Cross TV review: the best Alex Cross adaptation to date

Plot: A pulse-pounding crime thriller that follows the investigations of brilliant forensic psychologist and DC Metro Detective Alex Cross. Together with his best friend and partner Detective John Sampson, Cross delves into the psyches of insidious murderers while fighting to protect his family from the dangers of the criminal world.

Review: After thirty-two novels and three feature films, James Patterson’s beloved character, Alex Cross, is returning for a new adaptation. With Morgan Freeman leading two films, based on Kiss the Girls and Along Came a Spider, and Tyler Perry portraying the detective in 2012’s Alex Cross, the character’s narrative exploits have been fairly well received on the big screen. For the new Prime Video series, Cross, the Patterson books serve as inspiration for the narrative rather than direct source material. Aldis Hodge leads the series as the brilliant detective who must hunt down a serial killer while maneuvering his own grief after the murder of his wife. A solid update of the character, Cross is an entertaining series featuring one of the best detective characters in modern publishing.

Rather than serve as an origin story or a retread of the adapted novels already turned into films, Cross opens with a scene depicting the death of Alex Cross’s (Aldis Hodge) wife before shifting forward one year later. Still overcome with grief and preparing to take a leave of absence from work, the renowned detective is pulled into a highly publicized murder involving a famous activist in the Washington, D.C. black community. Cross, who has a PhD in psychology, is reluctant to be used for publicity purposes, but when he begins looking into the suspicious death alongside his partner John Sampson (Isaiah Mustafa), Cross theorizes there is more than an accident or suicide on their hands. Cross and Sampson dig into the death which may be the work of a serial killer. This puts the cops on the path of a dangerous foe who has a complex and disturbing motivation for his crimes. Like the Patterson novels, this part of the mystery feels like it comes right from the source material.

What distinguishes this series from the previous adaptations as well as the novels is the parallel mystery involving Cross’ family and his late wife. At home, Cross’ children Janelle (Melody Hurd) and Damon (Caleb Elijah) are cared for by their grandmother, Nana Mama (Juanita Jennings). There is love in the home, but the memory of their departed mother leaves them all missing something. Cross begins finding hints and clues as to why his wife was assassinated which connects back to older cases. The references to events from some of the Alex Cross novels add some dimension to the character as being an experienced investigator as the killer from Along Came a Spider is mentioned in the premiere episode. There are a few easter eggs for fans of the books, but most of this series is a new take on the mythology of the Alex Cross character. It is nice to see Sampson playing a significant role in the story after taking a backseat in the films. We also get time with tangential characters Kayla Craig (Alona Tal) with whom Cross has a past as well as his new romantic partner, Elle Monteiro (Samantha Walkes).

What helps Cross work better than the prior adaptations is Aldis Hodge’s pitch perfect casting as the title character. Hodge has already been exceptional in roles ranging from Hidden Figures and One Night in Miami… to superhero Hawkman in Black Adam. Hodge has a charisma that makes him both believable as the brilliant detective while having more of a ferocious energy than either Morgan Freeman or Tyler Perry were able to bring to the role. Hodge and Isaiah Mustafa have a solid chemistry that takes the onus off of Alex Cross needing to operate on his own and instead has a partner to work with and to call him out when his decisions to not align. Both actors carry the material and elevate it from feeling like another police procedural. The two main storylines in this season sometimes detract from one another, but the inclusion of solid supporting actors including Ryan Eggold, Eloise Mumford, and more give this ensemble a rounded cast of talent.

Creator and showrunner Ben Watkins (Burn Notice) shoulders a lot of the credit for being able to bring Alex Cross out of the 1990s when the novels were first published and present them in a modern context. A lot has changed in the last thirty years including the Black Lives Matter and Defund the Police movements, both of which play into element of the Cross plot. Because the main characters are educated and black and operate in a city with a very high crime rate and minority population, Cross never takes for granted the social commentary that typically gets overlooked in detective or crime stories over the last several years. Cross is never preachy but it does not avoid the elephant in the room and instead addresses it within the scope of the story. The eight episode series boasts a diverse batch of writers and directors including Nzingha Stewart, Craig Siebels, and Stacey Muhammad, all of whom give Cross a cinematic look and feel that reminded me of a similar level of quality seen in Prime Video’s hit series Reacher.

Cross has already been renewed for a second season which shows that Amazon has confidence in the series and for good reason. Aldis Hodge is the best actor to portray Alex Cross and elevates James Patterson’s creation from a literary icon to another level. I anticipate that the fan reaction to Cross will open up a whole new audience to Patterson’s books and could become another opportunity to expand from one series into multiple spin-offs including one for Isaiah Mustafa’s Sampson. Cross is a good mystery that has a fantastic cast and a solid original story that does not retread the source material or prior adaptations yet still enhances what makes the books so popular. I enjoyed the first season of Cross and cannot wait to see where they go in season two.

Cross premieres on November 14th on Prime Video.