Although many argue whether Agatha Christie was the greatest and the inventor of “WhoDunIt” (who killed), according to reports, the term came before she began publishing her books, coined by critic Donald Gordon in 1930, in his review of the detective novel Half-Mast Murder written by Milward Kennedy.

The genre is a detective puzzle, where the fun is trying to figure out who committed the crime by piecing together the case’s clues and deciphering some secrets. The investigation is usually led by an eccentric, amateur, or semi-professional detective, but there are variations.

Many recent examples of new titles explore the genre, the most famous being the series Only Murders in The Building and Knives Out, and I’m a big fan. Unfortunately, I struggled to get to the end of The Residence, Shonda Rhimes‘ latest production for Netflix with wonderful actors in the cast. Why?

First, let’s talk about the series. Created by Paul William Davies and inspired by Kate Andersen Brower‘s book, The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House, the story takes place in the most powerful house in the United States, the President’s residence, where – oh God! – a murder occurs during an official dinner for the Australian government. The killer is certainly among the employees, residents, or guests and the mystery has to be solved in a few hours before the fact becomes known to the press.

The great duality of the story is a bit like the Firm in the Royal Family: the White House employees are responsible for the property – half museum, half office, and the home of whoever is in office at the time – so there is a complex dynamic of who can do what and who takes care of everything. That would already be enough material for a lot of things, but with the crime, it becomes a very difficult puzzle to keep the interest.

The dead man is the unsympathetic White House chief, Usher A.B. Wynter (Giancarlo Esposito, cast in the role after the actor who was already filming, Andre Braugher, died before finishing work) and the narrative is in flashback because, of course, Congress questions everything that happened that night. The bird-loving detective, Cordelia Cupp (Uzo Aduba, always wonderful), is the one who uses her unorthodox methods to decipher the crime, assisted by FBI Special Agent Edwin Park (Randall Park also wonderful).

With great dialogues and great performances, The Residence has one essential problem: it is not interesting. The victim certainly is, as are the two detectives, but the suspects are all so bland that it makes it very difficult to even spend time trying to guess who killed the man.

Even in such a dry scenario, Uzo Aduba shines. She is an expert at adding layers to easily one-dimensional characters, how could we forget Crazy-Eyes from Orange Is The New Black? Cordelia has particular methods of conducting an investigation that are sensational, from never saying there are suspects, to listening to all versions carefully without exchanging a word, and making us sensitive to her vocation as a detective, born from a personal trauma that makes her a person who appears cold on the surface but is completely empathetic on the inside. I admit I am a fan, but she is amazing. And Randall Park is the perfect partner for her in these circumstances; if it weren’t for the two of them, I could skip the series completely.

The whole story would have been well resolved in four episodes, having eight shows where the script is flawed. Still, some bet that Netflix will order a new season, precisely because of the approved dynamic between Aduba and Park. The creator, Paul William Davies (showrunner of Scandal) said he already has ideas to bring Cordelia Cupp and Edwin Park back together. Will he get it right in a second season?

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