Murder and Death: The Best Comfort Show?

Everyone has a comfort show. Often it’s a heartwarming sitcom like Schitt’s Creek or a nostalgic drama like Gilmore Girls. My friends have defamated my character, critiquing my past comfort show choices like Criminal Minds or House, MD. On the surface, I do realize it seems like a huge red flag to fall asleep to shows about psychopaths or deadly illnesses. Admittedly, my partner has been woken up at 2 a.m. to Criminal Minds’ gunshots after catching an unsub while I dream peacefully, having fallen asleep without turning off my show.

I insist that I have a good reason for choosing these comfort shows. They are procedurals. They follow the same format every time: a cold open detailing the murder or the illness onset, the story develops, someone hosts a press conference, the mystery develops, then the lead has a revelation and they solve the mystery. Though they are indeed mysteries with twists and turns, repeating the same structure makes it difficult to be truly shocked. At one point, I started tracking the time stamp for when the case was solved, and it was – like clockwork – within the same five minutes of each episode, every time. 

That is not to say that all procedurals are created equal — there are clear differentiating factors that make them more or less compelling. For me, I need to love the characters; the main stories are self-contained, so the characters are often the only through line between episodes. In House, for example, the show hinges on the powerful performances of morally gray characters and their relationship, like House and his ongoing ‘will they, won’t they’ with Dean of Medicine Lisa Cuddy. These characters become part of the comfort factor as well, growing to feel like home.

In the last few years, I have been on the search for a new procedural that would do what my favorites have done for me for over a decade (I have seen Criminal Minds, House, and Bones at least five times … each). The only show that has worked for me of late is High Potential. Starring Kaitlin Olsen, it surrounds Morgan – a high-IQ janitor turned police consultant. Olsen gives an excellent performance amid episode-long investigations. It also follows her family life as a single mom and her evolving relationships with coworkers. Although they are tumultuous at times due to Morgan’s oppositional attitude towards rules she deems stupid or unnecessary, she successfully builds a community with her coworkers who grow to not only enjoy her as a person, but realize that her intelligence is imperative to their success. 

Procedurals can sometimes feel overly tropey, leaning into murder mystery stereotypes. High Potential does so, but with tact; when Morgan has a revelation that leads to an overnight montage of her moving around the investigation board, it works well and adds to the comfort factor.

Season Two of High Potential is currently being released, and after watching Season One as a new addition to my procedural rotation, I was thrilled to see new episodes. The episodic stories continue to do their job, as the detectives solve crimes like two attempted murders where it is ultimately revealed that there were two killers who tried to murder each other’s target. One was successful. They do a good job furthering emotional stories; for example, that episode surrounds the attempted murder of an LAPD veteran, and a detective must address strains in their relationship as a result of her life being in jeopardy. As Season Two continues, we get to know the characters better — even Morgan herself — and I am feeling them become more like comfort characters as it continues.

My biggest issue with the season so far? The stuff that isn’t procedural. The first season led up to a recurring storyline about Morgan’s ex who went missing. It led to a climax in the finale, but the second season has lost the plot by peppering tidbits into every episode and confusing viewers. People do not watch a procedural to be confused — they watch for new versions of the expected. In my opinion, I hope the season cleanly wraps up that storyline and redeems this misstep.

I’m excited to see High Potential continue, as it has the potential to make the ranks of my favorite comfort procedurals. For anyone who enjoys mysteries and powerful female leads, this is a must … and once you watch it once, it makes for a great, sleepy-time comfort show. I mean that with the highest of compliments.

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