The Crow Girl On Acorn TV stars Eve Myles, left, as a detective hunting a serial killer in Bristol.Photography by JOSS BARRATT/AMC Networks
If you’ve worked your way through the latest procedurals on BritBox and want to watch something cozier than the blistery Nordic Noir lineup on Viaplay, consider a fall subscription to the aptly named Acorn TV.
That’s where you’ll find British original The Crow Girl, a six-part police procedural brimming with tension and twists. The female-led drama stars Eve Myles as DCI Jeanette Kilburn and Katherine Kelly as prominent psychotherapist Dr. Sophia Craven. When a serial killer targets young men in Bristol, the women team up to find him, developing their own complicated and unexpected relationship along the way.
The show is based on Hakan Axlander-Sundquist and Jerker Eriksson’s Stockholm-set book of the same name, and features recognizable Bristol landmarks such as Castle Park and Castle Bridge.
Katherine Kelly plays psychotherapist Dr. Sophia Craven, who helps in the case.
The Crow Girl is an unapologetically dark offering with themes of trauma, abuse and corruption. The gloomy cinematography sets a spooky atmosphere from start to finish, with equally confident music that backs the bold narrative choices. Solid performance by the leads and supporting actors Elliot Edusah and Dougray Scott keep the show watchable throughout, even when the persistent crow imagery becomes heavy-handed.
Where the series stumbles is in some of its clunky dialogue and glossy portrayals of complex subjects that require a nuanced touch, such as multiple personality disorders, refugees starting anew or childhood trauma. At times, the characters are stereotypical archetypes of those we’ve seen on our screens before, while myriad unrelated side stories take a long time to come full circle. Sometimes, you know exactly where the series is headed; other times it’s hard to follow along.
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But stick through to the finale, which streams on Oct. 13, and the series does a decent job of tying those threads while leaving enough material to address in the confirmed second season. That, coupled with the immersive tone and exploration of why, rather than who, results in a thought-provoking series with potential.
The Crow Girl is just one original on the paid streaming service worth checking out. Acorn TV has a solid slate of commercial-free British mysteries, dramas and comedies. The AMC Networks property also offers popular titles such as Monsieur Spade, Doc Martin and Killing Eve, along with Canadian classics including 19-2 and the original Murdoch Mysteries movies with Peter Outerbridge as the title detective.
This fall, Acorn TV is making a big push for new Canadian subscribers with its “An Autumn to Die For” event. The theme promises a new mystery every Monday and a new original crime drama every week, including the coming premiere of Murder Before Evensong starring Matthew Lewis and Amanda Redman, and the second seasons of The Light in the Hall, The Gone, Black Snow and Scrublands.
Dougray Scott, left, who plays DI Lou Stanley, and Myles on a crime scene. This fall, Acorn TV is streaming a host of murder mysteries for its 'An Autumn to Die For' event.
The streamer also welcomes back several Agatha Christie titles after a five-year hiatus. They include six seasons of Poirot: The Early Cases, six seasons of Marple, and films such as Sparkling Cyanide and Seven Dials Mystery.
It’s the perfect theme for those who want to snuggle in with a little suspense and escapism this fall as the weather cools off and the sun sets earlier. Acorn TV’s autumn push underscores how the platform continues to carve out its niche: Not by breaking new ground, but by cultivating mood. The approach may not win headlines, but it gives the service a distinctive space in the streaming ecosystem.