Did Linda La Plante really approve Prime Suspect USA?

As we were fans of the original Prime Suspect starring Helen Mirren, we thought we would give Prime Suspect USA a watch currently being shown on Universal. 

The first episode starts with Jane Timoney after a jog getting into a taxi and pulling a gun and her badge on the taxi driver to make him drive, we found this utterly ridiculous and unbelievable. The episode doesn’t get much better and Maria Bello who plays Timoney is annoying and unlikeable which is emphasised by the strange hat she fashions throughout the show.

"Hey everyone, look at my weird hat."

We didn’t want to write it off after the first episode as there is a lot of scene setting and character building in a pilot, so we gave it another go and I’m afraid to say it gets no better. 

The New York version has none of the grittiness or suspense you get with the original. Each episode is done and dusted by the end of the 45 minutes with no real “prime suspect” as the title suggests. The only similarity to the original show is the chauvinistic attitude of the men that work within the department which feels very forced.

Prime Suspect USA is yet another example of why our friends across the pond should not remake what is already a perfectly good show and I am frankly shocked that Linda La Plante approved it. As I’m sure you have guessed we will not be tuning in again.