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Injustice

Injustice (DVD Cover)

Cast: William Travers (James Purefoy), Jane Travers (Dervla Kirwan), Kate Travers (Lisa Diveney), Mark Wenborn (Charlie Creed-Miles), Nick Taylor (Obi Abili), Maggie Wenborn (Kirsty Bushell), Philip Spaull (Robert Whitelock), Martin Newall (Nathaniel Parker)

Director: Colm McCarthy

Original air date(s): 06/06/2011 (UK)
DVD Date: 08/28/2012

Rating: Not Rated
Running Time: 223 minutes

Note(s): Created by and Written by Anthony Horowitz

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Injustice

Review: James Purefoy stars as William Travers, a brilliant criminal defense attorney, who has for all intents and purposes retired to the countryside after suffering a breakdown. The details of the breakdown aren't immediately known, but are revealed during the course of the series … and it's probably not a spoiler to note them here: he successfully defended Philip Spaull, a man accused of setting off a car bomb that killed a young boy. It turns out his client was guilty, and Travers nearly kills him when he admits to it, even laughs about it, in private. The young boy appears on screen as Travers' conscience — and is probably one of the weaker elements of this otherwise outstanding series.

Though Travers has vowed never to defend a murder suspect again, a friend from his university days, Martin Newall, specifically requests him when he is accused of killing his secretary. Travers reluctantly agrees, with the stipulation that if at any time he believes Newall is guilty, then he will walk away. The evidence against Newall is circumstantial and Travers begins to build his case.

Separately, Philip Spaull, who literally got away with murder, is himself found murdered, shot through the head. The Detective Inspector in charge of the investigation is convinced Travers had something to do with it, but there is scant evidence to prove it.

For the most part, I found Injustice to be terrific television. I enjoyed the story, and while I might have preferred it to be more of a legal thriller than a psychological thriller, it all worked for me. In addition to the appearance of the boy killed by Spaull, which I found more distracting than helpful, I was disappointed that the digital evidence was manipulated for the convenience of the story. That's a minor detail, but one that could have, should have, been addressed to make the overall case for and against Martin Newall more credible.

I strongly recommend this series, which unfolds over five episodes of about 45 minutes each. The contributing subplots are all cleverly brought together in the end, and while the conclusion may not come as a complete surprise, it's a satisfactory way to bring it all to a close.

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