A space cruise is thrown off course and the command team have to deal with a ship they don't really understand and thousands of snotty, entitled tourists.

Hugh Laurie plays Captain Ryan Clark, who finds himself far, far out of his depth having to go between the ship's chief engineer (Billie McEvoy) who – spoiler – actually knows what she's doing, and the profit-driven, bumbling CEO Herman Judd (Josh Gad). The captain's ineffectual, vocal anger is a foil for Judd's clumsy, hare-brained capers. Is it a pointed critique of our times? Or a perfect story setup?

The ship is a parody of the entertainment industry – there are many familiar aspects to Avenue 5, from the delusional focus on optics (i.e. suspiciously photogenic crew) to the self-centred, impressionable tourists. Death initially appears remote – as it tends to do, on a cruise – but soon becomes old news. Comedic, full of dark humour, but with a solid core of story.

#miniseries #TV #HughLaurie