Detective Sergeant June Lenker (Jumbo, convincing in the part) is forwarded the case by the hotline and her boss. A driven rookie cop, wanting to change the Metropolitan Police’s culture from the inside, Lenker dives in, researching the inmate the caller referenced. Her efforts lead her to Detective Chief Inspector Daniel Haggerty (Capaldi), who secured a guilty plea from Errol Mathis (Tom Moutchi) in the murder of his girlfriend Adelaide Burrows. It is clear from the moment Lenker mentions the case in the context of the hotline call, that Haggerty is wary. It is possible that he is worried about his legacy, but it becomes rapidly evident that he worked with and is trying to protect a fairly large operation. Thus begins a back-and-forth between Lenker, a mixed-race woman who is easily trotted out by the bosses as part of the Met’s diversity and inclusion efforts, and Haggerty, who is driven by more than just prejudice.
Credit where credit is due: Jumbo and Capaldi bring considerable vigor and authenticity to their roles. In a recent interview the latter mentions that the pair chose not to rehearse, relying more on reacting to each other in the moment. This approach is evident in their performances, which veer from adversarial to cordial to even mentor and mentee. June is a fairly standard female cop character: tough as nails, duking it out in a historically white, male-dominated workplace as both a woman and a black person, unwilling to compromise her toughness by being too emotional. Fortunately, Jumbo adds necessary nuance to this portrayal via doubts about Lenker’s loyalties, fears that her son is and will continue to be racially profiled by her colleagues, and anxieties that her white, liberal second husband Leo’s (Stephen Campbell Moore, always welcome) understanding of her plight is blinkered by his own privilege.
Equally compelling is Capaldi as Haggerty, cast very much against type. Best known as the 12th Doctor on the long-running British sci-fi show “Doctor Who,” or as the freely foul-mouthed spin doctor Malcolm Tucker on “The Thick Of It,” Capaldi here relies on reining in his usual exuberance. Haggerty is juggling a vast network of secrets, and at first, trying to keep his cool, merely creates physical distance between himself and Lenker, walking away from her to request a cup of tea, or standing behind a chair while she remains seated. It’s quite a treat to watch Capaldi create an arc for Haggerty through body language: after attempting physical distance, he tries stillness, pausing in thought to consider his options, unblinking for what feels like an eternity as he assesses the danger he and his cop buddies are in. His blue eyes never widen, never betray alarm, but the visible vein in his forehead betrays his stress levels. No one would doubt Haggerty’s confidence at work, but there is a definite weariness, just the slightest stoop of the shoulders, as he attends to Lisa, his neglected adult daughter, who has suffered at his hands from more than just plain old cop-as-absent-parent syndrome.