Departure

Kendra Malley is a renowned investigator specializing in transportation disasters. After a plane and all its passengers disappear at sea, her team explores every possible hypothesis: could the pilot’s life have justified suicide? Could it have been a terrorist attack? A series of malfunctions?

The clues are slim and the possibilities almost endless. But coordination between police, counter-terrorism and scientists is going to be no mean feat. Especially when the press is on the lookout, public opinion is under pressure, and Kendra’s own son is dangerously involved in the investigation…

Public transport phobics, this series is not for you!

Season 1 deals with a plane crash, season 2 with a train derailment, and season 3 with a ferry sinking. However, far from reinforcing the fear of accidents, the series shows just how improbable they actually are. Companies (normally) take extremely high safety measures. For an accident to occur, several factors must come together simultaneously: malicious intent, unexpected technical problems and… often, bad luck.

This fictional story revolves around criminals who have no qualms about generating mass murder to achieve their ends. While it doesn’t put forward conspiracy theories, conspiracies are very much present in the background.

The characters are a little too classic. The decor of the investigation offices in season 1 is too flashy, a flaw that is well corrected in subsequent seasons. The external scenery, on the other hand, is superb. London, then Michigan in autumn light, and finally Newfoundland. The great strength of the series lies in the construction of the plot, and the twists at the end of each episode. I watched almost every season in one go, because I wanted to solve the enigma!

Produced in Canada, the series features a cast of excellent actors, many of whom are already featured in the highly acclaimed Frontier series.

3 seasons, 18 episodes (45 mn), 2020-2023, on Netflix

Created by Vince Shiao, WITH :

• Recurrent : Archie Panjabi (The fall, The good wife) as Kendra Malley, Christopher Plummer as Howard Lawson (season 1 & 2), Kris Holden-Ried as Dominic Hayes, Mark Rendall as Theo Barker
• Season 1 : Peter Mensah as Levi Hall, Claire Forlani as Janet Friel, Alexandre Bourgeois as AJ Malley, Allan Hawco as Richard Donovan, Rebecca Liddiard as Madelyn Strong, Shazad Latif as Ali Basra, Sasha Roiz as Pavel Bartok, Evan Buliung as Derek Strong
• Season 2 : Karen LeBlanc as Ellen Hunter, Jason O’Mara as Max O’Neill, David Hewlett as Bill Ratch, Dion Johnstone as Jordan Cole, Kelly McCormack as Charlotte, Etienne Kellici as Lucas, Charlie Carrick as Richard Bright, Wendy Crewson as Diana Bright, Donal Logue as Sheriff McCullough, Florence Ordesh as Rose Tate, Greg Bryk as Brick
• Season 3 : Patrick Sabongui as Shakir Urgessa, Savonna Spracklin as Annie Sullivan, Eric McCormack as Cole Banks, Mikaela Dyke as Terry-Lynn Crawford, Brit MacRae as Jessica Hicks, Cihang Ma as Michelle, Tyler Elliott Burke as Arlo Shank, Pamela Estrada as Lily