‘Maigret’ Series Premiere & Review
Benajmin Wainwright embodies a Maigret we have yet to meet and want to know more about
Benjamin Wainwright is Maigret as PBS MASTERPIECE Mystery adapted Georges Simenon’s book in contemporary Paris with a younger version of the man we know and love from the novels. Written by Patrick Harbinson, Maigret still embodies the heart and soul of the character written in 1931. However, this story is told through the lens of a 30-something year old man who is still figuring himself out while rising in the ranks at La Crim as Chief Inspector, a position he did not seek to fulfill. Leading his team ‘Les Maigret’—Torrence, Lucas, Janvier, and Lapointe—he uses his street savvy, traumatic background, and relationship with marginalized communities to solve crimes in unconventional ways, often against the grain, and rigidity, of his superiors.
Where Crime Meets Passion
Across the six episodes, Maigret sees his past quickly collide with the present, as one case hits close to home causing him to face a two-decade old trauma. However, as we see this event build, a story beyond the detective work unfolds that grounds the audience to the entire series: love. Alongside Maigret through it all is his wife, Madame Louise Maigret (Stefanie Martini), a psychiatric nurse who is as dedicated to her vocation as she is her marriage. In the novels, Louise is a doting and compliant wife who rarely complains and is always there for Maigret. In this series, Louise is given a voice, an identity, and autonomy to make choices within her marriage and with Maigret as a unit—Patrick Harbinson describing her as “his home.”
Maigret perfectly encapsulates the inner tumultuous feelings of uncertainty, battling the system, the psychiatric effects of being a police officer, and fighting hard to not let your work destroy you. By anchoring these feelings to something as soft and pure as the marriage between Maigret and Louise, the empathy and compassion that Maigret is known for shines like a beacon, making this crime drama feel unlike any you have ever seen on television before.
Maigret airs Sunday, October 5, at 9/8c on MASTERPIECE Mystery on PBS. Episodes will air weekly thereafter and will be available to stream on PBS and PBS MASTERPIECE on Amazon Prime Video.
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