Better Late Than Never: 'Inside Man' Is a Messy, Propulsive Morality Play

Editor's Note: Life is short, and Peak TV is vast. Our Better Late Than Never feature series is here to help us all catch up on some of the shows and movies we've probably all missed out on in the past year or two simply because we've been watching something else. Join the Telly Visions writers as we celebrate our underrated faves and finally understand what all the fuss was about the shows we hadn't actually managed to see yet.

Despite its A-list cast and buzzy British pedigree, the Netflix series Inside Man arrived with relatively little fanfare in the Fall of 2022. The streamer announced the series' premiere mere days before it dropped on the service and gave it laughably little promotion. (If memory serves, Netflix never even released a trailer for it!) Given that the series hailed from writer/creator Steven Moffat (Sherlock) and starred popular actors like David Tennant (Good Omens) and Stanley Tucci (Citadel), you'd think it would be, if not a surefire hit, at least a property the streamer might want to let people know existed.

On the other hand, it might be just as likely that Netflix simply didn't know what to do with the series, which is surprisingly dark and uncomfortable and tinged with no small amount of stark gallows humor. A show that features a pair of standout performances but a story that's painfully unsatisfying and frustrating by turns, it introduces complicated themes but never takes them quite as far as you might hope. Yes, like so many Moffat shows before it, Inside Man is kind of a mess. But its relentless pace and truly bonkers (often nonsensical) plot at least makes for an entertaining ride.