Silk (TV Series)
Courtesy of the BBC iPlayer, I've spent the last evenings marathoning through Silk, a six part series none of you ever told me about, which is a shame. The main character is fierce 40ish barrister Martha Costello, played by Maxine Peake; the title refers to "taking silk", as becoming Queen's Counsel is referred to in English legalese, and what both Martha and her main competition Clive (Rupert Penry-Jones) aspire to through the series. They both belong to the same group of barristers from a chambers in London, and the first thing that struck me as a difference to many an American show featuring lawyers is that as opposed to a law firm, chambers provides barristers both for defence AND prosecution.
The other immediately striking difference is visually, because none of the women is frighteningly thin. The two most important regular female characters other than Martha are played by Natalie Dormer and Nina Sosanya (Bellino in RTD's Casanova) respectively. And we're not going for the obvious in terms of dynamics between the barristers; to wit, UST between Martha and any of the important male characters. Minor spoiler alert: She already has had a one night stand with Clive in the past before the show started and isn't interested in more (nor is he), her relationship with the chambers' senior clark, Billy, is of the paternal type, and her sidekick Nick is her pupil.
As I may have mentioned once or twice, cough, I enjoy stories featuring competent people, and almost everyone at this show is very good at their jobs, not only Our Heroine; if they aren't, it's adressed as a plot point. There is a lot of competition and scheming, but also comradery and friendships. For example: Something I especially appreciated is that Niamh (Dormer's character), who like Nick is a pupil, has an affair with Clive but gets just as much screentime with Nick and with Martha (whom the show never plays her put against), and the relationships she forms with them are as important, if not more so, as her love life. Hooray for varied emotional landscapes!
The cases Martha has to deal with are usually nicely shades of grey, include ethical dilemmas, and are structured as whydonits, not whodunits. They also have consequences at times that spread over the rest of the season. And the characters aren't black and white, either; unsympathetic ones get to make good points, and everyone's motivations for their respective actions make sense. Since Martha and her collegues keep switching between defense and prosecution (though Martha is mostly defense, but we do get to see her prosecute as well), there is also none of the law firm versus state attorney's office positioning which are usual on the American shows I know. It makes for a fascinatingly different court room dynamic.
In conclusion: loved it, want more, am glad to hear that the BBC has comissioned another season.
This entry was originally posted at http://selenak.dreamwidth.org/749235.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.
The other immediately striking difference is visually, because none of the women is frighteningly thin. The two most important regular female characters other than Martha are played by Natalie Dormer and Nina Sosanya (Bellino in RTD's Casanova) respectively. And we're not going for the obvious in terms of dynamics between the barristers; to wit, UST between Martha and any of the important male characters. Minor spoiler alert: She already has had a one night stand with Clive in the past before the show started and isn't interested in more (nor is he), her relationship with the chambers' senior clark, Billy, is of the paternal type, and her sidekick Nick is her pupil.
As I may have mentioned once or twice, cough, I enjoy stories featuring competent people, and almost everyone at this show is very good at their jobs, not only Our Heroine; if they aren't, it's adressed as a plot point. There is a lot of competition and scheming, but also comradery and friendships. For example: Something I especially appreciated is that Niamh (Dormer's character), who like Nick is a pupil, has an affair with Clive but gets just as much screentime with Nick and with Martha (whom the show never plays her put against), and the relationships she forms with them are as important, if not more so, as her love life. Hooray for varied emotional landscapes!
The cases Martha has to deal with are usually nicely shades of grey, include ethical dilemmas, and are structured as whydonits, not whodunits. They also have consequences at times that spread over the rest of the season. And the characters aren't black and white, either; unsympathetic ones get to make good points, and everyone's motivations for their respective actions make sense. Since Martha and her collegues keep switching between defense and prosecution (though Martha is mostly defense, but we do get to see her prosecute as well), there is also none of the law firm versus state attorney's office positioning which are usual on the American shows I know. It makes for a fascinatingly different court room dynamic.
In conclusion: loved it, want more, am glad to hear that the BBC has comissioned another season.
This entry was originally posted at http://selenak.dreamwidth.org/749235.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.