Critical Condition: Hard Sun

Hard Sun | SoHo, 8.30 Sunday

➢ “Featuring hacktivists, police investigating other police and global cover-ups, Neil Cross’s new drama packed more into its opening episode than most series do … The sun has gone to pot, the world has only got five years left and MI5 is trying to keep it from everyone to avoid mass panic and, presumably, an acceleration of humanity’s decline. It’s a gutsy, ambitious concept, and when the real world has leaders comparing the size of their nuclear buttons, its apocalyptic angst feels timely.” — The Guardian.

➢ “This is another cop show, but it avoids most clichés and moves at a cracking pace, surprising and wrong-footing the viewer … I loved the episode ending to David Bowie’s Five Years, which inspired Cross to write Hard Sun. So, yes, I will continue watching — while braced to become deeply depressed.” — The Times.

➢ “At the drama’s nub is a moral quandary: should the imminent extermination of humanity be hushed up by the deep state, or a matter of public knowledge? … The atmosphere of paranoia and threat was lightened by police banter in a rainbow array of British accents. Almost everyone was scrumptiously good-looking. London was a chiaroscuro vision, Victorian terraces huddling under sky-piercing towers. This glossy apocalyptic thriller is so moreish that – to quote Bowie – my brain hurt like a warehouse.” — The Daily Telegraph.

➢ “This shows all the signs of descending into utter preposterousness quite quickly but, for the moment, it’s worth a look.” — Financial Times.

➢ “Welcome to the world of 21st-century crime, where you spend your time chasing USB sticks and gasping at stats on screen … I’ve never had faith in apocalyptic alarmism. Honestly, if only we could get it over with in five years! Instead, I predict a slow and excruciating slog through the centuries, more minor Mike Leigh than hyper-coloured Michael Bay.” — Sunday Times.