User Reviews (46)

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  • First off, let's address the issue of showing the killer at the beginning. Yes, Columbo did this, but so did other classic shows like Hawaii Five-O and Cannon, to name a couple. So what makes Motive different?

    Simple...the idea of this crime drama is to figure out WHY the killer did what he or she did. It's an interesting play on things...the episode starts out with two different sequences, one ending with the word 'killer' appearing on screen, the other ending with 'victim'. The sequence with the killer usually portrays the person in a positive light, and conversely, the 'victim' sequence may portray that person poorly, creating a sense of sympathy for the killer and maybe a non- sympathetic light for the victim. After the two detectives, Angie Flynn (Kristen Lehman) and Oscar Vega (Louis Ferrara a/k/a Justin Louis) show up and launch the investigation, then we see events unfold as to just how the killer and victim wound up on a fatal trajectory. We gather all sorts of info and see all sorts of obvious motives, but quite often, the real motive for the crime comes out of left field. The motive is quite often something unexpected.

    This is a Canadian-produced series, and I enjoy the way they tell stories. Between this show, Flashpoint and Rookie Blue, I'm beginning to think that our neighbors to the North are writing better cop shows than we are.
  • Any story which has revealed the victim and killer before you have sat down is on a hiding to nothing, right? It is what I thought when watching the first episode of this TV series, but, I kept watching, and, by the end of the forty odd minutes it had me hooked. This series is like having dots joined together in real time by an odd ball bunch of police detectives and their medical assists, or, even better, being navigated through a maze of dead ends right into the middle.

    There are, of course, the off story lines which build our characters lead by Angie Flynn (Kristin Lehman) a single mother of a teenaged son, and Oscar Vega (Louis Ferreira) with whom she flirts just a little. But the main reason for my addiction is how cleverly pieced together the plots are. Now I'll admit to flaws, but they are dramatic license rather than incredible events, and the occasional bumpy rather than smooth ride through the evidence, but this show still has been enraptured by its ability to course through your veins like a superdrug.

    Ms Lehman is a great actor and this series is a great vehicle for her skills.

    Watch just one episode and see if you don't catch the bug.
  • billbeast4 February 2013
    I love a good crime show. Law & Order SVU is the highest standard for me when it comes to crime shows and Motive takes an original spin on the genre by showing you immediately who the killer is and also their victim.

    As the episode progresses you find out more of the story (or motive) from backflashes or killer movements. The sub-plot with the detectives is also standard for these shows and it gels well.

    My main criticism for the show is that I like to guess and have suspicion at who the killer is, not being told straight off the bat and thats where Motive really fails. Great acting, great detective characters (especially Kristin Lehman) and production values. I'll be watching curiously to see how it progresses but Episode 1 is really just giving the viewer a basic summary of what the show is about and how it works. It's not great, but it's not bad.
  • jandriod201217 November 2020
    I'm watching the reruns on Alibi, what a shame, another good series that was cancelled. Do US companies not like Canada? Although the storylines hold no real surprises the scripts are good and the characters are engaging. Unlike most of the US counterparts, the characters aren't all young and excessively glamorous; the characters are attractive but this is downplayed for interesting personalities. I love the relationship between Angie and Oscar - yes, it is possible for members of the opposite sex who work closely together and be good friends without any romantic interludes. I also love the way Oscar and Betty's mildly flirtatious encounters hint at a more intimate relationship. All of this is done with maturity without any overt sexual overtones, and these relationships do not take over the story but are finely balance within. I have grown to look forward to Canadian shows, they are much more interesting and a bit quirky, but sadly seem to get cancelled prematurely (see the excellent Travellers and as far back as Due South). I wish programme developers would give them a chance instead of sacrificing good programmes for a fast buck and short term gains.
  • Excellent TV show with great plot and original twists!

    The cast were all outstanding, the cinematography on point, the directing sheer perfection and the writing - as original as it gets!

    I'm shocked at the negative reviews on "Oh, why would they tell you who the killer and victims are right at the start?" Well, that's what made this series incredible - originality!

    I am very saddened and shocked why this show ended. Kristin Lehman's character was very real and original and I'm going to miss her funny quirks and attitude!

    I'm also going to miss the beautiful scenic shots of Vancouver and area - simply stunning!

    I hope some network picks this up again!

    A very well deserved 10/10 perfection from me!
  • Sanrockps5 April 2013
    This is my first review... i usually don't write reviews.. but i am writing this coz this show is greatly underrated.. This one's not like other cop shows,,,thats for sure... but that doesn't mean that its bad... i reaally liked the first 2 episodes...rather than keeping the killer as a secret they show the killer in advance and how the police connect the case with the suspect... i definitely loved it.. and both the lead detectives are smart... its smart how they connect each case to the victim... if u are a fan of police procedural dramas like castle, mentalist and such this is the show for u... but if u r a fan of dramas like CSI,,this one's not for u...
  • Kristen Lehman & Louis Ferreira are A Great Cop/detective duo that are exceptional at what they do. At first, when this show was advertised, I thought not another Cop series; but was I in for a surprise. This Show begins by revealing the Victim & Killer, then moves onto the storyline of Motive. It is intriguing & full of suspense that keeps you coming back for more. I Recommend This Series as a 10 out of 10; It also being A Canadian Production.!!! The episodes become more exciting and the different cast in each episode are believable. Sorry to learn that it came to an end..😞 Please bring back this Series.....
  • At the beginning of each episode, not only is the victim identified to the viewer, but also the killer. As in Vancouver based an assassination has just happened and it has to be discovered. The disparate group of Vancouver Homicide Inspectors to focus on high profile cases being formed by acerbic-tongued , stubborn Detective Angie Flynn (Kristin Lehman) , accompanied by quick witted Detective Oscar Vega (Louis Ferreira) , alongside a youngest Detective Brian Lucas (Brendan Penny) , with help from the Coroner's office (Lauren Holly) and Officer assistant Wendy Sung (Valerie Tian) , all of them try to piece together the tracks . And under superior orders from Sergeant Mark Cross (Warren Christie) and Sergeant Boyd Bloom (Roger Cross) to get the difficult clues . Angie Flynn uses an unorthodox style , she is a well trained interrogator and has a great innate ability to get confessions by expose the guilty evidences , but she often has the competing priority of raising her problematic son , Manny (Cameron Bright) , as a single mom . Angie and her team set out to uncover the clues and motive by discovering the killer's connection to the victim and the evidence needed to resolve the crime . They have to wade through the proofs which will lead them through the more often than not less than straightforward path to discovering the killer and the dark motive . Behind every murder is a motive. The Murder is just the beginning.

    Here there aren't spoilers , that's why we know from the beginning to finish the true identitity , both , the killer and victim ; being investigated by a profesional team of Detectives led by an expert homicide Inspector, resolving the city's toughest , most difficult , hardest cases . With an extreme dedication towards their quest for the true facts , she and her elite team of investigators work several complicated cases using their cerebral skills and equipment that are capable of finding valuable clues from the most allegedly unlikely sources, concerning the issue of whydunit rather than whodunit . As each episode starts by revealing not only the victim but the murderer as well. Spectators navigate a complex and twisted labyrinth of tracks themselves as they get a glimpse of the murderer and motive , before as well as after the killing is committed. That motive often is not fully understood by the detectives until they catch the murder . Kristin Lehman gives a fine acting as an intelligent Vancouver homicide detective tracks down the most cunning of murderers by attempting to figure out the often unexpected motive to the crime. Our available protagonists are well accompanied by a good plethora of secondaries and guest actors appearing throughout 4 seasons , 52 episodes , such as : Joanna Cassidy , Ty Olsson , Cameron Bancroft , Jeffrey Nordling , Francis McCarthy , Tommy Flanagan ,Victor Garber , Patrick Gilmore , Jennifer Beals , Molly Parker , Scott Michael Campbell , Christina Cox , Sarah Grey , Keegan Connor Tracy , James Remar , Susan Hogan , Tim Matheson , Erica Cerra , Jodelle Ferland , Amanda Crew , Martin Donovan and many others . From the successful executive producer, Daniel Cerone, of "Dexter" , Blacklist¨, ¨Dark Corner¨, ¨Clubhouse¨, ¨Operatin Threshold¨, ¨Sexy money¨, ¨Witched¨, ¨Constantine¨ and "The Mentalist" . The series was well directed by prestigious directors as Andy Mikita , Charles Martin Smith , Jeremiah S. Chechik , Gunnarsson , David Frazee , Bronwen Hughes , Mathias Herndl , Kelly Makin , Rachel Leiterman Fred Gerber , T.J. Scott and Kristin Lehman herself . Rating : 6.5/10 . Decent crime drama .
  • Given that each episode starts off with identifying both the killer as well as the victim, this is a one of a kind series. The premise doesn't look that strong nor does it seem like it would be worth watching when you already know the identities of both victim & killer. But like the name suggests; Motive is entirely about the motive that leads the killer to kill the victim.

    Call me crazy, but I love this show so far and don't see myself not watching it. If you, like me, love watching drama that explore the psyche of people and what drives them to do what they do, then you'll love this one. Most of the time when you're introduced to the killer, you can't place him/her as a killer and it's interesting to watch what leads them there.

    The one thing that's left to be desired right now from this series is that you don't have much to connect with the leads of the show. I'm probably gonna stick around and see where this one goes.
  • cincypanda23 May 2013
    Tempo of the story seemed good but the background sound often overpowered the dialog. Even after I worked on my sound frequency balance. I would have been totally lost without closed caption turned on. The sound on commercials were no problem to understand so the sound mixing or dubbing for the show appears to be the problem and needs to be corrected for future episodes to be enjoyable. The characters seemed to be believable in their rolls. It was refreshing to have the autopsy be shown in a simple way instead of all the specialized graphics showing blood pulsing through veins or specialized machines doing the work being done in minutes when it takes weeks to get results from most labs. I am not squeamish, and in fact enjoy the scientific detail when it is pertinent to the show, but it is all too often a distraction to the story line.
  • Warning: Spoilers
    Motive is a Canadian procedural with a twist, not unlike Without A Trace; in this show, there is a critical introduction to every episode, wherein footage is shown, and one individual is labeled "killer" while another is labeled "victim".

    The episode then unfolds after the credits with the victim being dead, and the two cops that are stars of the series on the spot to investigate, Kristen Lehman & Louis Ferreira the key stars.

    Lauren Holly plays the Govt. Coroner, and is really great in her role

    The essence of the show is to determine what the MOTIVE of the killer was in each episode.

    It makes for great TV. Addictive, even.

    A great, great show.
  • But slightly different from the others;

    Having a background in music and sound engineering, it didn't take me long to figure out what was wrong with Motive.

    The novel format in this police procedural, where the killer is revealed immediately (novel .. Columbo did it twenty years ago, but ..) is interesting. The lead actors have generic, not particularly interesting roles but they play them decently. The plots are not exciting at all but, again, watchable.

    What really annoys me is the audio track. Except for some brief moments, the score feels the need to punctuate everything that happens, and as soon as the episode reaches midpoint, it begins to invade everything with "shock, soon!" themes. It really tries too hard to confuse, create tension, and predict a climax, resulting more annoying than helpful. There is also too much reliance on strong emotions and weak-spirited, "human" killers in the writing.

    All in all, Motive is not a series i would tell my friends about, for we'd be probably talking about something better, like.. idk, Person of Interest. But it's not totally horrible, and if you really must, it's an OK way to spend some time. You don't need to jump for the remote when it shows up on your screen.

    My vote (after six episodes) : an unexciting 6/10
  • browha11 February 2013
    3/10
    Poor.
    Warning: Spoilers
    Gotta be said, this is an interesting twist on the procedural cop show.

    That having been said... Its not very good. Too many coincidences - e.g. in episode 2, conveniently the first car they look for is the suspect one. Conveniently the girl the guy is trying to kill is at the right spot at the right time.

    Overall, the concept is nice, the dramatization is quite good, but the writing is really very poor. The most important part of a procedural cop show is the writing - to distinguish it from the rest out there - and this one has been extremely poor so far. Getting dropped from my TV shows list.
  • We as family loved each season, episodes and the characters.. Surely Angie (Kristin Lehman) is our favorite though, cast of all characters are doing great job. We just hope that Season 4 will not be the final season for this magnificent show..We loved the hair style of Angie on the Season 4.. Detective Vega wins our heart as always Dr. Betty Rogers is very attractive forensic Dr. that we love her passion. We ask you to continue with this great show Do not end it Do not end it please The show has our attention from the first episode of season 1 till season 4 unchanged. Because we congratulate the scripts writers they know how to thrill us..
  • Love this show. Great settings in and around Vancouver and an extremely well produced Canadian show. US love to ignore Canadian productions generally, but this is definitely a winner!

    Kristen has some brilliantly-written dialogue...very off-the-cuff-type,,,,,,which makes her character so believable.

    In fact, all characters are very well played. Nice to see cop partners who obviously enjoy working together...they are very natural. Also nice to see Warren Christie has joined the cast.

    Really enjoying the concept of trying to figure out the 'motive' as opposed to the victim/killer! Would be great to have some 2-parters for a change of pace! Truly hope this series gets the go ahead for a third season.
  • jgeo-7157126 April 2020
    Thing that bothers me about the series why don't they tell us it's Canada! So many tip offs it not the USA. Two maybe three black cops. USA most of PD's black. USA cops don't wear visor caps or tunics-they do in Canada. Never see the flag-no Maple Leaf or stars and Stripes it's Canada! Why couldn't they be like Davinci's Inquest.Canada all over the place! Though this has better exteriors than DI.Why did they go for kinda generic city style. ABC still canceled them anyway.Was it to much Canada? Well I like my shows that show Americans what our northern neighbors police dramas look like just don't be too low budget. And could somebody tell Kristin to stop wandering all over with the camera when she does the directing!
  • Finally a crime series that mixes dry humor with great entertainment. I like the "Columbo" - like twist to the plot where the audience is introduced to the killer and the victim right at the beginning of the show, and the subsequent logistics used by the detectives to convict the perpetrator.

    Another thing I enjoy about 'Motive' is that it is less graphic, compared to other crime shows. For instance, I think 'Criminal Minds' is a great series, however it is much heavier into the blood and guts scene, which can be gross, and a turn-off at times.

    After watching a Motive episode, I look forward to the next one, which I cannot always say about many other similar shows offered.
  • Motive is basically about a headstrong female role model who is likable but flawed, with a flair for what is unconventional, either at work as a homicide detective and at home as a mother. Each episode revolves around an always violent crime, tough most of the bloody scenes are quite brief, and the killer is always brought to justice in the end. Language is mild (think "hell," "damn," etc.), and sexual activity is mostly implied. Some cases involve social drinking and drug use, which is not uncommon/unheard of, but they're handled originally. Last thing the TV world needed was another crime drama. Nevertheless Motive at least tries to change things by throwing out the whodunit plots.
  • Motive is a very special treat. I love how instead of figuring out "who dunnit" the show is based on "why they dunnit." It's such a great twist to try to come up with the motive. A show giving you the victim and the killer right up front is really turning the tables. You have to think in a slightly different way. It's a great concept that works. Sometimes murder mysteries are easy to figure out and very boiler plate. In Motive the acting is excellent. The stories are well thought out and don't follow a cookie cutter format. I look forward to every episode. I hope this show goes on for many seasons because quality TV is so very hard to find. This show is a gem! I highly recommend it!
  • I really like this show, but I only watch it recorded on DVD because sometimes I have to watch it 3 times to "get" all of it. Critically important plot points are sloughed over with unintelligible dialog. That, on top of non-linear timeline techniques with no SUPERs make things very hard to follow.

    Having said that, I am still a big fan because the basic premise of the show is excellent. Too many TV dramas focus on carnage and action and good guys without explaining WHY the bad guys did what they did. This show makes the WHY the focal point and does it with good storytelling.

    Recommended, but record it. If you watch it "live" you won't get all of it.
  • Esp crime detective drama Mostly amazing beauty Vanquver view & quality Mise-en-Scène.

    love this neat crime story too
  • The concept is different points for that, the overall cinematography nice in comparison to the flat washed out look you get from most Canadian dramas.

    Unfortunately the flat and washed out comes in via the story lines and characters. Don't get me wrong I love Kristin Lehman, and she does a good job as does Louis Ferreira, but the connection between them still feels blah and not very flushed out. You want to care about the characters and you just don't, even in the pilot when you meet her son it was so boring and snooze-ville and didn't feel at all like mother son, but brother and sister.

    This has been a repeat I've seen from many a CTV produced Canadian dramas, flat characters, flat story lines, overall leading to a generally flat drama. Sure it's better than an episode of The Bachelor, but only just barely.
  • Warning: Spoilers
    I have watched all six episodes. I like knowing who the victim and killer are from the beginning. It is a unique twist on detective dramas. It keeps this drama from being "the usual". Dr. Betty Rogers isn't given enough airtime. Her character is the most interesting in the line-up. As for Detective Angie Flynn, I find myself disliking for her as each episode unfolds. She gets the job done, but she leaves a lot of wreckage in her wake. She has a surprising disregard for other people, including her "friendship" relationship with her own son. After what happens in the sixth episode, she should have been fired, but then this drama would have ended. I hope Detective Flynn's character evolves into someone who I can like.
  • Warning: Spoilers
    As a fan of crime shows, I was intrigued to watch this show. The premise was fascinating; it's been used by notable writers such as Agatha Christie. The critical reviewers comparing the show to 'Columbo', certainly have an opinion, but it's not worth much in the volumes of literature and cinema.

    In a ' typical' crime show, the cops & detectives investigate & follow leads. They rule out suspects & generally solve the crime in 60 minutes or within the arc of several weeks. The puzzle of solving a murder is rarely as simple as doing research in a lab where things are 'cut & dry'.

    The similarity between 'typical' crime shows & Motive is that the Audience gets to witness the detectives pursuing leads and solving the case.

    The STRIKING difference is that in this remarkable show, the producers have the freedom to spend time on the detectives' WORK PROCESS itself. We get to see cops the way they work every day, as cases unfold; not the abbreviated highlights for TV versions.

    So, this may not be the glamorous Law & Order, SVU show (which I love!), but this show is a different version of a cop show. It's not competing with Law & Order, Columbo, or any other. It's just deconstructing the job; taking it apart in front of our eyes.

    By deconstructing the cops doing their job, we get to see the process in a different light. It may be less glamorous than Law & Order but it's deeper, more character driven and it is fueled by it's core by the case. Peripherally, there is the baggage that normal folks have.

    Better than Law & Order, SVU? I could not say. They are both on my watch list & satisfy different pleasures.
  • mysafetyemonline25 December 2021
    Not Very Violent 4 a change. Interesting cases, always up for detective shows. Not a brain teaser but it will hold your attention. I have nothing else to add but this must be 160 characters to get posted!
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