Death by Lightning

This superb drama about US President James Garfield is propulsive and commendably succinct.

...opens with a brain in a jar on the floor while Sly and the Family Stone’s “Everyday People” is playing on the radio. If that’s not a grabber, I don’t know what is.

...absolutely nobody plays losers like Matthew Macfadyen.

Tight plotting also helps maintain interest in a show that telegraphs its end from the start, surprising us instead with unexpected developments before and beyond that key turning point.

...the series takes a subject with a difficult barrier to entry and makes it not only relatable, but genuinely exciting.