A quality supporting cast and a light sense of humor also helps. Not every aspect of the show is light and airy, but it seems to know when it needs to be serious and when it needs to lighten things up. Because of this, Three Pines give viewers an interesting murder case to follow, quirky small-town folks with secrets, and a more serious case that tests its main character’s abilities.

Other than a few melodramatic dialogue hiccups, this is a collection of intelligent two-hour mysteries that fans of Agatha Christie or even Columbo should watch.

It’s a slow start featuring an unlikeable victim whose disdain for everyone makes for an uncompelling case. Luckily, an overarching, season-long mystery saves the day. ... Essential [Indigenous] stories are woven into the broader series and mysteries of the week seamlessly, as the show also takes a deep dive into the French Canadian culture. ... This short-but-sweet adaptation offers a sweeping cinematic taste of cultures and stories that are deserving of the global platform Prime Video offers, all while doing justice to the best-selling novels on which they’re based.

It is in its more melancholic and macabre moments that Three Pines stumbles upon something more sinister that elevates it a bit beyond a standard mystery tale.

Three Pines isn’t the most original creation. You might experience a shiver of déjà vu at times. ... Yet its handsomely shot snowscapes, Christmassy setting and Molina’s beautifully measured performance make it a moreish winter treat.

Three Pines boasts the mysterious murders, puzzling clues, and various other requisite tropes of a compelling detective tale, flat dialogue and wooden acting mean that Gamache is unlikely to be joining Marple, Holmes, and Benoit Blanc in the pantheon of on-screen sleuths.