Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Starring: Uzo Aduba, Giancarlo Esposito, Molly Griggs, Ken Marino, Randall Park, Susan Kelechi Watson, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Edwina Findley
Where to watch: Netflix (8 episodes, 50-odd minutes each)
To watch or not to watch: A closed mansion mystery with multiple suspects and Rian Johnson style storytelling. It is highly recommended for fans of typical whodunnit.

It is the night of Australian state dinner at The White House, rather THE WHITE HOUSE, where Hugh Jackman and Kylie Minogue are also present. In the middle of this, they find the chief usher AB Wynter (Giancarlo Esposito) dead on the third floor. The chiefs of all the major intelligence/security/investigation agencies are at the scene and are quick to call the death a suicide, except Cordelia Cupp (Uzo Aduba), the greatest detective in the world (not unlike Poirot, only she is female and has less differentiated mannerisms) is called upon. She declares the death a murder and presents compelling evidence or lack thereof to boost her statement. What follows is a non-linear sequence of statements, evidence, lies, corroboration, congressional committee, exposure of personal lives and bird-watching to arrive at the truth. Oh! And Kylie Minogue performs. She is chiefly assisted by Susan Kelechi Watson (Jasmine Haney) who was Assistant Usher until Wynter’s death, and Edwin Park (Randall Park), an FBI special agent. Did Jasmine murder Wynter to quicken her promotion, or was it Harry Hollinger (Ken Marino) who was suspected of having a fight with the victim sometime before the “incident”, or was it the drunk butler Sheila (Edwina Findley), or even the pastry chef?

The brilliance of the series lies in the manner of storytelling ie, the pacing. It is quite like Knives Out, with the opening scene being the discovery of the body, fun quick cuts to scenes which lead to non-linearity and dizziness in the viewer, also making the viewer’s attempt to solve the crime difficult. Cordelia follows clues, which are lost on everyone, gets people to talk by not asking questions, push people into the corner by questioning everything, all in all, the fast-paced movement of scenes and dialogues and characters themselves, make for a really fun viewing. There are multiple characters and storylines, complicated by lies and small incidents deemed insignificant but turn out to be the real crux of the matter, Cordelia’s shifting focus to bird-watching, ensuring the viewer is kept on their toes. The show doesn’t take itself seriously and is self-aware enough to acknowledge the heavy borrowing from Christie and Johnson and what-not, it is funny despite the fact it is based in The White House, not because of it.

This show is a brilliant first watch, testing the viewer’s willpower to not binge it in one sitting, but only the first time. After that, the plot holes, the ridiculousness of the setting and extravagant mannerisms are easy to see through as distraction tactics. Aduba is good at her job and has an engaging screen presence, but someone alluding to her ability to solve unsolvable cases is not entirely believable, we are expected to just accept it. Then there is a whole origin story in the middle of the series, which was only a filler to make it last 8 episodes. The uncovered truth about the murder and the murderer is underwhelming so adjust the expectations accordingly. This is also the point where the series loses a score in the rating. There is so much underhanded display of female empowerment, that it is tiring. If you want real female empowerment in cinema, start paying equal wages, but putting men down only reverses the problem. Sigh!
Shonda Rhimes has made women-centric content in the past, while they were highly superficial, this is much, much better than the convenient, self-congratulatory plotlines of series like Scandal. It is flawed, but there is progress. And it is a good watch for all the mystery-starved people out there.