Murder Call

This show is an actual police procedural, not a soap opera starring cops, like _NYPD Blue_. Very occasionally, the case will have something to do with one of the characters, but it was infrequent enough that it did not seem contrived, the way it does on most shows. And even then, it often, although not always, is implied rather than explicitly stated. It's not considered necessary to parade each and every detail of the characters' personal lives, past and present, in front of the camera.

I did take a couple points off because the look of the show diminshed in the second season. It became less film noir and more American-network-TV-ish. As an example, the lead's going blonde took away the framing of her face, making the edge fade into the background and giving her a less intense and thoughtful look, less the intuitive detective and more a fashion plate. I found it very distracting, like watching the series in a funhouse mirror.

ON EDIT: About halfway through season 2 (as Prime Video reckons it), the plots start getting histrionic and stupid. Too many of the plots link directly to the running cast's lives, and the rest are just ridiculous. It does become a soap opera about police officers at that point. From "Cold Comfort" (S02E16) on, go find another real procedural, such as _Homicide_.

So I took away another point.

So that the reader may try to correct for my biases, I am an autistic, asexual American woman in my late fifties who watches a lot of British Commonwealth TV.