I've got to give it up to Canadian Television. More and more great shows are coming from our northern neighbors. This show, while I only have watched 3 episodes, leaves me wanting to see whats next. I like that the actor's are relatively unknown, at least to me, and they are all good. No overacting, seamless transitions form scene to scene, like the header says, so far, it's a good show. I always wait until I've seen at least 3 episodes before I write one of these. I wish others would do the same, I've seen reviews, both good and bad, sometimes posted before the air date. Please, if you have had a viewing of the first episode before the rest of us, please don't base your review on one episode. Just my humble opinion.
157 Reviews
Enjoyable watch
Camsteary19 July 2019
For those who thought the show was unrealistic because she was able to finish med school with a young child, episode 7 addresses that. I was disappointed, but not surprised by reviewers who somehow thought that because the lead character has mental health issues she is weak and incapable of doing her job. Mental health issues are not caused by weakness. This is why so many people who are struggling hide their issues which leads to more negative outcomes. This is also why we need more shows like these that show people living their lives, while also dealing with mental health issues. I am an avid fan of mysteries and police procedurals and this did not disappoint, while also displaying characters i found likeable and could identify with
Don't believe the bad reviews
phildeee7 February 2019
5 episodes in and all I can say is I can't wait to see more. The people who don't like it, clearly don't like this sort of thing. For those that do.... WATCH IT! If I have a minor gripe, it'd be I feel as it's a serialized TV programme, they have to sometimes squeeze too much in to a short space of time. I felt one or two episodes could have benefitted from being a little longer. But for this, I'd give it a 9 or 10
Very likeable counterpart to....currently everything
pontram8 March 2021
It's more of a quiet show. Not much action, more insightful to peoples' lives and deaths. A bit mysterious, sometimes. But not depressing or sad. Some melancholia. I think we need such shows apart from the big fates and adventorous marvels. It is just wonderful. Season 2 was overdramtized, so many things happened, it was a bit too nail biting (but also bold). Season three is more calm, and some could call it boring, especially since there are covid-masks everywhere, which I appreciate. We shouldn't deny what we live. There is a fine line between calmness and boredom, well balanced through season 1, strongly avoided in Season 2. I still hold Coroner very dear and I am thankful that it got three seasons. Hopefully, someone makes the right decision and gives it a fourth one. The chemistry between Seinda Swan (Jenny) and Roger Cross (Donovan) is very good.
I've seen way worse
phylicia123 January 2019
I'm glad I don't judge things by other people's opinions. Now IMDb is my Bible and most of user reviews are spot on...but the people giving below 5...come on..it's a solid 6.5. And that's after the first episode everyone said was so awful. If you haven't seen it...give it a chance.
Why does it suggest this is a bout a coroner solving crimes
Hassel51226 February 2019
It's all about a woman with tons of issues who happens to be a coroner. On top she has a needy boy with his own issues. So boring. Totally agree with at least one of the other reviewers. 'The Coroner' from BBC is much better. Stopped watching after a few episodes and will not retry again!
PLEASE give it a chance and keep watching.
kimberlymulder7 February 2019
Hey.
I've watched all 5 available episodes and some parts are just, hm i don't know, a bit much?
But I enjoyed it. But before i did that, i did research on reviews and youtube comments and saw negative comments...
And if you're doubting and just watch the first episode, don't stop ... Just watch a few episodes.
I wanted to give it a 8.5 but couldn't so that why the 9.
👋
I wanted to give it a 8.5 but couldn't so that why the 9.
👋
Well done in the face of the pandemic
davek2828 July 2021
Just finished episode 1 of the third season and I have to admire their determination to keep going regardless of Covid. Season 2 got a bit crazy with just about everyone losing their minds. And sometimes it verges on New Amsterdam schmaltz, but usually veers off before it goes too far.
They manage to keep it fresh, and I love the two leads. Her son is an idiot and acts 12 despite supposedly being 19, so he's a bit irritating. But I'm still enjoying it. I really don't understand the low ratings as it's perfectly entertaining and the characters are engaging. Plus the crime plots manage to stay fresh and inventive.
I like it! It's not exceptional but it's well acted and constructed and deserves to stay on air. I'm looking forward to the rest of season 3.
They manage to keep it fresh, and I love the two leads. Her son is an idiot and acts 12 despite supposedly being 19, so he's a bit irritating. But I'm still enjoying it. I really don't understand the low ratings as it's perfectly entertaining and the characters are engaging. Plus the crime plots manage to stay fresh and inventive.
I like it! It's not exceptional but it's well acted and constructed and deserves to stay on air. I'm looking forward to the rest of season 3.
A pleasant surprise.
victorstuck14 February 2019
Coroner starts out with a weird couple of episodes, I'll have to say. They feel like there should be more to them, but it's all okay - the show is really setting up the characters, which are arguably the best part of it.
Starting out as a straight up procedural, in only six episodes the show has evolved into a damn fine crime drama, with personal plotlines for the characters and a great overarching plot that had me surprised.
LGBTQ and POC representation is also pretty present in this show and it's handled quite well.
The Canadian setting is really refreshing, the cast is great and, in my personal opinion, it has been one of the most pleasant surprises this TV season.
Starting out as a straight up procedural, in only six episodes the show has evolved into a damn fine crime drama, with personal plotlines for the characters and a great overarching plot that had me surprised.
LGBTQ and POC representation is also pretty present in this show and it's handled quite well.
The Canadian setting is really refreshing, the cast is great and, in my personal opinion, it has been one of the most pleasant surprises this TV season.
Both awkward and intriguing, a little bit rushed, and a little bit slow
Ed-Shullivan8 January 2019
Warning: Spoilers
I always thought coroners worked within the confines of a municipal building and were old and tired civic employees who could not wait for their eight (8) hour shift to end. In the case of this very young and attractive coroner named Dr. Jenny Cooper (played by Serinda Swan) she works both day and night and acts more like an investigator/counsellor than a bored coroner.
Dr. Jenny Cooper's own husband died under suspicious circumstances while she and her husband were attending their sons swim meet. Mr. Cooper did not die without hiding some secrets from Jenny which leaves her alone, broke, to raise their teenage son.
In this first episode of season one (1) Dr. Jenny Cooper establishes herself as both a good investigator, quick thinking administrator, and loving mom. She also gets head butted, slapped in the face, and also finds time to fornicate while on an impromptu first date so there is a lot packed into this pilot episode.
I would not say that this first episode was suspenseful, nor was it a really tough mystery to solve, but there was enough substance that I will want to watch a few more episodes to see how this crime/drama series unfolds.
I give this series a 7 out of 10 rating based on the pilot episode
Dr. Jenny Cooper's own husband died under suspicious circumstances while she and her husband were attending their sons swim meet. Mr. Cooper did not die without hiding some secrets from Jenny which leaves her alone, broke, to raise their teenage son.
In this first episode of season one (1) Dr. Jenny Cooper establishes herself as both a good investigator, quick thinking administrator, and loving mom. She also gets head butted, slapped in the face, and also finds time to fornicate while on an impromptu first date so there is a lot packed into this pilot episode.
I would not say that this first episode was suspenseful, nor was it a really tough mystery to solve, but there was enough substance that I will want to watch a few more episodes to see how this crime/drama series unfolds.
I give this series a 7 out of 10 rating based on the pilot episode
Season 3 a big let down
rchrdcorteel127 February 2021
Seasons 1 and 2 were good. But season 3 is a major step backwards. There are weak story lines: too much time spent on the coroner's messed up psyche. Her personal life was a small, continuous part of seasons 1 and 2, but is now the major component of every episode in season 3. Hard to be very enthusiastic about this series now. Pity.
Keep watching
crabbyzelda9 January 2019
First episodes are never a good way to judge the success of a new series. I found some of the writing felt rushed to introduce characters but overall I enjoyed it. The acting was great so this show deserves some time to show if Coroner will be a hit or a miss. Nice to see a series filmed in Toronto and not pretending to be an American city.
OK watch
bidi-2718910 March 2021
Doesn't end
Tellyvixen6 March 2020
The first problem with this show is that they focus way too much on Jenny Cooper personal life. Every person in her personal life, her father, her son, her dead husband and her new boyfriend are or were self destructing in some way. And her mental health issues they are depicting. I don't actually know how she is able to do the work she needs to as, those psychological problems are debilitating.
Second problem is that she is never actually seems to be working, she spends some time on the cases but mostly cleaning up or trying to keep together her personal life. In the first season she does spend some time in the morgue and does do an autopsies but by the second season she is hardly in the office. If the writers had her doing what she is supposed to be doing professionally this would have been a far better show.
I recommend Body of Proof similar concept but was far better than this.
Update: I made a mistake of watching this show to its end. It doesn't end. The last episode was bad and to top it off. All they had to do to finish the show properly was cut the very last scene. The show doesn't improve as the seasons go on either.
Second problem is that she is never actually seems to be working, she spends some time on the cases but mostly cleaning up or trying to keep together her personal life. In the first season she does spend some time in the morgue and does do an autopsies but by the second season she is hardly in the office. If the writers had her doing what she is supposed to be doing professionally this would have been a far better show.
I recommend Body of Proof similar concept but was far better than this.
Update: I made a mistake of watching this show to its end. It doesn't end. The last episode was bad and to top it off. All they had to do to finish the show properly was cut the very last scene. The show doesn't improve as the seasons go on either.
eh it's alright
evademonique4 March 2021
It's a show about an emotionally fragile woman who's supposed to be a coroner but is more like an assistant detective. the premise is good, the cast is amazing, but the writing is abysmal. in an unfortunate attempt to appeal to Americans, the writers stuck in a number of bizarre references that are out of place in Canada - some kid is in Antifa ("the good guys"???); the white people on the show all have some kind of defining bad character trait unless they're women, then they're dealing with mental issues; everyone (including security personnel) freak out around firearms and it's implied that guns are some rare object in Canada (best one lol); lots of references to feminism; etc
I know that this stuff is the norm in US movies/shows but it's so strange and out of place in Canadian television. they should have just gone for it and had the main characters attend a US political rally at this point, it's so weird
If it weren't for the terrible writing, this show could have been a hit but unfortunately in its present form it's just an ok daytime drama, the kind of thing you would put on in the background while you're cleaning or when you're napping
I know that this stuff is the norm in US movies/shows but it's so strange and out of place in Canadian television. they should have just gone for it and had the main characters attend a US political rally at this point, it's so weird
If it weren't for the terrible writing, this show could have been a hit but unfortunately in its present form it's just an ok daytime drama, the kind of thing you would put on in the background while you're cleaning or when you're napping
Not disappointing at all
imdbbaz25 January 2019
This series is turning out to be quite gripping, and I'm already hoping that a second season is in prospect. The CBC can be a little timid about renewing its drama shows (the excellent "This Life" was cancelled after just two seasons), but this one deserves better. Contrary to an earlier opinion on this site (I strongly suspect that, when a reviewer starts off a negative comment about gay characters with the phrase "I'm not homophobic, but...", he very probably is just that), it's good to see that Jenny Cooper's son is not merely your everyday moody teenager. His being gay is another thing that she has had to accept in her life (quite successfully in this case, it would seem), and I don't see how showing him in a caring relationship can be objectionable. The number of television shows down the years in which non-heterosexual characters were simply non-existent far outweighs the number, at present, in which they are shown to be part of the world. All that said, it does seem up to this point that Jenny spends more time outside of her lab than any other coroner in memory...
Could Be Better......
colinwong-180-62315820 August 2021
Frustrating yet intriguing
keriwheatley8 March 2021
Warning: Spoilers
The show both drives me nuts and holds my attention. Love the crime solving and even some of the back story. But this main character drives me insane. So unrealistic, she puts her life her sons life her father's life in danger repeatedly. I spent half of the time wanting to pull my hair out..just communicate for God's sake!
Okay, but gosh.... (updated after into S4)
Kaleecee19 September 2022
I started watching this from the beginning after it was into it's 4th season. I liked it in the beginning, but it has gotten to the point that every single character has to deal with severe mental issues. I understand hitting on mental health, but this is a bit extreme. Some plots are so over the top! It would sure seem that if a coroner had this extreme mental issues, they would not be allowed to work and all cases would be under scrutiny.
Then when the son makes stupid choices (going to a party, taking drugs and drinking) and gets into trouble, of course the show has to make it racial. Dude needs to figure out how to make better choices for himself.
NOW end of season 4, if you watched it this far, OH MY GOSH, there is no shut off valve for this family! PLEASE the show needs to get back to solving crimes, not personal issues. HINT: it is supposed to be entertaining.
Then when the son makes stupid choices (going to a party, taking drugs and drinking) and gets into trouble, of course the show has to make it racial. Dude needs to figure out how to make better choices for himself.
NOW end of season 4, if you watched it this far, OH MY GOSH, there is no shut off valve for this family! PLEASE the show needs to get back to solving crimes, not personal issues. HINT: it is supposed to be entertaining.
Classy, witty and fast paced
Clemence682816 January 2019
For a CBC show (for which I have seen many) Coroner really excels. Looking forward to seeing the rest of the series - feel like it's picking up pace with every episode! Those who are rating it low after one ep are pretty shallow!
Not a crime drama
ndostic-1013422 August 2022
It is a solid show, story about mental health, about lifes and deaths, about strugles. If you are expecting CSI this show is not for you but if you are interested in people stories, by all means do watch it. It is not light but nor is too grey.
No normal people!
lyndavanleeuwen25 February 2020
Every character has so many psychotic episodes, it is exhausting to watch! I keep wanting to understand when someone would join reality! Such complicated situations really strain my endurance! I can see a plot with the occasional character sorting out their issues, but everyone with psychosis is over the top!
I like the show, but getting tired of the personal backstories
paulpixman14 February 2022
I really liked the show when crimes were being solved, and mysterious cases explored. Sort of like "Quincy, ME" (showing my age lol). But lately it seems the majority of each episode is about the personal lives of the characters. I find Jenny's "son" and "father" to both be extremely irritating for some reason.
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