🔗 Share this article High Potential's Season Two Analysis – An Inviting, Heartwarming Police Drama Featuring a Nearly Flawless Sleuth Do we ever tire of the savant sleuth? I suspect not – the thrill of witnessing a fantastically gifted person crack incredibly intricate cases remains among fiction’s most reliable draws. As always, our screens teem with such characters: over the last twelve months we’ve been introduced to Ludwig, David Mitchell’s puzzle-setter turned incredibly astute detective; seen the return of Natasha Lyonne’s human lie-detector Charlie Cale in Poker Face; and crossed paths again with brainiac attorney Elsbeth. A Different Kind of Brilliant Investigator Returning for further intellectual feats is Morgan Gillory, the protagonist of breezy procedural High Potential, which returns for a new season. With an IQ of 160 – giving her “high intellectual potential” – Morgan’s ability to unravel exceptionally convoluted sequences of events is downright astonishing. But there’s something a little different about this particular brilliant crime-solver. Ever since an antisocial drug addict by the name of Sherlock Holmes set the genius detective tone, these types have typically had some flaws. Ludwig is reclusive, his talents tempered by intense awkwardness. Cale is a unpredictable, non-committal loner fond of a drink or two, while Elsbeth is a no-filter eccentric who unnerves others. Morgan – played by Kaitlin Olson – has no such weaknesses. When we first meet her, she’s working as a cleaner in the offices of the police department. Upon knocking over a pile of investigation notes and noticing some serious errors, she provides a hint to guide the detectives in the right direction. Before long, she’s brought on to work with the police, where she duly solves a series of highly complex crimes with practically no assistance. A Multifaceted Lead Morgan is not only exceptionally intelligent, she’s also a fearless, charming, elegant, stunning go-getter with flawless instincts and exceptional emotional intelligence. She may be somewhat assertive at times, but now she’s in the business of saving lives and apprehending criminals, a bit of urgency isn’t exactly inappropriate. While Morgan may be practically perfect in every way, that isn't the case for her life – at first. A solo parent of three, she finds it hard to cover expenses, and mostly uses her mental acuity to get the most out of her coupon-assisted supermarket shop. Motherhood can, naturally, stymie women’s professional lives, but Morgan’s willingness to put up with the demands and pay of a minimum-wage job doesn’t quite ring true. Juggling Believability and Entertainment Equally difficult to buy is the show’s longest narrative thread: underpinning all her varied cases is Morgan’s determination to track down the father of her eldest child, who vanished without a trace a decade and a half back. In spite of her remarkable skills of deduction, she remains clueless where he is. But High Potential doesn't focus heavily with realism. Made by ABC in the US, this is polished, easy-watching network TV. It’s popular and visually appealing, the sort of thing you’d traditionally associate more with ITV than BBC Two. Morgan’s new colleagues are uniformly nice, underdeveloped guys: suave detective Karadec, investigators Daphne and Oz, plus Lt Selena Soto, possibly the most reasonable and least fearsome police chief in cop drama history. No dark protagonists, no edge: the atmosphere is cosy and heartwarming and rather basic. Tension and Excitement Naturally, the crimes aren’t comforting or sentimental or basic. The first season's conclusion saw Morgan provoked by a kidnapper who forced her to solve ludicrously difficult puzzles to save the lives. He returns in the opening double bill here, abducting a young mother on her way home from a night out – but his true objective is obviously Morgan, whom he sees as a worthy opponent in his actual match of chess. Seeing her get agonizingly near to outsmarting this man is nerve-wracking and thrilling, but something this extreme requires a watertight ending. The question is: does the show prove as clever as its protagonist? Final Thoughts Simply put, no. The show is quite effective at keeping the suspense going, but it fails to deliver the landing, and the storyline concludes with a far-fetched gotcha. Still, there’s always next time. Actually, Morgan’s subsequent case – while equally bizarre – is better thought through, ending with a neat and surprisingly moving finale. The quality of the plotting may be somewhat inconsistent, but similar to other predecessors and peers, this masterful amateur investigator can always be counted on to save the day.