Master Crimes on TF1: How much is a detective series with Muriel Robin worth?

What is it about?

“Louise Arbus is a professor of psychocriminology at the university, both brilliant and irritating, whose talents are recognized throughout France. Summoned by Commissioner Rugasira, he finds himself at the scene of a crime staged neat and spectacular. The victim wears a sentence from one of his books: “I’m waiting for the perfect killer.” The killer seems to be talking to him. Therefore, Louise Arbus is forced to cooperate with the police to solve this investigation…”

The broadcast of the first season Master crimes Starts this Thursday 9 November 2023 from 9.10pm on TF1 and has six episodes (two evening parts).

who is he with

Muriel Robin (who spoke to AlloCiné about the experience) takes on the role of Louise Arbus in Master Crimes. Here he plays with Anne Le Nen (Barbara DeLandre), his wife in the city, but also with the young talent Tais Vaucières (Valentine), Astrid Ross (Mia), Nordin Ganso (Boris) and Victor Meutlet (Samuel). The main role is played by Nicolas Brianson (Pierre Delaunay) and Olivier Claverier (Rougasira).

The fiction was created by Elsa Marpeau and directed by Marven Abdallah.

Is it worth checking out?

After taking on challenging roles in recent years, Muriel Robin chooses comedy…drama to sign up for Master Crimes on TF1. Here, the comedian seems to be having a lot of fun in the shoes of this criminology professor, both eccentric and brilliant, whose enthusiasm is quite contagious!

Louise Arbus, her character, is really very intelligent and has a lot of wit. His analyzes during the investigation are interesting to follow and his interactions with various co-workers or relatives often hit the mark! However, not wanting to fall into this kind of fantasy heroine caricature, we almost wish Muriel Robin had played up Louise’s frivolity a bit more to perhaps make her more appealing…

For all that, his exchange with Anne Le Nen works well in fiction. We also see the latter becoming more and more comfortable with his interpretation over the course of six episodes. Always bickering with each other, we have a feeling that Louise and Barbara could have a nice partnership and a beautiful friendship in the future. Some of the scenes where the policeman tries his best to seduce the court are also quite funny!

On the student side, the quartet of heroes is new and friendly. Thais Vauquiers, Astrid Roos, Nordin Ganso and Victor Meutle are sparkling but at times unfortunately too caricatured for the characters of Valentine, Mia, Boris and Samuel.

Undoubtedly, due to lack of time, the personal lives of young people as individuals are currently relatively little explored. Too bad, even if we imagine that it will come one day! Only Mia and her complicated family history are at the heart of the second main plot, which certainly piques our curiosity… but doesn’t leave us in suspense.

Master Crimes alternates between comedy and thriller without ever overwhelming one or the other. The investigation by Lewis and his squadron of rookie detectives is well-crafted, often dark. The staging of the murders is original and the interrogation sequences are tense and successful.

Finally, the parallels drawn between Master Crimes and Murder are inevitable (Muriel Robin spoke to AlloCiné about this). However, while many aspects agree on paper, the differences between the two series are still quickly noticeable. Unlike its American counterpart, French fiction has a lighter and brighter tone, which is an advantage these days when we see the harshness of the images we see on television…

In short, the first season of Master Crimes is enjoyable. Even if it remains good entertainment, some flaws still deserve to be removed in case of a season 2 to offer a better copy. Thus, the series will easily move to a higher level…