Perry Mason Review: Chapter One (Season 1 Episode 1)
This is not your mother’s Perry Mason.
HBO’s limited series isn’t focusing on the Perry Mason we know from the classic novels or the television series that aired decades ago. This is a darker Perry Mason — one who isn’t yet a lawyer and who is a bit of a mess.
On Perry Mason Season 1 Episode 1, we meet a guy who’s struggling to get by as a private detective. He dresses sloppily and shops for his ties at the morgue.
Throughout the episode, we get bits and pieces of his backstory, which all explain how he’s come to be so jaded. Perry, played by Matthew Rhys, has a son who he couldn’t even see at Christmas, and he’s a war veteran who was dishonorably discharged.
As hardened as Perry is, his eyes tell a different story. He’s observant — which is why he’s so good at his job — taking in everything around him, and doing so with suspicion.
There’s a sadness there too, which makes us desperate to see how all of this backstory will lead to him becoming a successful attorney. From the start, it’s obvious that Matthew Rhys was the right choice for this role. He gives a needed vulnerability to this the hardened, disheveled detective.
While the first case we see Perry working on has him snapping unseemly photos to prove an actor is breaking a morality clause, the second, which will be the focus of the series, seems like it will be a turning point for the character.
It’s a horrifying kidnapping case — with images of a dead baby that I could have done without, to be honest. It’s really something out of a horror film. But there isn’t much that can shake this version of Perry. He’s clearly seen enough darkness in the world for one lifetime already.
This, though — this shakes him.
Perry is hired to work on the kidnapping case by E.B. Jonathan (John Lithgow), a lawyer who has worked with Perry before and who has opinions about how Perry is living his life. He’s a mentor who will no doubt shape who Perry is to become one day.
Also working with them on the case is Jonathan’s legal secretary, Della Street (Juliet Rylance). Della is entirely reminiscent of the original character, and she sees right through Perry. The little banter they have on this episode is fun to watch.
Others who know Perry well include his partner, Pete, who is livid when Perry overplays his hand with the morality clause case and loses out on most of the money they should have earned, and Lupe Gibbs (Veronica Falcón), who Perry is sleeping with but who also has no time for his baggage.
Most of this first episode serves as exposition. Stylistically, it’s very well done. The audience is transported directly to 1930s LA, and that alone makes the series feel special.
The case is established, as are the characters, and we’re given enough information about Perry to understand why he’s so hardened. Yet, it’s really not enough. Almost everything this episode does feels like it’s scratching the surface of something more.
The potential is there, though, especially considering this remarkable cast. And as a character study on Perry Mason, I’m completely intrigued.
What did you think of this episode of the first episode of Perry Mason? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Perry Mason airs Sundays at 9/8c on HBO.
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Ashley Bissette Sumerel
Ashley Bissette Sumerel is a television and film critic living in Wilmington, North Carolina. She is editor-in-chief of Tell-Tale TV as well as Eulalie Magazine. Ashley has also written for outlets such as Rolling Stone, Paste Magazine, and Insider. Ashley has been a member of the Critics Choice Association since 2017 and is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic. In addition to her work as an editor and critic, Ashley teaches Entertainment Journalism, Composition, and Literature at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.