The Big Picture

• After the Flood brings a fresh spin on crime dramas with a post-flood conspiracy and a determined detective-in-training.
• Creator Mick Ford's meticulous planning adds depth to the story, unraveling red threads in a satisfying and cathartic way.
• Sophie Rundle shines as PC Jo Marshall, navigating moral quandaries with a strong supporting cast in a polished series.

I’m rather picky about my police procedurals. I’ve seen more than I can count, having grown up on them, so it takes a hell of a spin on the format to prove to me that a new one is worth watching. Some manage that well — like the aquatic take on crime scene investigation in Annika — but by and large, most seem to lean on the idea that, if one set of grandparents likes the format of say, FBI or Blue Bloods, then they can do the exact same thing and get away with it, provided that they tweak things just enough to avoid a copyright suit.

Luckily, however, BritBox seems to be taking things in a different direction as they continue to bring imports over from British streamers. In a similar vein to Annika, After the Flood arrives on American shores on the wave of its own titular disaster. Set in the aftermath of, you guessed it, a catastrophic flood in the north of England, Sophie Rundle stars as PC Jo Marshall, a detective-in-training who finds herself looped into a major conspiracy. When a body is discovered in one of the flooded areas, all seems normal, if devastating — until police discover that the victim died two days before the flood, and Jo is determined to find out the truth behind how he died. Oh, and did I mention she’s pregnant?

Coming from the brain of showrunner Mick Ford, After the Flood has a kind of finesse that only comes when its creator has a definitive end in mind. As opposed to shows that leave themselves open for infinite renewal (and therefore financial security for its creative team), Ford has created a cinematic story from an unreplicable kind of situation, as tragic as it may be, and harnessing what a lot of procedurals nowadays seem to be missing: a slow-drip reason to keep watching, rather than only picking it up every now and then.

'After the Flood' Is a Sturdy Murder Mystery Series

There’s a kind of meticulousness to well-done crime dramas that inverts what would otherwise seem frustrating and lacking in finesse. A lesser show might leave audiences feeling like they’ve had exposition dumped on them in heaps (something happens far too often with new procedurals as they find their footing), but when a concept is planned out to the hilt — in a way I can only describe as Agatha Christie-esque — watching something like After the Flood expose its own infrastructure isn’t so much frustrating as it is cathartic. Trailing the red threads as they slowly unravel and connect scratches a certain kind of itch that isn’t always satisfied by these kinds of shows, and Ford’s exploration of a community inextricably stitched together, for better or for worse, fills that gap almost perfectly.

There are, of course, points where things get so complex they can be difficult to follow, but I’d rather be lost in the weeds with a strong cast than able to see exactly where something’s going the moment the first clue is revealed. Naturally, with time it becomes easier to spot the baddies (especially if you spend as much of your time watching TV as a critic does), but there’s a difference between being led to a conclusion and jumping there yourself simply because the writers can’t be arsed to put in the work to make you as the viewer… well, work for it.

After the Flood is a sturdy series that knows what it’s trying to do and doesn’t mind if people can see its seams, which makes its twists (because there are always a few of those in murder mysteries) all the more satisfying. Ford and company never employ shock for shock’s sake, even if there are a couple of moments that genuinely set off my anxiety. (If you’re squeamish around scenes involving car crashes, wade into the back half of the show at your own peril.) It’s a hallmark of polished, strong writing, of a story completely thought through from beginning to end, and while it plays less with ideas of right and wrong and our relationship to the law than something like Criminal Record, it builds the rest of its moral quandaries with care and attention.

Sophie Rundle and Co. Lead ‘After the Flood’ With Ease and Interest

All this is tied together by Rundle, on the heels of roles in period dramas like Gentleman Jack and Peaky Blinders, more than capable of serving as a strong contemporary heroine. I often find it tough to muster the required sympathy for leads in newer procedurals, who either come off as too waifish and dedicated to their own morals, or reckless and ridiculous, like someone who’d seen too many reruns of Law & Order: SVU. But Rundle’s PC Marshall manages to straddle the line between law-abiding and law-bending well, serving as the pivot point between the normal members of her community and those whose moral backbone is slightly more flexible.

Speaking of the rest of the community, Lorraine Ashbourne pulls just as much weight as Jo’s mother Molly, often operating as a second lead when her daughter’s investigative trails go cold. She’s stacked against the formidable Philip Glenister as shady land developer Jack Radcliffe, a tiny firecracker of a woman who gives the series its real heart and soul. (It’s funny, having rewatched Ashes to Ashes approximately one million times, to watch Glenister play a character on the other side of the law, but just as well — he’s phenomenally unsettling when he wants to be.)

There are very few people here who aren’t firing on all cylinders, much to the show’s benefit. I always joke that England has five actors that are in everything (see also: my comment about Ashes), but After the Flood has assembled quite the ensemble, both of more familiar faces and newer ones as well. It’s a testament to the rising quality of BritBox’s ITV imports, of which this is a particular standout, and to the fact that a cast with chemistry is just as important as the scripts they’re acting with. No one’s slacking off here — proof that you can still reinvent the wheel with a classic story structure, provided you do it right.

After the Flood premieres new episodes weekly on BritBox.

Watch on BritBox