Review of White Lines

White Lines isn't perfect. While the delivery can occasionally feel a little cliched and the story is slow to get into its stride, it also has a carefully crafted plot, strong character development and worthy performances.

Out of these, character development stands out. In the very first episode, we see Andreu Calafat making a comparison between the polarised characters we see in movies, easily branded as good or bad, to real life, where this distinction is often more obscure.

Although this isn't the first time a story has tried to capitalise on this idea, White Lines does make good of its promise in a way that many have failed to. Across the series, characters are seen for both their virtues and their faults, humanising them, making them more relatable and, importantly, making you care about what happens. It is also used to play with your perception of characters over time, with new information changing your understanding of a character's actions, motivations and nature. In the setting of a murder mystery, this is a powerful tool.

While many of the show's criticisms are valid, White Lines also does many things very well.