30/27
American (English) remake of the French series HPI (2021)
Plot
It follows Morgan, a single mother of three, who uses her exceptional mind to solve a crime while sorting through evidence during her shift as a cleaner for the police department. Despite her very high IQ, excellent memory, and vast knowledge of the arcana, Morgan makes a number of fundamental legal mistakes that anyone who has ever watched a TV show about the law would know not to make.
It also could not be used to obtain other evidence: a violation of the “fruit of the poisonous tree” legal doctrine
In the first episode, for example, she obtains a document from a locked safe in the suspected victim’s law office that would never have been admissible in court: illegally obtained evidence. In episode 2, she has to be reminded to wear gloves before handling evidence at the crime scene, and in #3, she removes all documented evidence from the police station, completely breaking the chain of custody and also rendering everything she removed no longer admissible in court.
You can tell throughout the episode that Olson was drawn to this project for the way it portrays a capable, struggling, physically empowered woman
HPI Remake (2021). Looking back on her TV resume away from Always Sunny and rounding out her role on The Mick, Olson slides onto the screen in a remake that isn’t quite perfect for the framing of this French procedural, but she’s definitely in tune with it.
The first episode was well done, though the editing could use some work
Comedy is baked into her performance, much like the irony in the French version. What this series does best, though, is keep you enthralled by an experienced cast led by Judy Reyes, whose stern eyes and soft voice invite the audience to develop a sense of empathy for the players her character wants to rally around her in pursuit of justice.