Ripper Street slashes its way onto Blu-ray

Article first published as Ripper Street slashes its way onto Blu-ray on TheTVKing.

Setting aside my annoyance that BBC America is now spending money on original programming instead of bringing us more than a handful of British shows at a time, and that annoyance is great, their new series, Ripper Street, sort of an old-timey CSI, now out on Blu-ray and DVD, is pretty good. 

Ripper Street is the second such effort the network has made, following closely on the heels of Copper. On the surface, both shows seem pretty similar. They both follow cops more than a century ago, breaking rules because their moral codes are different than our modern ones, and dipping their toes into the early days of forensic science. And they have wonderful looking period costumes and sets.

But Ripper Street is a little different. It isn't as concerned with class separations, and it ventures into more risque territory, with porn being a topic of the very first episode, and tossing in a bit of nudity. Ripper Street is also more structured, with the cops working out of an office, making it look a little more like our current idea of a police drama.

Thankfully, there is more to the series than just a case-of-the-week format. There are longer arcs that take awhile to play out. There are character-driven stories the provide opportunity for the cast to show off their talents. And the whole thing feels slightly steeped in history, given the connection of the story to Jack the Ripper.

Matthew Macfadyen (MI-5, Frost/Nixon) is the lead, Detective Inspector Edmund Reid, who investigated Jack's killing spree, but was unable to bring the perpetrator to justice. Because of this, he has been mentally scarred, which is outwardly reflected by physical wounds, most notably on his shoulder. His daughter is dead, a mystery that slowly plays out, and it's left him on ill terms with his wife, Emily (Amanda Hale, The Crimson Petal and the White), who is throwing herself into helping others as an attempt to help herself.

Macfadyen does well enough in the role, which isn't particularly interesting, mostly due to the fact that his character is like so many others already in television. It really takes him time to try to distinguish the part from other anti-hero cops and come into his own. Yet, there's something about Macfadyen that is inherently engaging, with an especially expressive face, and despite the shortcomings of Reid on paper, the actor makes it work.

Reid is joined on the job by Detective Sergeant Bennet Drake (Jerome Flynn, Game of Thrones), a bad man looking for redemption who has chosen Reid as his role model. Drake has a soft side, and is trying not to use his fists so much on the job. Like Macfadyen, Flynn has talent, and manages to make Drake more interesting than a lesser performer would be able to.

Of course, every good guy needs a bad seed to work against and so Ripper Street provides us Long Susan (MyAnna Buring, White Heat) and Homer Jackson (Adam Rothberg, The Ex List), who have fled from the United States to Britain. A bickering pair, they also manage to be somewhat likeable, even if they frequently don't do the right thing. As Ripper Street begins, Susan runs a whorehouse, where Jackson also stays. Jackson gets chummy with Reid, hoping a friendship will keep the law off of their backs. This works because Jackson has a great mind for science, and so his help is quite beneficial to Reid.

Lest the cast seem too male-dominated, we also have Rose Erskine (Charlene McKenna, Raw), a prostitute working for Long Susan whom Jackson has an interest in, much to Susan's chagrin, since Rose is one of her top earners.

Can Reid figure out who killed his daughter? Will the real Jack the Ripper be caught? Can Rose leave the life of sleeping with men for money? Is Jackson a bad man? These are questions that span the entire eight episode season, and some may or may not be answered by the finale, which is built up to nicely.

Given that this two disc Blu-ray only contains eight installments, there are quite a few bonus features. There are character profiles, "inside looks," a tour of the neighborhood of White Chapel, where the story takes place, and a look back at the Jack the Ripper case using modern forensics. These are all appropriate, and nicely compliment the series.

I do recommend checking out the show in high definition Blu-ray if you can. The level of detail is amazing, with much care going into the production value. There are a lot of dark scenes, and this release captures the shadows and depths that the picture should have. The sound track isn't particularly groundbreaking, but the mix is well done, blending background music with sound effects. The dialogue comes through clearly, too. 

Ripper Street is available now.