BBC’s latest Northern Ireland-set thriller miniseries, Dead and Buried, hinges upon a terrible tragedy/crime that happened seventeen years prior to the timeline of the show. Both leads—Cathy and Michael—were affected by that incident, and their lives have never been the same since. The show essentially becomes a long-drawn confrontation between the two where the drama is so palpable that it leaves the audience in a serious dilemma about whose side is to pick—Michael or Cathy? Here in this article, we’re going to do a summary of it before sharing our thoughts on Dead and Buried.
Spoilers Ahead
What Happens in the Show?
What would you do if you randomly came across the man who killed your brother at the local supermarket? Sure, it happened as long as almost two decades ago, and the man who murdered Cathy’s brother has already done his time, but she’s still traumatized by the sight of him. Michael doesn’t remember her, of course, and when she finds out he’s literally living the life—with a cushy office job, a loving wife, a teenage son, and a house to die for—Cathy is beyond frustrated. She believes Michael doesn’t deserve to have any of that. So she goes to the extent of setting up a fake account and starts texting Michael. Her best friend Sally asks her to stop, but Cathy doesn’t listen. Her therapist is not too pleased either. Even her perfectly okay husband, Raymond, aka Raymie, intervenes and pleads with her not to go down this road, but Cathy is obsessed with Michael. Strangely enough, she does appear to have this weird attraction towards him. There’s no denying that she’s out for revenge, but the way her eyes lit up after receiving Michael’s text, you know for a fact there’s something up.
Michael is also enjoying the sudden attention he’s receiving from one Molly Bloom, who claims they went to the same school back in the day (the alias only makes sense for Cathy). He’s not the cheating type and approaches the whole thing as innocent chatting (that eventually crosses the line into flirting). Despite having it all, his life appears to be quite monotonous, and this new connection has appeared like a breath of fresh air, and he sees nothing wrong in pursuing it. From the bits and pieces of the past that get revealed, you can also see that Michael was not particularly at fault. He did accidentally kill Cathy’s brother Terry back then, but he was only a teen, and it wasn’t his intention. And it all happened because Cathy was dating someone her brother wouldn’t approve of. Michael happened to be part of the same circle. That’s what I managed to make out from Dead and Buried has given us. Anyway, Michael’s father-in-law Sullivan is a really influential figure who’s running sort of a cult which he insists men join in order to get purified of all the sins they’ve committed. Sullivan also runs a business and he has been gracious enough to offer Michael a job there. Michael basically has to thank him for the kind of life he has, and his wife Lena keeps reminding him of that. Lena does love her husband, and doesn’t shy away from praising him to the moon and back while talking to a random stranger at her cafe. Guess who that stranger is? Cathy, of course.
Dead and Buried conveniently sets up a lot of connections between its characters in order to move the narrative forward. Cathy visits Lena’s cafe because she’s curious about the woman her brother’s murderer is married to. Michael and Lena’s son Andrew studies at a school where Cathy’s husband Raymie teaches. Andrew is a troubled kid who’s been slacking off a lot lately, and Raymie takes that up with his father, perfectly knowing who that is. All this is fine, but Sally being seen by the cult during a stakeout where she really came out of concern for Cathy is not. What’s even worse for Sally is Sullivan and co. thinking she’s having an affair with Michael. The story takes a dark turn when Cooper, one of the new members of Sullivan’s cult, attacks Sally and eventually smothers her to death at the hospital. Unfortunately, thinking his son Andrew is responsible for Sally’s death, Michael effectively takes the blame and confesses to Cathy before killing himself. Cathy gets the revenge that she was always looking for, but at what cost? If you’re looking to read about a detailed analysis of the climax, please click here.Â
Our Thoughts
The biggest strength of Dead and Buried lies in its story. But so does its biggest weakness. I’m not sure if it was a conscious creative decision to show as little of the past as possible, but it doesn’t work in favor of the show. The visuals of a burning car and some screams are mostly what you get, and they don’t go hand in hand with the kind of storytelling style the show adapts for the present timeline. That said, it does have a fascinating plot that is well supported by the performances of the two main actors. Both Annabel Scholey and Colin Morgan are absolutely fantastic as Cathy and Michael. This is probably a weird thing to say considering the context, but these two have such a stunning chemistry that at times you can’t help but root for them. That’s what makes the whole thing exciting, as you can’t possibly blame either of these two. However, chances of you sympathizing with Michael are better than with Cathy given what happened to the characters in the end.
Dead and Buried is not at all free of the tropes of the genre, but I doubt it wanted to be. It perfectly fits in the mold of the gritty Irish/Scottish thriller drama, a genre that I always dig if the content is done right. However, despite the great story and a solid performance by the cast, the climax of the show is pretty shoddy and doesn’t quite sit right with me. Not to mention, the show’s attempt to justify its title in the very last scene is very amateurish.
