TONYA MOSLEY, HOST:
This is FRESH AIR. The streaming service BritBox has a new mystery series called "Ludwig," starring David Mitchell as a very improbable yet effective investigator. Our TV critic David Bianculli says everything about this new series is charming, surprising and delightful, and also, refreshingly light-hearted. Here's his review.
DAVID BIANCULLI, BYLINE: In the U.S., murder mystery series built around eccentric but intrepid investigators have been around forever. And the best of them, from "Columbo" to "Sherlock," have made an indelible mark on TV history. Currently, we have such shows as "Elsbeth," "Matlock" and "Only Murders In The Building," all of which playfully present crimes solved by people with unusual but ultimately lovable personalities. A new BritBox import, a mystery series called "Ludwig," is even lighter and flat-out fun to watch. Created and written by Mark Brotherhood, it arrives with one of the most original and captivating variations on the entire TV mystery genre.
Here are the basics. Two very intelligent children, identical twins John and James, grow up sharing their youth with a best friend, Lucy. After the twins are traumatized by the sudden abandonment by their father, their lives take different paths. James becomes a police inspector and marries Lucy. John, who's got just as keen a mind but has become isolated and reclusive, ends up designing and publishing all sorts of puzzles. And then after John goes missing while working on a case, Lucy contacts his twin brother, her old friend, and begs him to visit her. When he does, she hits him with a very bizarre request. John is played by David Mitchell from "Peep Show." Lucy is played by Anna Maxwell Martin from "Good Omens."
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "LUDWIG")
ANNA MAXWELL MARTIN: (As Lucy Betts-Taylor) Which brings me to the big favor.
DAVID MITCHELL: (As John Taylor) Lucy, I'm not sure.
MARTIN: (As Lucy Betts-Taylor) Just - (vocalizing). OK, so I went into his home office looking for clues as to what he might've been working on, and there's nothing. He's been hidden in there for two months, nothing to show for it. Now, either he took his files and tatty orange notebook with him or it's in his other office, the one at the police station. Now, I can't access that. In fact, the only person that can is James or somebody who looks remarkably like him.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
MITCHELL: (As John Taylor) No.
MARTIN: (As Lucy Betts-Taylor) It's nothing. It's easy. It is in and out.
MITCHELL: (As John Taylor) Are you - no. Absolutely not.
MARTIN: (As Lucy Betts-Taylor) I've been there. I know the layout. You won't have to talk to anybody.
MITCHELL: (As John Taylor) Really? And if they talk to me?
MARTIN: (As Lucy Betts-Taylor) Well, just stick to small talk. Just keep walking.
MITCHELL: (As John Taylor) What small talk? Have you heard my small talk? This, right now, is about as good as it gets.
MARTIN: (As Lucy Betts-Taylor) But I've met most of his colleagues. I mean, I can brief you on all of them, certainly enough to get you through a piddly little visit to the office, just there and back.
MITCHELL: (As John Taylor) Lucy, stop. That would be illegal.
BIANCULLI: Reluctantly, John goes to the police station pretending to be his brother. But before he can look for clues there, he's taken to a nearby office building, the scene of a freshly committed murder. The only possible suspects, the ones still on site, are isolated in a conference room. And John, whom his colleagues think is James, is expected to crack the case. At first he freaks. But then he imagines it as a type of puzzle, his specialty, and starts writing things enthusiastically on a whiteboard, running down the variables.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "LUDWIG")
MITCHELL: (As John Taylor) OK, so what we're looking at here is a concatenation of syllogisms, obviously. A series of statements and propositions, one of which will be false, but which we can weed out via a process of cross-reference and deductive reason. It's a logic puzzle. In this room, we have seven subjects or suspects. I will label you A to G for simplicity. Three definitive facts presumably connected - the fire door alarm, the phone call and the murder itself - I'll label them 1 to 3. Plus, of course, the alleged movements of everyone in this column within the timescale of the factual events contained in this one, which we'll put into a third column of seven, T to Z.
(SOUNDBITE OF MARKER WRITING)
MITCHELL: (As John Taylor) So C was exiting the elevator in the foyer at the same time as D was leaving by the front. Both statements confirm the other, which means that neither C nor D could've been present at factual events 1 and 2, so we can cross those off. Which naturally means we can also put crosses here and here and here, since this dictates that A and E could not have been present in that location at that time, or else they would've crossed with C or D. Do you follow?
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: (As character) No.
BIANCULLI: The first season of "Ludwig" contains six episodes, which show John continuing to impersonate his brother while trying to solve his disappearance. He's also faced with a different murder case, or a different puzzle, each week, which he tackles while working with and fooling his colleagues. It's a strong ensemble led by Dipo Ola as his new partner and Gerran Howell, who plays Dennis Whitaker on "The Pitt," as a young member of his team. And the guest stars are valuable, too, especially the great Derek Jacobi in a later episode.
For "Ludwig" to work, the mysteries have to be clever, the clues have to be credible, but not obvious, and the performances have to be enjoyable. Check, check, check. As John and Lucy, David Mitchell and Anna Maxwell Martin are loads of fun, especially when they're together. And the style of the show is infectious and almost musical. The series is called "Ludwig" for a reason, which it reveals in time. And that connection allows for plenty of music from the Beethoven canon, which is heard often and winningly. From start to finish, "Ludwig" is a winner. And I'm happy to report it's not really finished yet. The producers already have committed to a Season 2, which makes me smile almost as much as watching "Ludwig."
MOSLEY: David Bianculli is a professor of television studies at Rowan University. He reviewed "Ludwig," now streaming on BritBox. Tomorrow on FRESH AIR, veteran reporters Annie Karni and Luke Broadwater share an insider's look at a dysfunctional Congress. The body elected in 2022 passed fewer bills than any Congress since the Great Depression, instead engaging in partisan infighting, petty feuds and, occasionally, physical threats among members. Their book is called "Mad House." I hope you can join us.
(SOUNDBITE OF JON BATISTE'S "5TH SYMPHONY IN CONGO SQUARE")
MOSLEY: To keep up with what's on the show and get highlights of our interviews, follow us on Instagram at @nprfreshair.
(SOUNDBITE OF JON BATISTE'S "5TH SYMPHONY IN CONGO SQUARE")
MOSLEY: FRESH AIR's executive producer is Danny Miller. Our technical director and engineer is Audrey Bentham. Our managing producer is Sam Briger. Our interviews and reviews are produced and edited by Phyllis Meyers, Ann Marie Baldonado, Lauren Krenzel, Therese Madden, Monique Nazareth, Thea Chaloner, Susan Nyakundi and Anna Bauman. Our digital media producer is Molly Seavy-Nesper. Roberta Shorrok directs the show. With Terry Gross, I'm Tonya Mosley.
(SOUNDBITE OF JON BATISTE'S "5TH SYMPHONY IN CONGO SQUARE") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
