To my surprise, I enjoyed this miniseries very much. I didn't intend to, but I binged on it last night and was never bored once. Perhaps this was because of the superlative acting, especially by Julia McKenzie. I agree that the story did not have a lot of charm, like many of the shows on Masterpiece theater, but rather gave a look at what village life is really like in Britain where they wrestle with social issues just like we do in the States, but which you will never find even hinted at on Midsomer Murders. The entire cast and crew (director, screenwriter, etc.) did a great job making Rowling's characters come alive. I didn't read the original novel, which I believe is a satire, but this production seemed more human comedy and serious than satiric.

When you hear a story is based on a novel by J.K. Rowling, you can't help but think of "Harry Potter." What set that apart wasn't just the magic, it was the building of worlds and characters. By comparison, "The Casual Vacancy" is hollow. It's about the untimely death of a man in a small town, and the squabble about who will replace him on the town council. The first two parts aired last night, and by the end of the first hour it was still unclear who these people are and why we should really care, and that's a problem.