There are cop dramas, and there are cop dramas. Sometimes the cop dramas that don't want to be like other cop dramas try too hard. But "River" _ a six-part British TV series airing on Netflix _ tries very hard to be different _ and gets it spectacularly right.The story focuses on DI John River (Stellan Skarsgard) who is grappling with the death of his partner, DS Jacqueline "Stevie" Stevenson (Nicola Walker), who is shot to death outside a pub where they had been having dinner.So far, nothing new, right?Think again.It seems that since his youth, River has seen and communicated with dead people. They haunt him (no pun intended), while he's sitting at his desk, attending meetings, interviewing people, driving, riding the subway, sleeping, eating, you name it. And they're not always Casper the Friendly Ghost (like Thomas Neill Cream, "The Lambeth Poisoner," here played by Eddie Marsan, who attempts to goad River into losing his cool).The series opens innocently enough with River and Stevie driving along chatting, laughing and even breaking into song. The first reaction is that this series is going to be slow, slow, slow and hackneyed. Then they stop at a drive-through to order a shake and burger. Something isn't quite right, the communication is off.As they drive on, River thinks he sees a suspect, we don't know for what crime, he bails out of the car and gives chase. His prey, a frightened young man, leaps to his death as Stevie trails behind and radios for backup. Or does she? As she turns and walks away, we notice the back of her head has been blown away.And we're off.Swedish actor Skarsgard is excellent as the brooding lead detective who tries to piece together the murder of his partner, who is also, as we learn, his great love. The ubiquitous Walker ("Spooks," "Last Tango in Halifax," "Unforgotten") is perfect as the wide-eyed, offbeat counterpoint to the stoic River, the female, we can't help but imagine, who could have brought him out of his shell, which makes the whole thing that much more tragic and urgent (Stevie warns River that at some point she will just fade away).The serpentine storyline never gets out of hand to the point of confusion, but challenges us to pay attention to every element, right up until the final denouement in the last part of the last episode. The conclusion is a shocker, but not so much that we think it could never happen in real life (minus the dead people chatting with the detective).Adeel Akhtar is terrific as DS Ira King, River's new sidekick, an innocent tough whose alarm at his detective partner's unconventional ways evolves into true friendship, even if we're never sure whether he thinks River is actually talking to dead people or is merely unbalanced.Sorcha Cusack of the great Cusack family of Irish actors, recently seen as the straight-laced Catholic housekeeper on "Father Brown," polishes off her acting chops as Stevie's angry mother.The rest of the cast is uniformly brilliant, from Marsan's wailing Lambeth Poisoner Cream to Rosa Fellows as the understanding police psychologist and Lesley Manville as the beleaguered head of the homicide unit. Not a weak link in the bunch."River," beautifully photographed in a cool, shadowy style to match its mysterious aura, is worth every moment of its six episodes. But you'll have to pay attention _ and you'll be glad you did.

This mini series reaches a level of perfection not often found on modern television, let alone in six episodes. The acting is superb, particularly from the star, Stellan Scarsgård, who plays the title character River. He uses restraint that occasionally bursts through his usual reserve. The writing is glorious and creative with a big twist you don't expect. Again Scarsgård could've held court alone and with the writing and cinematography backing him up. But the terrific supporting cast adds an entirely new dimension to River the show and character. There's plenty of action to please those that need it. Yet it transcends your run of the mill detective show to please the biggest tv snob! I hope we'll see River again soon. Thank you Netflix for bringing this beauty to us across the pond!

I honestly disliked every moment of this mini-series and sincerely regretted the time I spent watching it. That said, once I start something I have to finish it, so I watched every episode, hoping for a climax that never came.The plot was very slow to develop, and because of this every episode felt like a drag and never gripped me - the same applies to the subplot. The depressing overtones only made the show even less enjoyable to watch, and the character development never felt interesting; River just got more bizarre and Stevie's story played out somewhat predictably. I wasn't impressed by the acting either; Skarsgård's performance lacked emotion and Walker was just plain irritating throughout. The idea that an obviously burnt-out psychotic police officer would be allowed to roam the streets obliviously talking to himself and attacking people, let alone handle an investigation into the murder of his partner, is quite frankly ludicrous. On top of this, the "manifestation" scenes were so poorly acted out that I almost gave up on the show within the first few episodes. I wish I had.While I liked the twist, I felt like it wasn't written out and portrayed well enough to be thrilling and interesting. It kind of felt like, "oh, was that it?", but I have no doubt that if this was depicted differently or with different actors it would been shocking and gripping.The conclusion of everything was wholly unfulfilling and lacked meaning.

Stellar Stargard is an actor's actor--seems each role he turns his talent to, though similar in character to the previous, remains compelling straight through to the end. Though one might argue that he seems to play the same person each time, I can point to any number of American actors who reach A list, but still bring nothing but cliché to their characters--no names mentioned, for fear of offending loyal fans. Having said that (of Skarsgard), any one of the others could easily have punctured the perfection, but hold true. Camera and editing, dialogue-- everything together makes for a work of art. Having agreed that it is perfect, can anyone tell us where the scene of the enormous tree was shot, which River climbs? Wife argues that England has no trees of that sort.