In the Netflix series ‘Who is Erin Carter?’ substitute teacher Erin Carter tries to hide her violent past, but of course it doesn’t work. Despite some shortcomings, there is plenty to enjoy in terms of action.
A British substitute teacher in Barcelona ends up in a supermarket robbery with her daughter and can defend herself remarkably well. Where did she learn that? Where does this Erin Carter come from? Soon the teacher is overtaken by her secret, violent history, while she is also drawn into the criminal world of her new homeland.
Tough mother with a secret past – that is the starting point of the crime series Who is Erin Carter? on Netflix. It is not exactly quality drama, and it also contains quite a few flaws for a genre piece. But there is plenty to enjoy.
Miss Erin (Evin Ahmad) tries to keep her double life as a kissed-awake action hero hidden from her family and her work, but of course she can’t. There’s potential for some nice drama in this. Her marriage is faltering, her permanent contract is canceled, and her slowly blinding daughter Harper suffers from fears – the robbery has opened a hatch to what she experienced as a small child due to her mother’s criminal past. The daughter can no longer trust her mother. Harper – strong role by 13-year-old Indica Watson – is one of the reasons to keep watching, if only because she is the one who names the bullshit, and who knocks a bully’s teeth out for teasing her with her bad eyes.
Keep fighting
Unfortunately, this dramatic family line suffers from the flawed dialogues, the hit and miss game and the many clichés. The marital problems, for example, are uninteresting, partly due to the husband’s (Sean Teale) slack play. Furthermore, Erin’s past is not revealed elegantly gradually, but is served bluntly in one piece in the fourth episode. The many incredulities also take you out of the story. Miss Erin always keeps only a few scratches from the bloodiest fights, which have already disappeared the next scene. And even with a painful belly shot, she can fight through an episode. If the series were going well, it wouldn’t hurt – it’s not meant to be realistic – but now it’s disturbing.
Another reason to keep watching is the many spectacular chases and fights in the picturesque streets and villas of Barcelona. Especially when the fighters put the pistols aside for a game of mixed martial arts with frying pans, lunch boxes, cake testers and other utensils within reach. What helps is that Erin has to take quite a beating herself – the big men like to throw the frail school teacher against a wall – which keeps it exciting, although she always wins.
And sometimes the series maker manages to make the two lives of Erin Carter rub off nicely. Like in the ten-minute conversation Miss Erin has to have with a father who also happens to be the mob boss who just killed her boyfriend. After “How is his math?” soon follows: “Won’t you interrupt me when I threaten you?”
Who is Erin Carter? to be seen on Netflix