Roush Review: Having ‘Patience’ Pays off in a Compelling British Crime Drama
Review
Patience
Patience is rarely a virtue for TV detectives, but the British cops in the absorbing procedural Patience (joining the 10th season of Grantchester on PBS‘s Sunday lineup) have never met anyone quite like Patience Evans (the delicately fascinating Ella Maisy Purvis, a neurodivergent young actress). An autistic savant with a penchant for puzzles, Patience toils in serene solitude in the York police records office.
That is, until her attention for detail and uncanny ability to find patterns no one else can see put Patience on the radar of Detective Inspector Bea Metcalf (Breaking Bad‘s appealing Laura Fraser), whose life is as messy as Patience’s is carefully ordered.
Bea, a frazzled divorcee who has begun to suspect her troubled son might also be on the spectrum, pulls the fragile young woman out of her comfort zone to help solve a series of mystifying whodunits, despite a colleague’s warning that Patience is “temperamentally unsuitable for this kind of work.”
Which may be true, especially when her inability to read social cues creates complications during investigations. But her desire to be useful and live up to the memory of her father, a well-respected police officer (seen in poignant flashbacks), keeps Patience coming back, eventually opening up to Bea as a tentative friendship blossoms. (She also develops an adorable crush on a cute young crime-scene tech, whose attempts to ask her out are often met with amusing bewilderment.)
Patience, adapted from the French series Astrid, is a worthy addition to a recent roster of quirky crime-solvers including Will Trent, High Potential, Elsbeth, and Poker Face, to name a few. This heroine’s solemn demeanor, which brightens beautifully during “eureka” moments of discovery, distinguishes her from the pack, as she realizes, “The solution lies in looking at it from a different angle.” When Bea responds to Patience’s genius by saying, “I could kiss you,” Patience responds, “Don’t. Please don’t.” With enough patience, though, hugs will be forthcoming.
The tension between her undeniable talent and her understandable insecurities makes Patience a winner in its first six-episode season, with a second season underway. Which is good news, because I’m already impatient for more.
Patience, Series Premiere, Sunday, June 15, 8/7c, PBS
Conversation20 Comments
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R
I have only watched the first episode of "Patience" but would strongly recommend that anyone who enjoys this premise watch the series "Astrid". That series seems to be so much better than what I have seen of "Patience" so far. And there is absolutely no comarison between the lead actresses in both series. The two lead actresses in "Astrid" give far superior performances. From the very first episode of "Astrid" you will be hooked!
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O
Agree I was totally hooked and was fantastic series
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G
Looking forward to Patience, although I think the French original will be hard to beat. .
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O
Watched tonite and not bad but not as good as Astrid which I loved. It happened with Professor T also and not as good. Maybe if I watched the the reboots first I may feel different
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O
What was "crap" about it? You leave all these negative comments on shows yet offer no details. It makes one look like an internet troll/hater.
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I haven't seen Astrid but can easily accept that Patience is an inferior adaptation. Having said that, I certainly liked the first episode well enough to keep watching, although — mild spoilers; I'll be vague — I found the scene where one character follows the other into a meeting to be an incredible breach of privacy. I get that it might be meant to reinforce her as not entirely sympathetic but it was still just awfully uncomfortable.
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O
I totally enjoy the show Today people are in such a rush to have something explained quickly and not requiring very little thought process at all Also as far as the environment a lot of work places are not bright and sunny or are the outdoors in which they live This was not produced in the United States people on the spectrum can be as productive as the character presented in the show. People need to educate themselves a little before they criticize something they know very little about. Maybe watching cartoons or a car chase might be a little closer the haters level.
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R
My husband and I really like this show. Does it have production problems? What show doesn’t! That’s just nitpicking. The characters are believable and Purvis is exceptional in her role as Patience. There are so many detective shows on right now that this is a welcome change.
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O
Is the movie good?
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O
Will be trying this series, but with low expectations. Astrid was a classic series, with a sensational performance by the actress playing Astrid. Judging by the comments by others here, Patience is no Astrid.
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P
Astrid is by far better than Patience.
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P
I'll add Ludwig to the list of quirky crime solvers, because the show is delightful. Sadly only available on BritBox at this time, but well liked enough that someone is talking about making an American version.
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O
Watched Ludwig on Netflix and it is fantastic. Hope 2nd season as we need the brother back with his family
Just the idea of a American version makes me sick. The Brits are totally different and much better in this field.
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G
Totally agree
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O
Great show. So glad it was renewed.
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O
Very good content，I have recorded some things, you are also welcome to take a look: https://www.athemselves.com/
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R
Production problems really How many police stations are bright and cheerful??
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R
It's early days for 'Patience', but it has some promise. The "Walter Presents" team apparently has begun producing Americanized versions of shows exported to the US, typically to PBS. Without knowing more about Ella Maisy Purvis, it's only a guess how her "neuro-divergence" informs and shapes her character and performance as Patience — but Sara Mortensen's consistency, believability and powerful focus in the title role of 'Astrid', is hard to match — and Lola Dewaere's turn as Astrid's police handler/sponsor/friend is just as good.
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O
Who cares scammer
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B
Nowhere near the caliber of performance and actors in Astrid. Even if I hadn’t seen Astrid, this new version seems forced. I hope Astrid actually comes out with another season.
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