TV review: Crazy Delicious; The Stranger; Talking It Out
Insta manna from heaven
Liam Fay
Sunday February 02 2020, 12.01am GMT, The Sunday Time
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Old-style corn stock with a spicy modern glaze permeates The Stranger, a hokey but suspenseful TV thriller custom-made for binge-watching by adults who have lost patience with sci-fi, fantasy, superhero yarns and all other categories of children’s fiction.

Created by Harlan Coben, based on his novel, the eight-part serial tells a story that could almost be a folkloric fable but is nonetheless grounded in a recognisably contemporary reality. Coben is nobody’s idea of a literary crime writer, but this briskly recounted, plot-driven saga about skeletons in suburban closets is not entirely lacking in psychological insight.

Richard Armitage plays Adam Price, an English lawyer and apparently happily married father-of-two whose cosy life is upended when a stranger approaches him in a bar and reveals an alarming secret about his wife, Corrine (Dervla Kirwan). Upheaval at the Price household triggers further disclosures that reverberate throughout their neighbourhood. Meanwhile, the stranger has more saucy beans to spill.

Fast-paced but tautly controlled, the story is a dextrously engineered box of tricksiness, with plenty of twists and cliffhangers. Far-fetched absurdities abound, but some depth is provided by a premium supporting cast that includes Stephen Rea, Jennifer Saunders and Siobhán Finneran. Above all else, it’s refreshing to encounter a well-made, high-concept drama which recognises that distant planets and imaginary worlds are not the only places where strange tales unfold.

DEMAND PICK OF THE WEEK
The Stranger (Netflix)
As with Safe (Netflix’s previous Harlan Coben adaptation) this twisty new thriller unfolds in a curiously artificial middle-class “England” of double-fronted mansions and partying teens. Amidst a top-tier cast (Siobhan Finneran, Stephen Rea), Richard Armitage plays a bemused lawyer whose world is undone by a whispering “do-gooder”; but it is Paul Kaye as a spectacularly seedy cop who steals the show.

Warum ist England unter Anführungszeichen? Habe ich was verpaßt?

but it is Paul Kaye as a spectacularly seedy cop who steals the show.

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Ich schweige fuer dich The Stranger Netflix
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Ich schweige für dich – Staffel 1

Oliver Armknecht
Freitag, 31. Januar 2020
Krimi, Serie, Thriller, UK


Eigentlich führte Familie Price ein glückliches, ausgefülltes Leben. Bis zu jenem Tag, als eine fremde Frau (Hannah John-Kamen) Adam (Richard Armitage) anspricht und ihm einige seltsame Dinge über seine Frau Corinne (Dervla Kirwan) erzählt. Der will zunächst nichts davon wissen, stellt sie aber doch nach einigen Nachforschungen zur Rede. Corinne ist sichtlich erschüttert, will erst einmal ein bisschen Bedenkzeit – und ist daraufhin spurlos verschwunden. Derweil hat die ermittelnde Polizistin Johanna Griffin (Siobhan Finneran) noch ganz andere Sorgen, weil die Fremde noch viele andere Geheimnisse in Erfahrung gebracht hat und damit jede Menge Leute erpresst …

Ich weiß etwas, das du nicht weißt …

Fleißige Netflix-Schauer, zumindest solche mit einer Krimivorliebe, könnten schon einmal Bekanntschaft mit Harlan Coben gemacht haben. Etwa anderthalb Jahre ist es her, dass die von ihm geschaffene Serie Safe auf dem Streamingdienst lief, in der ein erfolgreicher Arzt seine verschwundene Tochter sucht. Nun gibt es Nachschub in Form von Ich schweige für dich. Zwar hat der amerikanische Buchautor mit der konkreten Serie nichts zu tun gehabt, dafür basiert sie auf einem von ihm geschriebenen Roman aus dem Jahr 2015. Wer die andere Serie gesehen hat, weiß aber auch so schon grob, was ihn erwartet: unbescholtene Bürger, die in finstere Machenschaften verwickelt werden, dazu jede Menge düsterer Geheimnisse.

Ich schweige für dich fackelt dann auch nicht lange. Mit der Verkündung des ersten Geheimnisses geht es los, danach werden in kurzer Folge immer mehr Leichen aus dem Keller getragen – und ein paar neue dort untergebracht. Ausgangspunkt davon ist immer diese mysteriöse, namenlose Frau, deren Absichten anfangs nicht ganz ersichtlich sind. Aber das macht ja nichts. Im Gegenteil, es trägt schön zu der mysteriösen Stimmung bei, wenn man als Zuschauer bald vor lauter Fragen kaum noch denken kann. Zumal die Serie kein größeres Bedürfnis hat, diese Fragen zu beantworten. Denn jeder Schritt für zu einer neuen Abzweigung, zu neuen Figuren, die irgendwie mit allem zusammenhängen und die wir erst einordnen müssen.

Viele Spuren, wenig Sinn

Das ist gerade zu Beginn durchaus spannend, wenn eine ganze Reihe von Parallelhandlungen eingeführt werden, die von gewöhnlicher Erpressung bis zu bizarren Funden reichen. Hinzu kommt, dass auch die jeweiligen Ermittlungen ohne große Berührungspunkte sind, die Figuren unabhängig voneinander nach Lösungen suchen oder anderweitig auf der Jagd sind. Davon wird nicht alles ein Ziel finden. Tatsächlich ist es sogar bemerkenswert, wie gleichgültig Ich schweige für dich einige Figuren fallenlässt und Nebenhandlungen im Nichts enden. Das kann man interessant finden, weil längere Zeit eben nicht klar ist, was von dem Wust von Informationen nun überhaupt relevant ist. Oder auch irritierend, weil die Serie oft nicht wirklich durchdacht wirkt.

Ohnehin, allzu sehr drüber nachdenken sollte man besser nicht. So manches, was Coben da zusammengeschrieben hat, ergibt nicht wirklich Sinn. Auch psychologisch liegt da einiges im Argen, wenn Figuren sich kaum nachvollziehbar verhalten, man sich bei den Erklärungen keine besondere Mühe gegeben hat. Manche Seltsamkeiten werden durch den Einsatz des Ensembles überspielt. Wirklich herausragend sind die Darsteller oder Darstellerinnen aber nicht, mehr als das übliche TV-Niveau für den Hausgebrauch ist nicht drin. Selbst die an und für sich emotionalen Szenen sind recht blutleer. Spaß haben kann man mit Ich schweige für dich trotzdem. Wie viel Spaß das ist, hängt von der eigenen Toleranzgrenze ab, wie unglaubwürdig eine Geschichte werden darf. Gerade zum Ende hin sollte die besser möglichst weit oben liegen, wenn die Versuche, alle Fäden zusammenzubringen, ein willkürlich zusammengeschustertes Konstrukt ergeben, völlig übertrieben ohne den dafür notwendigen Humor. Zum schnellen Bingen übers Wochenende reicht es, die Auflösung selbst ist nach dem vielversprechenden Einstieg aber eher etwas enttäuschend.

NETFLIX’S THE STRANGER REVIEW – NO STRANGER TO EXCITEMENT
Solid performances and high degree of tension and suspense result in an intriguing and thrilling watch.

Dan Ashby·February 5, 2020
Netflix The Stranger
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The Stranger is the latest Harlan Coben novel to receive the Netflix treatment, following the 2018 adaptation of Safe.

It follows the story of Adam Price (Richard Armitage), a lawyer, husband and father of two. For all intense and purposes, he has the perfect life: A loving wife and nice kids. But his whole world is suddenly turned upside down when he is approached by a mysterious woman (Hannah John-Kamen). She informs Price that his wife, Corinne (Dervla Kirwin), has been keeping a big, dark secret from him. Learning this to be true, Price confronts Corinne, who asks him to give her some time to explain. Soon after she vanishes and Price begins a desperate search to track her down and find out what’s really going on.

Coben oftens writes crime drama fiction that focuses on a number of different characters following various storylines. The Stranger continues that trend and although it begins with a focus on Price, it soon widens its scope to include several other narratives and characters. At first they all appear unconnected and seemingly separate. However, as The Stranger unfolds, links start to develop between them and it becomes increasingly clear that they are all part of a bigger puzzle.

Although the TV version of The Stranger switches the setting of America to England, there are moments where the show feels like a fast-paced American TV show. This was also the case for Safe but it’s an influence that has cropped up in more and more British crime productions over the last ten years. Other shows such as Luther still retain that sense of gritty realism and down to earth style but also have a handful of fast-paced chase sequences and moments of intense action.


On the one hand, this does make The Stranger quite a thrilling watch. There is a suitable amount of time given to character depth and some good moments of realism. At the same time, there are a handful of dramatic and exciting sequences throughout the season. The tension is built up well and there’s a rolling momentum and pace to these scenes, which means the show doesn’t drag or coast along too slowly.

On the other hand, it sometimes makes for an uneven tone to the show. The characters feel very down to earth and relatable, living fairly normal lives with even police characters such as Johanna Griffin (Siobhan Finneran) and Wesley Ross (Kadiff Kirwan) seeming like the sort of people you could bump into down the pub. So it can sometimes jar a little when characters start waving guns around like in an American cop show.


Price is a very well crafted character initially. Armitage plays the part of a concerned dad well, following the clues step by step and approaching people and talking to them. Later on in the show, though, he becomes much more aggressive and reckless. Admittedly, it does demonstrate the physiological impact from being unable to find Corrine, but it also feels like it is straying into Taken terrority, as he becomes more volatile and violent.




Similarly to Safe, The Stranger is a show where everyone has their own secrets. This provides a good deal of variety in terms of storytelling, while also making it difficult to actually figure out who is responsible for what and how they all link to one another. John-Kamen’s character sheds light on some of these but cleverly she is a character who is also shrouded in mystery.

Most of the mini narratives are really well devised. There are a few that don’t quite hold the same weight, which is a shame, but for the most part they are interesting and engaging. It also does throw in a few too many red herrings, particularly in the last episode. While this allows for more of a dramatic big reveal at the end, it does feel a bit too convoluted and contrived.


The performances are one of the strongest aspects of The Stranger and there is some fantastic British talent on offer. Armitage gives an incredibly grounded central performance as Price and you fully believe and invest with his character right from the start. He has a strong on screen presence which lends considerable weight to his scenes. At the same time, he is able to be very unassuming when required, being quite believable as an average dad leading a normal life. Armitage shows his versatility in the role and it makes for a gripping watch.

Siobhan Finneran is also brilliant in The Stranger and delivers a great performance in every scene she is in. She is the perfect fit for the role, bringing the classic slightly grumpy and flippant behaviour one would expect from a TV Detective. However as events develop and her circumstances are altered, we are exposed to a more sensitive and vulnerable side to her. It is an effective character trait as it shows that she is flawed, again bringing in that relatability of her character.


Other impressive performances include Hannah John-Kamen, Shaun Dooley, Jennifer Saunders, Dervla Kirven, Antony Head and the always fantastic Stephen Rea. But the real surprise inclusion comes in the form of Paul Kaye. An actor who has improved considerably over the years, Kaye proves once again his talent in front of the camera. To delve into his character anymore runs the risk of giving stuff away, but needless to say he is excellent in his role as John Katz.

For the most part, The Stranger is a tense, hard-hitting drama but there are also some moments of humour dotted throughout. The jokes that Wess frequently makes and the outspoken nature of Doug Tripp and his son Mike are not only funny but highly authentic. In one sense, they use humour as a defense mechanism to either avoid or cope with their problems. In another, it identifies that life isn’t one continually serious affair and that there are moments of laughter as well.


The Stranger focuses on a large web of secrets and lies, and during the course of the eight episodes we learn of their origins and how they all link with one another. The structure is very clever as we learn answers at the same time the characters do, providing a decent level of mystery and intrigue.

There is an excellent pace and rhythm to The Stranger with a well struck balance between drama and action. It does lose its way a bit near the tail end of the season when it overloads the viewer with red herrings and plot twists, but the final revelation in the last episode is strong and shocking.

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VERDICT
The Stranger isn't without fault and some of the narrative threads are a little weak, but the well written characters, solid performances and high degree of tension and suspense result in an intriguing and thrilling watch.
7.5

Dan Ashby
Dan Ashby
Writer, film and TV addict, video-gamer and general all-round nerd.
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NETFLIX “THE STRANGER” REVIEW: BINGEABLE BUT CONVOLUTED
Posted by Kelly Luchtman | Feb 4, 2020 | Spoiler Free Show Reviews | 0


Harlan Coben’s The Stranger, on Netflix, is a plot-centric thriller that eschews character development for nail biting tension. Although we prefer international TV shows with subplots that give us insight into the country’s culture, like Trapped or Fortitude, sometimes a good old fashioned nail-biter will do. The only bummer is The Stranger wastes a stellar cast.

COMPLICATED PLOT
Brought to you by the same team that adapted the Coben novel Safe, The Stranger is similarly convoluted, with many threads that seem unrelated at first. The main story is about family man Adam Price (Richard Armitage) who is approached by a stranger (Hannah John-Kamen) claiming that Adam’s wife Corrine (Dervla Kirwan) faked her pregnancy and subsequent miscarriage the year before. Corrine doesn’t deny it when confronted, but doesn’t explain either. Instead, she disappears, claiming via text that she needs some time away. At the same time, soon-to-be retired cop DS Johanna Griffin (Siobhan Finneran) takes a call about a decapitated llama with human bite marks on it. In the course of investigating, she and partner DC Wesley Ross (Kadiff Krwan) stumble upon an unconscious, naked teenager in the woods. As the series goes on, the plot grows more complicated, with more characters, such as Johanna’s best friend whom the stranger is blackmailing, played by the chic and sober Jennifer Saunders, Adam’s irascible client played by Stephen Rea, and the mysterious Katz (Paul Kaye), who is a law enforcement officer but also somehow wrapped up in the stranger’s blackmail schemes.

ULTIMATELY BINGEABLE
I found Safe to be a perfunctory adaptation, and The Stranger is too. With some work, the writers could have cut whole plot lines in order to give other stories, and characters, some depth. As it is now, I found it a little head-spinning, although I was definitely able to follow it. One place in which The Stranger excels is the cliffhanger. Each episode ends in a way that ensures you will watch the next one. And I did, until 1:30AM on a school night. If you don’t mind complex plot machinations at the expense of character development, and you want to see a veritable who’s who of British actors, then The Stranger is for you

Much of The Stranger is Ridiculously Immersive

By Kerr Lordygan at February 7, 2020 10:00 am

Much of Netflix's The Stranger is ridiculously immersive.

The television series -- based on Harlan Coben's book of the same name -- apparently differs in some major ways from the source material.

But not having read the book myself, the adaptation is a terrifically winding road of deception and heartbreak.

So much occurs in the series, it's ridiculous to try and keep it all straight.

But the skillfull tying together of all the twisty knots is an all-enveloping and charged experience.

The premise places a blackmailing stranger -- played by Hannah John-Kamen (Killjoys, Game of Thrones, The Tunnel) -- at the core of controversy, as she attempts to eradicate lies and expose secrets for money.

She has a pained passion for executing these exposures with her business partner, Ingrid Prisby, played by Lily Loveless (The Royals, The Great War: The People's Story, Skins).

The domino effect of the first reveal on The Stranger Season 1 Episode 1 slowly builds into a catastrophic entanglement of many lives, loves, and heartaches.

Richard Armitage (Berlin Station, Hannibal, Strike Back) leads the cast in a series of excellent portrayals. Siobhan Finneran (Happy Valley, A Confession, Cold Feet) and Dervla Kirwan (White Dragon, The Silence) carry a great deal of the dramatic weight.

Finneran's is an award-worthy performance.

But the happy surprise inclusions of Jennifer Saunders (Absolutely Fabulous, French and Saunders), Stephen Rea (The Crying Game,The Honourable Woman), and Anthony Head (Buffy the Vampre Slayer, The Split, Girlfriends) are superbly entertaining.

Saunders is just such a treasure to watch. And she shines with drama as equally as she does with comedy.

Rea plays a delectable character role that fully takes the audience for a loop. He's just so likeable even though he's eccentric and weird AF.

And maybe we shouldn't want him to be so likeable after all. Of course, such dichotemy makes for some brilliant art.

Richard Armitage travels an admirable emotional journey throughout the eight episode run. His good looks are distracting, sure, but his authenticity draws us back in to his active inner psyche.

Some foreshadowing of what is to be expected is found in Episode 1 when Adam (Armitage) tells wife Corinne (Dervla) how he has stopped trusting her.

Corinne replies with, "It hurts, doesn't it? We all have our secrets, Adam. Even you."

The haunting quote resonates throughout the season as we watch more and more lives fall apart through exposed secret after exposed secret.

We know from that point there is more to what we are seeing at this stage of the drama. After that, we -- the audience -- can trust no one.

On The Stranger Season 1 Episode 5, The Stranger passionately exerts, "A secret revealed is a secret destroyed." But by the end of the season, we know that not to be true. In fact, it seems the opposite is true.

Everyone on the show has secrets. And the question by the end is, would they have been better off without these secrets getting revealed?

The answer is a resounding yes.

Are we to take away that it's best to keep our secrets to ourselves? Maybe not. But the production definitely points blame at the busybody who insists on interfering.

Another tumultuous performance arrives in the form of Paul Kaye (Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, Wanderlust, Zapped) as Patrick Katz -- hey, his real life initials match his character's: that's a rarity!

His is only one role of many here that must vascillate between the entities of need, protection, and remorse.

In a way, his story grips us backwards -- he pisses us off straight away. But the depth of the writing eases us into the why and how of the sin.

Another key takeaway from The Stranger -- the show, not the character -- is that those phone tracking apps can be real lifesavers!

Yeah, I know, it's creepy, too.

But I can't help but wonder if this show would have much of a plot without that form of technology.

Secrets on this series vary from oddities like faked pregnancies to revenge porn to illnesses to embezzlement -- to name a few.

There are so many cowlicks in this piece, it really is hard to keep them all sorted.

But a couple episodes really yank the heart. The Stranger Season 1 Episode 4 might be the most emotionally charged -- not including the climax of the eighth. But it takes no prisoners in its grasp.

It touches on relationships, lost and rekindled.

Those emotional moments give us some "relief" from the crazy plots. They also bring on more distress.

Now, I mentioned that much of the season is so damned immersive. That's because in the middle, there is a little lagging. Really though, it gives us a false sense that we have predicted the rest.

Just when we think the show is settling into averageness, it picks us up by the ears and basically says to us, "We're not done with you, you medcorty-accepting couch potato! We're going to bash you up some more!"

The teens roles are also notewortthy, and would detract from the overall success of The Stranger were they not.

So grab some popcorn or pizza -- or some popcorn pizza -- and binge this one.

Each episode is under an hour, so it's doable in a couple nights. I don't think you'll regret it! But if you do -- or don't -- alert us below in the comments and let us know!

The Stranger is streaming now on Netflix.

Kritik
„The Stranger – Ich schweige für dich“ auf Netflix: Die Fremde, die Leben ruiniert
Ein Thriller-Bingewatch für zwei Abende: In der Miniserie zu Harlan Cobens „The Stranger“ erpresst eine Unbekannte verschiedene Menschen mit der Veröffentlichung privater Geheimnisse. Welches Ziel verfolgt sie? Was sollen all die absurden Geschehnisse, die gleichzeitig passieren? Und was zur Hölle hat das mit „Saw“ zu tun?



Im ersten Teil des Horror-Franchise „Saw“ gibt es diese wahnsinnige Auflösung, die keiner kommen sah: Die Leiche, die 107 Minuten lang leblos zwischen zwei in einer Zelle gefangenen und durch Folterspiele gequälten Menschen lag, ist gar keine. Sie steht plötzlich auf und entpuppt sich als ihr Peiniger Jigsaw persönlich. Ein Wendepunkt, den Protagonisten und Zuschauer nur deshalb nicht kommen sahen, weil er im Nachhinein viel zu offensichtlich erscheint. Und weil zur Ablenkung viel zu viele Nebelkerzen gezündet wurden, wie bei einem Zaubertrick. „The Stranger – Ich schweige für dich“, die nach „Safe“ zweite Netflix-Serienadaption eines Thrillers von Harlan Coben, die seit dem 30. Januar 2020 im Stream zu sehen ist, funktioniert nach dem exakt gleichen Prinzip.

Adam Price (Richard Armitage) lebt ein Familienleben wie im Bilderbuch. Mit seiner Frau Corrine und den gemeinsamen Söhnen wohnt er in einem reichen Vorort einer namenlosen britischen Kleinstadt. Er ist Anwalt, sie Lehrerin, die Kinder spielen Fußball mit ihren Freunden. Diese Idylle ändert sich schlagartig, als ihn eines Tages eine fremde Frau anspricht und verunsichert: Corrine habe Geheimnisse vor ihm, sagt sie. Woher sie davon wisse, woher sie ihn kenne und wer sie überhaupt sei, sagt sie nicht. Adam beginnt zu recherchieren, sieht die Vorwürfe bestätigt und spricht seine Frau auf eine einst erfolglose Schwangerschaft an, die möglicherweise gefaked war. Nach einem Streit und ihrer kryptischen Aussage, dass da mehr dahinter stecke, verschwindet Corrine.

Ein Leak privater Abgründe

Von jetzt an häufen sich die unerklärlichen Geschehnisse: Im Ort wird ein abgetrennter Alpakakopf gefunden. Im Wald entdeckt die Polizei einen bewusstlosen nackten Jungen, der am Vorabend mit anderen Teenagern an einer Silent-Disco-Lagerfeuerparty auf einer nahe gelegenen Lichtung teilnahm. Eine Café-Betreiberin wird erpresst, weil ihre Tochter ihre Begleit- und Sexdienste in einer einschlägigen App anbietet. Ein Nachbarsmädchen ist schwer krank, die Ärzte ratlos. Ein alter Freund von Adam will nicht aus der tristen Reihenhaussiedlung raus, die Adams Vater abreißen lassen will. Ihr seid schon jetzt verwirrt? Die Liste der Nebenschauplätze in „The Stranger – Ich schweige für dich“ ließe sich fortführen, und je umfassender die Erzählstränge in den insgesamt acht Folgen der Miniserie werden, desto lauter fragt man sich, wann und wie bitteschön all diese Fäden zusammengeführt werden. Milder Spoiler: Manche verlaufen ins Nichts beziehungsweise lösen sich mit der wirklichen Auflösung im Staffelfinale in Luft auf. Nebelkerzen eben.

Während die auf einem anderen Harlan-Coben-Roman basierende Miniserie „Safe“ mit Michael C. Hall in der Hauptrolle ein eigentlich klassischer „Who did it?“-Thriller über eine verschwundenes Mädchen war, der zwischendurch eine schwarze Komödie sein wollte, stellt sich die Frage nach dem „Wer?“ in „The Stranger“ lange Zeit nur bedingt. Klar, wer diese mysteriöse Unbekannte ist, die nicht nur Adam, sondern auch weiteren Stadtbewohnern mit dem Leak von privaten Abgründen droht, würde man schon gerne wissen (und erfährt es auch irgendwann). Weil Corinne ihrem Mann aber eine SMS schrieb, in der sie um eine Auszeit und Ruhe bittet, dominiert anfangs viel mehr das Rätsel, wie viele neue Rätsel sich noch auftun, was zur Hölle der an Johnny Depp in „Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas“ erinnernde Drogentrip des Nachbarsohnes soll und wer kein Doppelleben führt.

Der gemeinsame Nenner beider Serien neben den Nebelkerzen: Nichts ist wie es scheint, und jeder hat so sein Geheimnis. Klingt einerseits nach einer Aussage, wie sie jeder zweiten Psycho- und Suspense-Thriller erzählt. Andererseits aber nach zwei Abenden kurzweiliger und kompakt geschriebener Bingewatch-Unterhaltung. Und eben das ist „The Stranger – Ich schweige für dich“ trotz oder wegen seiner zahlreichen WTF- und Over-The-Top-Momente durchaus geworden.

„The Stranger“ (dt. „Ich schweige für dich“), Staffel 1, acht Folgen, seit 30. Januar 2020 auf Netflix im Stream verfügbar

Netflix's "The Stranger" is an anxiety-inducing thriller that asks how well you know your loved ones
Based on Harlan Coben's novel, the mystery series will make you glad you stayed at home safe . . . or are you?

Melanie McFarland
January 30, 2020 10:51PM (UTC)

Live long enough, and at some point popular culture will confirm that you are getting old. This happens gradually and sneakily, and it isn't merely a matter of not being able to relate to certain celebrities, music or fashion trends.

What I'm referring to is subtler than that. You may come across an infomercial for a Time Life music catalog collection built around the songs and bands you listened to in college, and against your better judgment, find yourself mildly interested. Or even more like when you may find yourself watching "Dateline," not because your plans are cancelled or you have nothing else to do, but because you want to. Because it's soothing.

Shows like "Dateline" and the content of the entire Investigation Discovery channel validate that regardless of whatever malaise in which you may feel stuck, at least you didn't marry someone who is secretly a homicidal clown. They let you know that, yes, life is better inside the house, and who wants to leave the couch anyway?

The same feeling governs "The Stranger," an eight-episode British-produced conspiracy thriller based on the 2015 book by New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben and adapted for television by Danny Brocklehurst, who worked with Coben on 2017's "Safe." (Fourteen of Coben's 31 novels are being adapted into series and movies for Netflix.)

The season slavishly follows the Netflix binge model, ending each hour on a cliffhanger that tumbles right into the next anxiety-producing episode and arcing from a place of "What in the hell is going on?" to "How much more crazy is packed into this thing?"

Above all, it is the sort of mystery tailored to make Generation Xers and Boomers feel less than OK about the casual dangers lurking all around them in the usual places – online exposure, tech-enabled deceit and the time-honored health hazard presented by teenagers engaging in ulcer-producing activities. Most of that is completely avoidable if you never, ever leave your home.

Of course, Coben didn't write "The Stranger" as an agoraphobe's reverie, or a cautionary tale for middle-aged lazies to point to and say, "See? This is why we need to cancel those dinner plans." Mainly it's a compelling tale about having one's trust violated by somebody close and the outing of secrets for reasons that are at first only know to the titular Stranger, played by Hannah John-Kamen. (In the book, by the way, the Stranger is a white man.)

Her modus operandi is first revealed when she sidles up to Adam Price (Richard Armitage) during his son's soccer match and casually tells him that his wife Corinne (Dervla Kirwan) faked a pregnancy that Adam was led to believe ended in miscarriage. For bonus gits and shiggles, the woman also advises him to test his boys' DNA to make sure they are actually his and, oh, check Corinne's credit card bills.

Crazy right? Until it isn't entirely nuts. Indeed, Corinne is up to something. But what? And why did the Stranger drop that bad news anvil on Adam's head when, a few shakes later, she approaches a bakery shop owner named Heidi (Jennifer Saunders) and informs her that her daughter is secretly working as a "sugar baby," demanding a large sum of money to keep that information quiet.

But hang on now, because around the same time Adam's son Thomas (Jacob Dudman) finds himself in a pickle when a forest rave he attends with his pals Mike (Brandon Fellows) and Daisy (Ella-Rae Smith) goes sideways, landing a kid in the hospital. That places the kids on the radar of DS Johanna Griffin (Siobhan Finneran), who also happens to be a friend of Heidi's and wrestling with feelings over her own moribund marriage.

Dead livestock also enters the mix at one point but anyhow, you get the idea – there's a lot going on in "The Stranger." It's, like, three "Dateline" episodes and a "Stabbed" wrapped up in one harrowing, stylishly British package.

Labyrinthine as its multiple cases – with details muddied by well-concealed deceptions or good old fashioned controlled substances – the performances are enough of an attractant to keep a person engaged initially, ensnaring them eventually. Armitage, a versatile actor who has shifted between high fantasy and muddy action throughout his career, plays the role of the betrayed spouse with more sorrow than anger, particularly when his wife lets him know that whatever she may have done was part of a broader plan. His softness and confusion engenders a stronger connection with his character than bitterness, and frankly that's the sort of handhold the series requires given everything else that's going on.

Finneran, recognizable to most American viewers as the scheming Ms. O'Brien from "Downton Abbey," accesses a range of emotions in her role as she combs through a mystery that hits closer to home the deeper she digs. She makes Johanna Griffin a balance of a professional, driven figure and a woman who suddenly is forced to contend with facing some of the most difficult parts of her life on her own, or perhaps choosing to remain in the comfort of the known.

Although the mysteries hurtling "The Stranger" from one episode to the next are engaging enough, the parts I enjoyed just as much are the scenes illustrating how complicated a marriage can be when a couple reach a certain point together.

Johanna and Adam don't know one another personally but the trials they face in their personal lives are similar in that the people they thought they loved most in the world turn out to be somewhat unknowable. Adam still holds an idealized image of Corinne in his heart, especially after she suddenly vanishes. Johanna, meanwhile, believes she's made her mind up about starting over without her partner only to have circumstances prove that she may actually need him.

In elevating the emotional stakes to the same level as the conspiracy, Brocklehurst imbues "The Stranger" with a weight that stays with the viewer more effectively than all the other weekend crimetime options parading across TV schedules.

Viewers of a certain age demographic might also get a kick out of seeing a number of their '90s-era favorites pop up here. It goes without saying actors aren't caught in amber, forever playing roles that instilled in us a great fondness; each veteran cast member in "The Stranger" has a long list of credits to their names. But seeing Anthony Stewart Head and Stephen Rea working alongside Armitage, Saunders, and Paul Kaye adds to the addiction factor dangled by "The Stranger." Kaye, by the way, is an absolute creep here, enough to make a person forget for a moment that was Thoros of Myr on "Game of Thrones."

There's also an entire storyline about Price's son and his friends that also connects to the web that The Stranger is plucking, although their part in it feels less vital than the other mysteries afoot, at least at first. If anything, it seems designed to keep younger viewers interested in a mystery sturdily directed toward middle-aged folk, letting us know that it's OK to opt for the safety of houses even if, as "The Stranger" theorizes, the real mystery might be sitting right next to us.

"The Stranger" is currently streaming on Netflix.

Review: The Stranger

The Stranger is a new Harlan Coben mystery thriller on Netflix. The story is set in motion when a young woman calling herself The Stranger (Hannah John-Kamen) reveals secrets to several people living in Manchester, England.

The Stranger is on a mission to make sure people know the truth about their lives, their family’s lives, everyone’s secrets, even everyone’s DNA. She causes a series of dangerous, desperate events.

With any Harlan Coben series, you need a huge piece of butcher paper and a marker to draw out the characters and the spider web of connections between them to keep track of the plot. I’ll attempt to explain the basics, spoiler free, using mere words.

Adam Price (Richard Armitage) is the central character. The Stranger tells him his wife Corrine Price (Dervia Kirwan) faked a pregnancy a couple of years ago. She has an envelope containing proof.

When Adam confronts Corrine, she doesn’t deny it. She says there was more involved than just that. Then she disappears. Adam spends the remainder of the 8 episodes searching for her.

Adam’s son Thomas (Jacob Dudman) was involved in a wild party in the woods. His friends Mike Tripp (Brandon Fellows) and Daisy Hoy (Ella-Rae Smith) were there, too. Crazy stuff that ends the night bring the involvement of the police.

The cops come into the story investigating the teens, but they are soon involved in murder and missing persons investigations as well. Lots of stories run parallel and interweave their way to the final resolution.

DS Johanna Griffin (Siobhan Finneran) and DC Wesley Ross (Kadiff Kirwan) are on the teen situation, and later work the more serious cases as well. When there’s a murder, the cop John Katz (Paul Kaye) is also assigned.

The Price family lives across the street from the Tripp family. Doug Tripp (Shaun Dooley) and his kids are involved in a local football club. So were the Price boys. Corrine was the treasurer for the club and handled quite a lot of money. About the same time Corrine went missing, a lot of football club money was also discovered missing.

Heidi Doyle (Jennifer Saunders) is the first murder victim to be discovered. She’s DS Johanna Griffin best friend. Heidi just received an envelope from the stranger full of truth about her daughter Kimberley (Callie Cooke).

Another story running alongside these is the case of the holdout homeowner, Martin Killane (Stephen Rea). A big developer wanted to raze his house to build expensive new homes. Martin wasn’t selling. Adam Price was his lawyer. Adam’s father, Ed Price (Anthony Head), was the greedy developer.

Mysterious goings on in the housing case included the fact that Martin Killane was a former cop turned P.I. who was helping Adam figure out who the stranger was and where Corrine might be. Although knocking down his home seemed unrelated to everything else going on, it wasn’t.

Those were the basic mystery plotlines. While each case moved along and the bodies stacked up, more and more connections between all the players were discovered. By the time the pieces fit and the killers were known it was all over.

I thought the ending disappointed. The decisions the characters made at the end were not believable. It was too “happy ending” for the tense and suspenseful drama that had gone before. I didn’t think the kind of justice and revenge that dominated the final decisions were in keeping with the characters’ personalities. Also, I thought the stranger should be more integrated into the story by the end, even after all the mayhem she caused revealing secrets.

One thing about the ending that did work with the theme was after all the secrets were uncovered, there were a series of new secrets to be kept.

My quibbles about the ending aside, this is a well plotted and well acted mystery that will engage mystery lovers every second of the way. Daniel O’Hara and Hannah Quinn shared the directing duties. Harlan Coben’s daughter Charlotte Coben wrote one of the episodes.