Hello movie and TV fans! Mr Mercedes just landed on Netflix. It already includes the complete season 1-3 of the series. It was based on Stephen King's book so I immediately watched it having been a fan of King's previous works like It, Dark Tower, Salem's Lot and even his son's Black Phone movies.

Summary

Based on Stephen King's book, Mr. Mercedes is not a horror story. It's a crime thriller about a retired detective, Bill Hodges, who is after his unsolved case. Two years ago, a man in clown mask riding a stolen Mercedes plowed through a crowd, ending the life of several people. After his retirement, he begins receiving messages from the supposed killer dubbed as Mr Mercedes. The guy is Brady, a nerdy guy who is a tech whiz but has problems with socially awkward. He seems to be a nice guy but underneath is a sociopath who has no problems ending innocent lives. We spend a slow burn ten episodes of Hodges trying to uncover and catch who Mr Mercedes is. At the same time, Brady is also playing games with Hodges trying to get him to end his life.

Cast

Brendan Gleason is Bill Hodges, a retired, out of shape detective who seems depressed and grumpy like Dr House. He lives lonely, being estranged from his wife and daughter while also carrying the guilt of the unsolved case.

Harry Treadway is Brady, a typical IT guy who looks polite and socially awkward. Underneath, he hides a violent and sick personality due to his childhood experience and abuse. Brady is quite a genius, if not for his sick personality the story could lead to him being the main character and we get a different series.

My Take on the Series

Mr Mercedes is a ten part slow burn series. Each episode is close to an hour so it can get boring if you are not invested in the characters. I find both Hodges and Brady back story interesting and their cat and mouse affair engaging. Even the supporting characters like Holly is sympathetic. The scenes in Brady's work place somehow remind of "The Office". Since this is Stephen King's work, it seems to be connected to his other works. There's even a gory cameo of King in there. I already started season two and I can see similarities to the Black Phone, written by King's son. From a grounded crime thriller it's moving toward supernatural territory where Brady can get in the minds of people.

Credits

Images were from imdb