-cast and the actors share believable chemistry with each other.
While Siobhan Cullen‘s Dove is the most straightforward of them all, her instincts are on point, she’s a no non-sense person and an investigative journalist whose spark her supervisors can’t afford. Will Forte plays podcaster Gilbert with the right mix of idiocy, naivety and exaggerated annoyance. This makes him the exact opposite of Dove.
David Wilmot plays a pivotal Bodkin native ‘Seamus’, a man who is more than what meets the eye. He has a warm relationship with Gilbert and is one of the key takeaways of the series.
Analysis
From Barack Obama’s production house, this Irish Comedy Mystery Thriller follows a podcaster, his researcher and an investigative journalist on an assignment to uncover the Mysterious cold-case daunting the small and reclusive Bodkin town.
The show opens up to podcaster Gilbert confessing on how he didn’t intend to solve anything with his crime podcast. Parallely we have investigative journalist Dove Maloney, who has grown to be rather a menace to her higher-ups after her source – a government whistleblower died. They have now relegated her to an inferior podcast assignment led by Gilbert.
As someone who looks down upon true-crime podcasts/documentaries and values the human cost over sensationlism, Dove doesn’t really get along with Gilbert but joins his team to investigate the mysterious missing case of three individuals in Bodkin town.
While Bodkin takes some sweet time to kick-start it’s swing, the unserious and silly detours it takes to depict the disinterest of the community towards outsiders, the insider-outsier conflict etc becomes a bore. Resurfacing decades old cold-cases mostly catch inhabitants on wrong-foot and the show spends more time on showing these repercussions.
But once the writing sinks deep into the missing case mystery, the podcasters take a back-seat and the real people of Bodkin gains prominence.
What makes Bodkin also a comedy and critique of the genre it is in, is how it passes commentary on the media sensationlism of true crime and the secondary treatment the industry gives to the actual victims. Bodkin gives space to the people and even fleshes out some heartwarming moments between the locals and the podcasters amidst their investigation.
The mystery of Bodkin is worth investing your time on, but not the comedy in entirety. The pivotal characters share good moments but their characters and back-stories aren’t well fleshed out.
Bodkin shows the stark contrast between Emmy and Gilbert’s desperation (for a hit podcast) and Dove’s investigative diligence. Their interviewing styles differ like dusk and dawn, thereby helping the trio’s investigation.
To put it short, Bodkin makes or breaks no grounds. It critiques its own genre, tackles a riveting mystery, all being silly fun and engrossing. If you let go the fatigue of initial episodes, you’re in for rewarding payoffs.
Music and Other Departments?
Cathal Watters and Piers McGrail’s camera work for Bodkin is appreciable. The frames do justice to the beautiful Irish coastal town and it’s alluring scenary. Paul Leonard Morgan’s music and score retains the dark comedic mood of the show, while aptly embracing the thriller side of it.
Highlights?
Premise
Casting & Chemistry
Mystery Commentary on exploitative nature of true-crime docs.
Drawbacks?
Starts off on a dull note
not all gags land enough
Improperly fleshed out character arcs
Did I Enjoy It?
Yes
Will You Recommend It?
Yes
Bodkin Series Review by Binged Bureau
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