I was trying to think of a way to describe the series Bodkin, a seven-episode series which dropped last May on Netflix, and I kept coming back to the same thing over and over again: Only Murders in the Building, but in Ireland. I really tried, but that really captures it perfectly.
If you’ve never seen Only Murders in the Building, it’s a series over on Hulu starring Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena 
Gomez about three residents of a building in Manhattan who love true crime podcasts who decide to host their own podcast when someone in their own building gets murdered. The essence of the show is that these three adorable people are surrounded by other adorable people and they all seem unfazed by people dropping dead all around them, probably because they are adorable people in adorable surroundings. Well, Bodkin is like that, but it’s Ireland.
Will Forte plays Gilbert Power, an American true-crime podcaster who travels to Bodkin, a very small town on the coast of Ireland, to investigate a decades-old mystery when three people vanished during a town celebration. A cynical, hard-nosed and reluctant Dublin journalist, played by Siobhán Cullen, is forced to join Gilbert, and the two of them quickly make waves in the small town. One thing leads to another, and as secrets come to light, and an entire town becomes enmeshed in either bringing the truth out or keeping it hidden.
Much like Murders, the actual plot isn’t nearly as important as the experience getting to it. The characters, the setting and the dialogue is what makes Bodkin worthwhile. Forte is always great, as is Cullen and the entire cast. You can’t beat the scenery and the whole quirky, goofy vibe is perfect if you’re looking for something edgy but not too dark or twisted.
It does lose steam a little bit, but it’s still worthwhile, if only for the terrific company you keep in Bodkin, currently on Netflix.