Series 3 of Code 404 ends up being my favourite so far, though the bar has hardly been sky high…
“The killer was briefly a member of the band Sugababes”
In an ever-cut-throat TV landscape, that any show gets to a third series is impressive enough; in Code 404’s case, it feels a little baffling but regular work for Anna Maxwell Martin can’t be complained about. And this third series introduces Vinette Robinson which goes a way to making it more engaging than it has previously been.
This Sky comedy has a killer premise (cops being revived from beyond the grave through AI augmentation) and a stellar cast (leads include Daniel Mays as the rescusitee and Stephen Graham as his partner; supporting roles include Rosie Cavaliero and Michelle Greenidge as dryly hilarious police colleagues).
But the writing has never really aligned with all this to create a TV show that demands the attention. It is frequently chucklesome but rarely more than that, and the introduction of a serial killer storyline doesn’t really ignite, although it does provide more narrative propulsion that we’ve seen before.
Maxwell Martin and Robinson are both given more to do as the series progresses which helps to raise the quality. And Mays and Graham are having a great time in perfecting their double act, it just feels like there’s so much more potential here to create something much more effective.
