In this era when it’s difficult to turn one’s head without being bombarded by a barrage of news more distressing than what graced headlines the day prior or a new horrific global event worse than the last, there’s nothing like a cozy mystery to pivot attention towards something far less sad and far more of an unabashed delight. Enter “Ludwig,” where any show easily explained in one sentence couldn’t be off to a better start.
John Taylor (David Mitchell) has been setting puzzles for years, keeping to a solitary life. Still, when Lucy (Anna Maxwell Martin), the wife of his twin brother James (also Mitchell), alerts him to the fact that James has gone missing, Josh now finds himself in the awkward position of having to infiltrate James’ life, posing as him in an effort to find possible evidence hidden within the walls of his day job. That job, by the way, is that of DCI (Detective Chief Inspector to the Brits) of the Cambridge Police Authority, and puzzle setting, for those unfamiliar, describes the act of creating as much as solving puzzles, usually of the crossword variety. Could John’s enigma-driven life come in handy regarding both James’s whereabouts and the cases he’s now been handed as he assumes his brother’s role at work?
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In the echelon of typical storytelling, there’s no question here. Still, nonetheless, such a setup plays out unencumbered by loads of unnecessary details characteristic of many a contemporary genre. It thus renders the 60-minute runtime of all six episodes comprising this debut season hardly a chore to take in. John seems to have been stuck in time, rarely leaving his house but still feeling a canyon exists in his relationship with James, and as is soon revealed, his dated lifestyle even pours over to his cell phone, which an astonished Lucy asks if it’s the same one he received for Christmas…twenty years ago.
Yes, by all appearances, it’s a non-flip, Nokia or Cingular-esque model, but the chuckles that might result from this amusing scene only serve to tee up the moments when he first enters his brother’s police station for the first time, as he dodges questions about James’ son Henry (Dylan Hughes), stammering in response with barely any ability to answer convincingly, only for the hot water to continue rising as his first case with new partner Russell Carter (Dipo Ola) involves getting to the bottom of a murder. No, it’s not James’, and lacking any knowledge or decorum as to how such matters might be handled by his own twin soon prompts John to utilize his puzzle-setting skill set. In a fashion that could make Charlie Kelly in front of a hastily-made diagram connected by strings proud, a flurry of movements as he puts marker to white board see him using logic, deduction, and his knack for crosswords to determine the culprit, even obtaining something of a confession. Maybe he and his missing twin are more alike than they thought.
Rinsing and repeating for Episode Two, another missing persons case sees John and Carter make their way to a lavish countryside estate, where an onsite teambuilding event may have ties to the incident, and only John seems equipped to determine what happened. By now, it shouldn’t be challenging to witness John’s budding interest in filling the shoes of James’ professional life, even as Lucy continues to remind him of the need to keep his eye on the prize, especially as Henry has accidentally joined the party after finding a letter James left for Lucy, one that seems to indicate something was amiss. Something, indeed, was amiss, as Lucy had observed his recent behavior markedly different from the James she always knew; what other secrets sit waiting for, say, a curious John to crack? In the meantime, a swatch of mismatched wallpaper may very well reveal, in the spirit of “Clue,” the answers John needs to very well put a stamp on Case #2, but when coming up short in closing the proverbial curtains, it’s back to his puzzle-solving acumen. As he becomes more embroiled in the life of a DCI, are additional problems starting to arise, or is this, somehow, a perfect match for someone like John Taylor?
Episode Three begins with a body found in a church. We all know where this is heading, with John soon on the scene.
As John, David Mitchell balances the perfect level of frustration, aggravation, and the general sense that his psyche may very well be drifting ever closer to the edge while showing tremendous restraint; this is where his humor lives. Great jokes receive additional payoff later; one particular moment sees John express his confusion with the gentleman facilitating the teambuilding event over a motivational phrase, which by itself makes for a snicker or two, but when the mystery is solved before the end credits roll and the facilitator realizes how his words may inadvertently tie to what’s happened, it’s just as funny. John also seems to lack the ability to hold back when asked directly for more information from a concerned individual, even if it means spouting off an avalanche of distressing news. Their easygoing banter becomes palpable when paired with Anna Maxwell Martin as Lucy. Every supporting member of the cast, in particular Gerran Howell as DC (Detective Constable) Simon, does what they can with the witty dialogue each is handed, and each handles it well.
As seen in flashback at the end of the pilot, John gave himself the pen name “Ludwig” when he signed his new moniker below a puzzle he constructed as a youth, in doing so kicking off a fictional character holding his own amongst the cadre of peers dotting the landscape of fiction for centuries. Never one to bowl over an audience with endless amounts of police jargon, instead letting the plotlines flow freely while generating genuine interest in how John’s latest case might proceed and how he’ll find a balance with the ongoing quest to locate his lost brother, it’s an easygoing experience just as capable of drawing the viewer in immediately as they wonder where the time has gone at the end of every episode. In no way is a cipher needed to decode the charm of “Ludwig.” [A-]
“Ludwig” premiers March 20 on BritBox.
