September Binges: Legends and Tommy & Tuppence

As September winds down, do you find yourself curled up on the couch seeking tales of British crime? Well, I've got you covered with a true story and an Agatha Christie adaptation (of sorts). What more could you want!

Legends: Created by Neil Forsyth, this six-part miniseries tells the true story of how a small team of British customs employees (played by Tom Burke, Hayley Squires, Aml Ameen, and Jasmine Blackborrow) were tasked with bringing down a heroin smuggling ring that was plaguing Britain in 1990. Lacking any prior undercover experience, they applied for the job and under the command of Don Clarke (Steve Coogan), they are taught the basics of undercover work, given new identities, aka "legends," and set out on a very dangerous mission. These people are all seeking something different from their mundane jobs, but all for very different reasons, and what initially feels like a bit of a thrill starts to evolve into something far more dangerous. They might have bitten off more than they can chew, but our heroes are going to get the job done, right?

While the series is definitely a bit of a hagiography, it is still wildly tense and entertaining. All of the actors are doing wonderful work, and it's always great to see Steve Coogan in a dramatic role, playing a hard-bitten and world-weary man who still has that characteristic dark humor underlying it all. This is the perfect kind of thriller for a rainy afternoon, eminently bingeable and satisfying, and it tells a very unique and compelling story. Plus, it's just one miniseries, so you get sucked in for six hours and then never have to worry about Season 2. Isn't that the dream?

Tommy & Tuppence: I have been a massive Agatha Christie fan since childhood and the five books she wrote featuring the (eventually) married detectives of Tommy and Tuppence Beresford are very charming and fun. So creator Phoebe Eclair-Powell has decided to create a contemporary adaptation starring Josh Dylan and Antonia Thomas as the titular detectives. In this first season, they are presented as exes who decide to start a detective agency together after they spend the first two episodes solving a murder. It's a six-episode season, so you'll get two more mysteries that they need to solve, alongside their own personal will-they won't-they drama that arcs over the whole series.

Is this a very charming show? Yes. Does it have little to nothing to do with the original books? Also yes. Apart from the names of Tommy and Tuppence, everything is so updated for the modern era that I find it hard to understand why we even need to call this a Christie adaptation. Perhaps if I re-read the original books, I would spot lots of Easter eggs and could take delight in that, but otherwise, this is a perfectly frothy and serviceable mystery show with two engaging leads. There are a lot of romantic complications, so I do think I'll keep watching Season 2 to see how all of that gets resolved, but this is more of a "binge for distraction" show, not one that fully demands your attention.