Scarpetta

The criss-crossing timelines gradually show how all these personal lives evolved over time, and it really does keep you hooked. Loading in such familial emotion is pretty nimble writing.

If Scarpetta has a flaw, it’s that the identification of the killer feels like a bit of an afterthought. All the mysteries surrounding that mystery—the undercurrents in Kay’s family and the way the past haunts its members—have become much more intriguing. Or is this a flaw? In a genre rife with shopworn tropes, it’s the detective series that captivates while breaking the mold that is the most worth celebrating.

The best recipe for the formula’s success is often as simple as casting, with Nicole Kidman, Jamie Lee Curtis, Bobby Cannavale, Simon Baker, and Ariana DeBose elevating this thriller about the hunt for deadly serial killers.

Although Kidman’s performance and the show as a whole falter a bit in the final episodes, McEwen never does. Family and colleague interactions and clever dialogue engage more than the crime-solving aspects of “Scarpetta,” partly because gratuitous shots of nude female corpses cheapen that aspect of the show. But action-oriented scenes have their merits.