CROSS Episode 1.1

CROSS is a thriller series streaming on Amazon Prime. The show roughly follows the storyline of James Patterson’s Alex Cross series as Alex Cross works to solve an interconnected web of crimes and mysteries that ultimately lead back to the murder of his wife. Cross is an esteemed police detective whose understanding of human psychology has made him a standout among his peers. However, his skill has also placed a target on Cross and his family, whom a serial killer is now tracking.

The pilot episode of the show is quick to emphasize Cross’s abilities, having him outsmart a racist perp who enrages every police officer who interrogates him. Cross, however, finds a mistake in the perp’s antics, leading to a confession. Because of his proven ability, Cross is placed on a high-profile murder case within his precinct after Emir, a prominent member of the defund the police movement, is found dead in his car. Though it appears to be a drug overdose, Cross believes there’s more going on under the surface. The viewer also knows that all is not as it seems, as a scene reveals that the man was previously trapped in a basement by a sadistic serial killer.

Because of his track record, Cross has two days to find evidence against a drug overdose; otherwise, the case will be closed as such. Luckily, Cross knows members of Emir’s family, and although he is a cop, he can approach them. He makes a rapport with Emir’s mom and learns that he has become a devout Muslim as well as a diabetic. These clues cause alarms to go off in Cross’s head as the autopsy finds pork chops in his stomach – even though Emir would never eat pork – and meth in his blood – though the drug would interact with his diabetes medicine.

Finding this to be enough proof, Cross presents the evidence to the police chief, who agrees that something doesn’t add up, though she’d still be happy to write it off as an overdose and move on. Again, Cross has a tight deadline to find even more evidence. In a pinch, Cross reaches out to a friend in the FBI to run a check on a burner phone and see if they can find to help with the case.

In the meantime, danger is close as a shadowy figure breaks into Cross’s house and places a scarf in his closet. The next day, Cross is called into his son’s school after he gets dress coded for wearing the scarf – as it is paraphernalia for the Washington Redskins, which is against the dress code. Cross.

However, Cross recognizes the scarf to be the one his wife wore at the time of her murder, which the police didn’t recover from the scene. Thus, he knows that her killer is taunting him and has been inside his home.

Despite this disruption, Cross’s FBI informant discovers that one of Emir’s friends was the last person to call him before his death. The police set up an operation to intercept the friend at Emir’s funeral, but when they try to make contact, he runs. After a short chase, he takes a hostage at gunpoint but quickly lets her go when he realizes he has no other options. However, as the police escort him to the car, he gets shot in the head, throwing the case into further turmoil and mystery.

Despite a strong storyline and intriguing characters, CROSS is challenging to watch because of excessive violence and foul language. Multiple characters are killed and bleeding out, and the pilot episode features 43 profanities along with one obscenity. Though the storyline also features strong biblical content, such as a fight for justice and an emphasis on family, MOVIEGUIDE® advises all audiences to avoid the show.

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