“Death and Other Details” First Three Episodes, Season 1 Review

(*This article contains topics of death that could be triggering. Read at your own discretion.*)

“Death and Other Details'' is a mystery drama series created by Heidi Cole McAdams and Mike Welss. Starring “God Friended Me” actress Violett Beane, Tony Award winner Lauren Patten and “The Princess Bride” actor Mandy Patinkin, the series centers around the classic “whodunit” murder mystery plot line, while everyone – suspects and investigators included -- is enclosed on a lavish cruise liner.

The Hulu tv-series, produced by ABC Signature, follows a young woman, Imogene Scott (Violett Beane), as people from her past collide with her present-day life while on her family friend’s cruise liner vacation.

When someone is murdered on the Collier family’s private cruise vacation and Imogene becomes the prime suspect, she is forced to team up with Detective Rufus Cotesworth (Mandy Patinkin) -- the same detective who dropped her mother’s cold case eighteen years ago -- in order to prove herself innocent and possibly catch her mother’s killer.

The first episode “Rare” starts right off the bat with illusions, so the audience knows they are in for a wild ride. Young Imogene, played by the amazing actress Sophia Reid-Gantzert, has been taken in by her friend’s family, the Collier family, after her mother’s tragic death.

As young Imogene is taking her mother’s death hard, the Collier family hires Detective Rufus Cotesworth to solve the case. However, after many months of investigating, Cotesworth drops the case, causing Imogene to despise him. When Imogene finds out Cotesworth is on the cruise liner with her, she’s furious until she gets pinned for someone’s murder, forcing her to work with Cotesworth to prove her innocence.

The series does a wonderful job of using flashbacks, dialogue and scene cuts, to allow the audience to grasp the series’ plot within the first few minutes. With episode run times of a little less than an hour, the show is able to flesh out details – and red herrings – in order to give depth and conflict to the characters.

Both costume designers, Mandi Line and Mary E. Vogt, deserve a promotion for the characters’ outfits. They managed to capture the modern elite socialite aesthetic with inklings of each character’s personality sprinkled within. In fact, when Imogene begins to work together with Cotesworth, their outfits are made into complements of each other with flip-flopped brown and white business attire.

With business politics, elite scandals and conflicting dynamics, this series is bound to keep you entertained. Quickly the audience wants to root for Anna Collier (Lauren Patten), Imogene’s best friend and business-focused sister figure, who attempts to keep her family and the family business flourishing.

The first three episodes of “Death and Other Details” live up to the series’ name. The directors make various interesting cinematographic choices that enhance the audience’s enjoyment of the show. With a seemingly random, yet much-needed and perfectly placed, promo video for the Collier family’s company, the audience is able to understand the reasoning behind the Collier’s inner tensions and their desperation for the Chun family’s business deal.

The series has superb dialogue that showcases each character’s personality in an interesting and realistic way. It also enables the audience to feel as though they are peering into the high-class socialite world.

Every character manages to be somewhat interesting and fascinating, a feat relatively unheard of for this day and age in film. The characters seem to be rooted in some kind of realistic personality, except, perhaps, Interpol Agent Hilde Eriksen (Linda Emond) who sounds and moves like a robot synched to her little hand watch.

As the characters’ secrets and personas are revealed, the audience learns how messed up everyone on the liner truly is. In addition, the murderer becomes more and more unclear as everyone has a secret motive.

Overall, “Death and Other Details” was an interesting take on the locked-room “whodunit” genre. With several cliffhangers and red herrings, the show manages to keep its audience on their toes, preventing them from boring out.

While the show has a cast of fascinating characters and keeps the audience on their feet, potential viewers should be aware of the intimate sex scenes that are oddly sprinkled throughout the show.

The murder mystery series uses detailed flashbacks, false foreshadowing and interesting characters to “red-herring” the audience and keep them engaged. Hopefully, the remaining seven episodes will keep the energy alive.

Episode 4 of “Death and Other Details” will air on Hulu on January 30, 2024, with an episode premiering every Thursday until February 7, 2024. The season finale will occur on March 5, 2024, when the last two episodes will drop.

Rating: 3/5

Sarah Taylor is a first-year majoring in telecommunications. To contact her, email smt6314@psu.edu.