By: Jennifer Russell
Best for:
Crime lovers
Amateur investigators
The Five is an intense one-season series comprised of ten episodes, and is a cliffhanger-crazy mystery of a show that will keep you staying up late just so you can watch the finale. Harlan Coben, an American mystery and thriller novelist, is the creator of this British-produced miniseries. The basic premise of the series is as follows: four young friends (Mark, Danny, Slade, and Pru) go into the woods to play, and Mark’s younger brother, Jesse, tries to join them. When Mark convinces Jesse to go home, he never makes it and goes missing. A convicted sex offender claims he killed Jesse, but the body was never found. 20 years later, Jesse’s DNA is found at a crime scene.
The complex and intelligent storyline not only deals with suspense and mystery, but also heartbreak and trauma. Little details are slowly revealed so the viewer can’t predict anything too far ahead. Even seemingly good characters carry suspicious secrets.
The show also beautifully flashes back and forth in time as information is revealed. One scene of Jesse as a child reoccurs time and time again, and while I can’t reveal anything else without spoilers; all I can say is this show put in a lot of thought put towards the writing, filming, editing, and all-around production!
The Five is available on Netflix.
