It's unusual to find a mystery show that is not a police procedural or placed firmly in the murder mystery genre, especially when we're talking BBC mysteries. I started watching the pilot of the six-episode series of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency while building a lasagna, and almost turned the show off in the first five minutes. The pacing of the first act was a bit slow, but I'm very glad I just kept on cooking and watching because I was rewarded, both gastronomically and visually.
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency is a new BBC show based on the series of books of the same title by Alexander McCall Smith. The books are about a woman who starts a detective agency in Botswana. Basically, it's one of those "first woman to do_____" story arcs. This premise feels a bit 1980s feminist, and due to the male writer, and the fact that it's an African story produced for the BBC, I was a little worried. I'm from the Pacific Northwest and I haven't been to Africa, so I can't vouch for the authenticity of the voice or setting, but I found nothing to offend in a light viewing. It was refreshing to watch a BBC mystery show that wasn't about London or Scotland Yard — or even about murder.
This detective agency is all about cases that are grounded in the mundane details of daily life. Yet these tiny cases do lead us to surprising or quirky ends. I think that is why patience is needed with this series: the introduction seems a bit dull, but the threads of the different cases weave together into a pleasing and competently-written conclusion.
As a former woman of generous proportions, it's good to see that the lead, Jill Scott, is a queen-sized actor instead of the idealized anoxeria-sized actors who seem to have crept back into television this year. Her character is stripped of most of the personality stereotypes TV shows give larger women as loud, brash and joke-y. Both Jill Scott, the detective, and Anika Noni Rose, the slightly geeky secretary/sidekick, play their roles with an understated air, and there were many moments for good character development, both on the comedic and dramatic fronts. The male characters were not quite as good at avoiding the masculine stereotypes found in chick lit — yes, there is a gay hairdresser — but the writing for these characters was better than a lot of chick lit comedy I've encountered, so I was able to get past it fairly easily.
I confess that I've never read the books on which this series is based. Well, the truth is that I picked up one of the books when they first came out and started to read it, but my tastes run darker. I don't read a lot of chick lit, and this book seemed like a blend of the mystery and chick lit genres. I can see that type of mash-up being very popular, and the two genres seem very compatible for style and audience. However, this show did win me over. Now that I'm going to go on to watch the second episode, I will be running out to find the book again and give it a second chance.
I think this series definitely has some potential for the patient viewer.
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency is produced by some well-known names, among them, the Weinsteins, Anthony Minghella, and Sydney Pollack. This episode was written by Nicholas Wright and directed by Charles Sturridge. Apparently, this series is either a spin-off or a continuation of a movie-length version of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, directed by Anthony Minghella. Having not seen this project, I can't tell you how this pilot is connected to the plot of the movie, or be able to compare the two.
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