Gracepoint Recap: "Episode 1"

Written by John Edward Betancourt

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

First and foremost, allow me to begin this recap with a confession, I completely missed watching Broadchurch.  I wanted to, I love David Tennant, it just never happened.  But last night as I watched the Americanized version of that show in Gracepoint I'm starting to think that might not be a bad thing.  Because I went into this version of the show free of expectations, free of clues and well...Gracepoint absolutely blew me away. 

We are transported to the tiny bayside community of Gracepoint. Everyone in this town knows one another, knows their lives and get along just fine.  In fact the town is so peaceful that the biggest piece of news to come through this time of year is who placed first at Field Day.  But our trip to this town is on the day when everything changes. Today is the day the body of young Danny Solano will be found on the beach, and his death will be ruled a homicide and his death will rock this tiny town to its core. 

I'm going to keep the summary of this first episode quick for one simple reason, "Episode 1" is the grand setup of what looks to be one hell of a ten part mini series and in fact, it would be better to take a little time to break down what this show has already done right, because it managed to pull me in quickly and it was engrossing enough that I'm still pondering over the details.  

The first thing that surprised me about this show, is how well it painted a picture and how it is a different kind of murder mystery show.  At this point in time, there are plenty of television shows revolving around murder and mayhem but let's be honest. There's a glamour and glitz to them.  The detectives are kitschy, suave and plucky despite the fact they are surrounded by death and well, Gracepoint gives us the opposite of that.  David Tennant's Detective Carver is a grizzled and bitter man, unfazed by murder on the outside but it clearly disturbs him to the core.  He is flawed, weak and complete with a past that will clearly follow him to his new town and I love the character. Granted Tennant without his trademark Scottish accent takes some getting used to, but damn, he turns in a fine performance and the great things don't end there. 

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This show is visceral and raw in the presentation of what murder does to people and how it effects them. The Solano family is devastated by the news and it is done in such sublime fashion that well...so are you.  The scene where they learn of Danny's death is utterly devastating, as is the moment when Danny's father sees the body of his son for the first time.  They are moments that leave you uncomfortable and vulnerable.

Yet I think what impressed me the most, is what the show managed to say about death and murder without ever having to say it directly to us.  In the first few minutes all of Gracepoint is presented to us, and it is about as Norman Rockwell as it gets.  Everything we see is that sense of community and Americana that we all believe the world should be, and once Danny is dead, there is a rotten feeling that infects you.  You feel the world you were just introduced to, once so pure and shielded from the horrors of the real world become a part of it, and at the same time it speaks to how shielded we all are to the horrors of the world and like the people of Gracepoint, we are now knee deep in it.  

It's a brilliant and haunting show really, and thankfully it left us with plenty more on the table since outside of the pain and suffering we had to endure, the mystery is beginning to take shape.  After all, Detective Miller's son knows plenty, seeing as to how he deleted every bit of data related to Danny.  We know now Danny wasn't kidnapped and snuck out in the final hours of his short life and like the rest of you, I want to know who killed Danny.  Until next week...

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