There are several common threads between Dan Fogelman’s Hulu series “Paradise” and Brad Ingelsby’s HBO crime drama “Mare of Easttown.” They both feature a fantastic Julianne Nicholson in vastly different supporting roles — “Paradise” earned her an Emmy nomination while “Mare of Easttown” actually won her the golden statue — and if you’re a fan, that should be more than enough to see both. But here are a few more reasons why the HBO miniseries should be your next watch.
Similar to Fogelman’s show, “Mare of Easttown” is a whodunit about the murder case of a teen mother in a fictional, close-knit Pennsylvania suburb. Detective Sergeant Mare Sheehan (Kate Winslet) is assigned to the case, which causes a stir in the local community, since she failed to solve her previous case regarding a young missing girl only a year prior. Mare’s personal life is also in tatters due to a divorce, a son lost to suicide, and a custody feud over the grandson she’s raising with the help of her family. Nicholson plays her best friend, Lori, who’s there for emotional and moral support until she becomes directly attached to one of the killings.
Admittedly, “Paradise” quickly turns into a much more ambitious and complicated story than a simple whodunit, but the commonalities with “Mare of Easttown” are clearly there. Both shows are replete with suspense due to their mysterious nature and portray intriguing characters with depth from the start. In “Paradise,” Nicholson plays Samantha Redmond, a wealthy decision maker who is a devious, yet important, figure in this series. She’s more of a foe than a friend than Lori in “Mare,” but that only proves her wide range as an actor.
Mare of Easttown is brimming with authenticity, delicate topics, and prestige
There’s a reason Brad Ingelsby’s first miniseries quickly entered the conversation of being one of the best detective shows of all time. From the bona fide small-town milieu to the hard-to-nail local accents to the top-notch performances and authentic script, “Mare of Easttown” is a low-key masterclass in an overpopulated genre. In a sea of burned-out detectives — made popular by shows like “The Killing,” “True Detective,” and “Luther” — it’s no small feat to stand out, and Ingelsby & Co. did an incredible job in doing so. (Be sure to also check out his series “Task” on HBO Max).
On top of the main storyline, “Mare of Easttown”‘s greatest accomplishment may be that it portrayed sensitive topics such as addiction, marital problems, and parental grief in a way that felt harrowingly realistic and close to home. It’s no easy task to tackle these subjects, fuse them with an ongoing crime narrative, and deliver thought-provoking and deeply relevant messages about real people and contemporary issues. So if you’re a fan of the “Paradise” plot, Julianne Nicholson, and bleak-yet-fascinating crime stories, “Mare of Easttown” shouldn’t be left off your watchlist. It’s seven episodes of prestige drama of the highest order.