Bodies: there is Darkness in the new Netflix mystery series (review)

The same body is found in four different eras: an investigation through time that seeks to copy Dark, without quite having the depth.

The global success of Dark has visibly left its mark at Netflix, to the point of becoming a sort of prototype of what a science fiction series should be on the platform (to put it quickly: big mystery, big catastrophe, time travel and why not in parallel worlds). As recently as last year, its creators sought to recreate the miracle – unsuccessfully this time – with 1899. And so here comes Bodysuits, adapted from a comic book of the same name, with intensely “Darkian” premises: four London police officers, living in different eras (1890, 1941, 2023 and 2053), discover the same body in an alley: that of a man in his thirties, whose eye was pierced by a bullet which should still be lodged in his skull. But the ammunition is inexplicably nowhere to be found…. How is this possible? And who is the murderer? It will take at least one investigation spread over more than one hundred and sixty years to have the answer…

Stephen Graham in majesty

Ultra intriguing in its first two hours where we move from one timeline to another, Bodysuits runs out of steam terribly halfway through (three episodes which seek to complicate the plot and give depth to the characters without really succeeding), before regaining a certain enthusiasm in its conclusion. Difficult to say more without spoiling, but know that you will have to swallow a few snakes to fully appreciate this object, putting the grandfather paradox to the test. However, let’s give the series credit for knowing how to distil its clues and other twists with undeniable know-how. Especially in the scenes where Stephen Graham, magnetic as usual, raises a sometimes faltering level of play.

Bodies, created by Paul Tomalin, with Stephen Graham, Amaka Okafor, Kyle Soller… Watch on Netflix, eight episodes.