We will find out who killed Erin McMenamin in the season finale of Mare of Easttown on Sunday, but what will us couch detectives do when the case is closed?
Mare of Easttown reaffirmed just how popular murder mysteries can be as viewers like to dissect all the clues and posit their own theories on who the top murder suspects are or what twist is coming down the road. But now that we are saying goodbye to Kate Winslet and her Delco accent — and a Mare of Easttown season 2 unlikely as of right now — is there another case to solve?
Thankfully, yes. Mare of Easttown is another in a long line of TV murder mysteries. Here are some that you dive into and try to solve.
Broadchurch
If one of the things you’re going to miss about Mare of Easttown is the small town and unique accents, well then Broadchurch could take care of those needs for you.
Set in a small town along the British coast, Broadchurch stars David Tenant and Olivia Colman as local detectives trying to piece together the murder of a young boy. Jodie Whitaker also starred in the series.
Broadchurch ran for three seasons, each with its own murder to solve.
Fargo
Inspired by the 1996 Coen brothers movie, Fargo is an anthology series, with each season tackling new characters and often a different time period.
While never straight up dealing with a murder case, each season of Fargo delves into the criminal underworld and is filled with unique and entertaining characters created by series showrunner Noah Hawley.
The first two seasons are considered the best, but through the series' run the show has seen the likes of Martin Freeman, Billy Bob Thornton, Ted Danson, Patrick Wilson, Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons, Jean Smart, Ewan McGregor, Chris Rock and Jason Schwartzman star.
The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst
Truth is often stranger than fiction, and that may almost never have proven more true than with The Jinx, an HBO limited docu-series that focused on real estate icon Robert Durst, who was considered a key suspect in a number of unsolved crimes.
Durst chose to sit down with filmmaker Andrew Jarecki and discuss both his life and what he has been accused of. It all boils down to a finale that had the whole internet talking when it was first released.
Luther
Idris Elba’s breakout role was here as the brilliant and violent detective John Luther on the eponymous BBC series created by Neil Cross.
As a mini series that features multiple seasons, Luther utilizes both a case-of-the-week kind of style and a larger overall story, making it easy for fans to latch on and run through the series.
Luther has five seasons in total, with four airing between 2010-2015 and Elba returning for the fifth season in 2019.
Mildred Pierce
Kate Winslet and Guy Pearce know what it’s like to be on a critically acclaimed HBO mini series, as the two starred alongside each other 10 years ago in 2011’s Mildred Pierce.
Based on the classic film noir of the same name from the 1940s, this Todd Haynes directed series sees Winslet’s Mildred, a divorced single mom, take agency of her life by opening a restaurant, only for things to become strained with her daughter (Evan Rachel Wood) and the arrival of a new suitor (Guy Pearce).
Winslet and Pearce both earned Emmys for their work in Mildred Pierce, while the show was nominated for Outstanding Miniseries or Movie. Can Mare of Easttown have the same kind of luck?
Mindhunter
David Fincher has directed some of the best crime films in recent years with both Se7en and Zodiac, but Mindhunter, the slow burn look at the creation of the FBI’s serial crime unit, is right up there with both films.
The first season of Mindhunter revolves around fictionalized interviews with real-life killers that the main characters try to learn from to solve other cases. The second season then puts their theories even more to the test by focusing on a large case in Atlanta.
Famous killers the show creates interviews for include Charles Manson, David Berkowitz, Edmund Kemper and more.
The show has appeared to be building toward a specific killer that the characters will attempt to track down, but as of right now there is no word on a third season of Mindhunter.
Mr. Mercedes
Using a Stephen King novel as its inspiration, Mr. Mercedes follows a recently retired detective (played by Brendan Gleeson) who attempts to track down a killer who drives into crowds of people with a stolen Mercedes.
Despite the source material and Gleeson in the lead role, Mr. Mercedes didn’t initially air on any of the major networks, instead debuting on the Audience Network. So, the show, which debuted in 2017 and has three seasons, may be new to a lot of people.
Top of the Lake
Jane Campion and Gerard Lee created this New Zealand-set mysteries series, which starred Elisabeth Moss as Detective Robin Griffin.
Campion, best known for directing The Piano, was able to stack the cast with brilliant actors, including David Wenham, Peter Mullan, Gwendoline Christie, Nicole Kidman and her The Piano star Holly Hunter.
Top of the Lake had two seasons, the first involving a 12-year-old missing pregnant girl from a small town, while the second season attempts to solve the death of an unidentified Chinese girl.
True Detective
There were three seasons of True Detective that aired on HBO, with each telling its own unique story, with no overlap on characters or actors. Feel free to watch all three if you haven’t, but True Detective season 1 is the best one by far.
Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson star in season 1 as partners whose investigation into a mysterious murder in Louisiana haunts them both over many years. Even if you haven’t seen True Detective, you probably know about McConaughey’s “time is a flat circle” speech.
Season 2 starred Colin Farrell, Rachel McAdams, Vince Vaughn and Taylor Kitsch, while season 3 stars Mahershala Ali.
Twin Peaks
There isn’t really another filmmaker like David Lynch, so of course his take on the murder mystery series is something wholly unique.
Twin Peaks only ran for two seasons on network TV back in the early 90s, but its fans had such a fervor for it that it has been able to live on beyond the initial series, first as a movie — Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me — and then again as a miniseries back in 2017.
