“Little Boy Blue.” / “Bodkin.”

“Little Boy Blue” (Britbox) British drama series about the murder of Rhys Jones in Croxteth, Liverpool in 2007. Background story: On 22 August 2007, an eleven-year-old English boy was murdered in Liverpool while walking home from football practice. Sean Mercer, aged 16 at the time of the shooting, went on trial on 2 October 2008, and was found guilty of murder on 16 December. Mr Mercer was sentenced to life imprisonment serving a minimum of 22 years; three other young men were sentenced to jail albeit lesser terms.

       For his performance as Rhys’s father Steve, Brían F. O'Byrne won the British Academy Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in 2018. Although all others in this short 4-episode drama deserved an award, including Stephen Graham as the cop in charge of the case, DS Dave Kelly, and Sinéad Keenan as Melanie, Rhys’s mother.

       After watching it, I was joking that if this series is a Hollywood project, we would have been through 10 to 12 episodes. Most British shows aren’t that elongated; the most is 6 episodes. “Little Boy Blue” is straight-to-the-point, no bombastic frills, and bloated back-stories. Yet we didn’t miss a thing, I feel, as we got embroiled in the short journey. 

       Sad true story. These bully boys aren’t even pushing drugs as supplied by big time fiends in the city or backed up by local politicians or were they members of wealthy families in town. They were ordinary kids in violent gang mischief, trying to be “big.” And ordinary parents who are torn between protecting their children or punishing them (via the law) for their stupid decisions. 🎥👍📽

“Bodkin” (Netflix) black comedy thriller. An American podcaster travels to Bodkin, an Irish coastal town, to investigate a cold case involving the disappearance of three people during a Samhain celebration several decades prior.

       I did enjoy the first 3 or 4 episodes. The characters were funny and interesting. I am not really referring to Will Forte as Gilbert Power, the American podcaster. He is still corny and boring.

       I meant to say Siobhan Cullen, the Dublin-born Dubheasa "Dove" Maloney, an acerbic investigative journalist in London who is sent on assignment to Donkin, and the other actors/characters, such as David Wilmot as the mysterious and shady Seamus Gallagher, Robyn Cara as Emmy Sizergh, Gilbert's assistant, and Chris Walley as Sean O'Shea. Plus the old men, especially the eerie one who drove a golf cart. 

        The investigation was intriguing, local myths and Samhain and stuff, until the situation got convoluted with the backstories of eels and Interpol, local drug cartels, and lots of nuns. I didn't really get to the clarity who murdered who etcetera.

      But I'd love to see Siobhan Cullen again, sometime. 🎥💻📽