Critic Reviews

Throughout its first two episodes, the series hints at many things: the ambitions of an alienist; the monstrous nature of the murderer; the construction and corruption of late-19th century New York; and a show that will continue to improve as it explores the depths not only of its willing amateur investigators, but the depravity of the one they hunt.

Each of the central performances fits the story's jagged and weirdly gracious setting, coming together with mechanical smoothness. Screenwriter Hossein Amini deserves a tip of the hat for translating each chapter so easily for the screen, but the core cast enables his solid prose to hold real weight against the prominent scenery.

The production design and costumes often speak more eloquently than any of the characters, and work overtime to communicate subtext that feels a lot more fresh than most of the text. Despite the apparent dependence on CGI, which is true of nearly everything these days, the images are still overwhelmingly tactile. The direction by Jakob Verbruggen is consistently superb, with flourishes that can sincerely be called virtuoso. And the totality of the thing can’t fail to impress.

The second season, subtitled Angel of Darkness after the novel of the same name by source author Caleb Carr, improves its storytelling significantly while maintaining one of the most interesting aesthetics on air.

The Alienist is a gripping, multilayered detective story, prompting us of course to want to know who is killing the boys and for what perverse reason, but also wanting to know the men and the woman who are trying to find those answers as well.

There's no shortage of serial killer dramas, and if The Alienist feels familiar, it makes up for it by presenting its story in a striking package. And you won't want to look away.

The Alienist plays like a time-traveling installment of True Detective--Cary Fukunaga was even set to direct at one point and retains an executive producer credit, along with several collaborators from previous incarnations--or a 19th century version of Mindhunter, still delivering in sumptuous period production values and strong ensemble casting what it maybe lacks in freshness.

The acting styles range from sullen underplaying to over-the-top melodrama, and that mix can be quite effective. But both can be carried too far, with the underplayed stuff tending toward somnambulism and the over-the-top extremes inducing a cringe or two.

The character development and acting (at least in early episodes) is upstaged by the phenomenal depiction of a city on the brink of modernization. In short, The Alienist is good versus stunning.

The Alienist might go very, very wrong in future episodes, and it’s already clear how the series might be more interesting if it took the plot of the novel as a suggestion instead of a road map. But there are enough pleasures around its edges to keep me watching.