Steve Coogan stars in British crime drama inspired by true events
legends ★★★★
Explained in six short and concise chapters, legends A very British take on international crime drama – imagine French Connection Remade by Stimulant crew. It’s the early 1990s, heroin overdoses are on the rise and the beleaguered Margaret Thatcher needs a win. Solution? “Can you offer more?” posters ask in the tearooms of Her Majesty’s Customs. Undercover investigators will be recruited from among baggage inspectors and smut magazine investigators to infiltrate deadly drug gangs. Training lasts three weeks.
The show is very loosely based on historical events. “Inspired” by his memories Adam StantonHe worked undercover at customs for 11 years, targeting drug importers. Guy Stanton, played here by Tom Burke, is one of the few customs officers who, along with Kate (Hayley Squires) and Bailey (Aml Ameen), can pass the screening process carried out by veteran agent Don Clarke (Steve Coogan). Sarcastic and counterintuitive, Don promises his graduates the biggest challenge of their lives, if not a stipend.
legends It is not a complicated procedure. If you want a series about British criminal history, check out creator Neil Forsyth’s previous show GoldUsing a daring 1983 armed robbery to explore corporate corruption and social strife. It’s a smash and grab operation told with humor and constant risk. Split between Liverpool and London, the undercover agents face instant execution if they make one mistake regarding their fake identities – their legends.
Yes, agents infiltrate terrifying drug networks with surprising ease, but Forsyth is such an accomplished storyteller that you don’t have time to test credulity. Some creators spend the entire first episode on the selection and training process; Forsyth gets this done in 15 minutes of screen time.
However, this does not mean that the characters have no motivation. legends It’s a series about ordinary people, especially Guy, finding purpose by reaching for the extraordinary, even if they risk getting lost in the role.
With a chef’s kiss era soundtrack (The Stone Roses, Happy Mondays), the limited series develops highly effective portraits of characters who could be gangster stereotypes. Johnny Harris is terrific as Eddie McKee, a Liverpool man who questions what he’s done to his hometown. There is no commentary on the on-again, off-again fight against drugs, but as people challenge others, authority figures are put on the right track.
At its center is Coogan, whose comic concern is hilarious and ultimately moving. Comedy actor does this a cracking Michael Caine impressionbut with legends Michael Caine mastered his role.
legends currently streaming on Netflix.
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Craig Mathieson is the TV, film and music writer for The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect with: X.
