A Guilty Pleasure: Why I'm Still Hooked on Prosecutor's Check

Hello everyone!

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I've been thinking about sharing my thoughts on a TV series that I absolutely loved watching back in high school. I was so into it that I even considered studying law because of it. Fast forward almost 10 years, and I recently stumbled upon Prosecutor's Check.

I have to say, I'm usually really disappointed with old TV shows. I mean, who wants to rewatch Mother-in-law, Ranetki, Unfortunate Nastya, Don't Be Born Beautiful, Charmed, or H2O? There are just so many shows that are best left in the past. But Prosecutor's Check was a pleasant surprise. And what's even more surprising is that it's a police procedural, which isn't really my thing. But even more surprising is that a Russian police procedural show is actually really good.

Prosecutor's Check review👮‍♂️ THE BASICS 👮‍♂️The main characters are already familiar to audiences: professional lawyers Pavel Ilyin and Dmitry Belonogov first donned the prosecutor's uniform back in the summer of 2008, playing the roles of state prosecutors in the TV show Presiding Judge.

Now that they've settled into their roles and crisp navy uniforms, the TV prosecutors are stepping out of the courtroom and into the real world. Viewers will get a glimpse into the daily lives of public prosecutors, a job that's not for the faint of heart. Cases are closed without justification, innocent people are wrongly convicted, and evidence is often coerced or ignored - all reasons to conduct a thorough investigation.

Genres - crime, drama

Runtime - each episode is around 50-60 minutes long.

We've got 2 seasons to binge, and the show originally aired from 2011-2014, so there aren't any new episodes to look forward to. I've watched all the episodes, and I'm still going back to re-watch some of them. The order doesn't really matter, although some events do impact the main storyline (casting changes, new characters, etc.). You can start with any episode, and it's not like you'll miss out on something crucial.

Each episode is a self-contained case, with one of the prosecutors - either Ilyin or Belonogov, along with their team - working to solve the mystery. Sometimes a case will span multiple episodes, but for the most part, each episode is a standalone story.

Where to watch? I'm still watching it on the official group in Kontakt, but be warned: the quality is hit-or-miss. Some episodes are 720p, while others are only 480p. Definitely not ideal for a big TV screen.

👮‍♂️ CHARACTERS AND MY THOUGHTS 👮‍♂️

We've got five main characters to keep track of.

Prosecutor Ilyin, played by Pavel Ilyin, is another self-portrait - a prosecutor with a heart of gold, willing to go the extra mile to help people get justice and nail the bad guys. He may come across as a bit naive, but I actually really like him.

Prosecutor's Check - ReviewProsecutor Belonogov (Dmitry Belonogov) - he's a real stand-up guy, not corrupt, and always willing to lend a hand.

Prosecutor's Check - ReviewNow, I'll admit, unlike Ilyin, his true love isn't justice - it's good food. Because of his love for eating and other stuff, he constantly gets himself into all sorts of wacky situations.

Prosecutor's Check - ReviewBy the way, despite both Ilyin and Belonogov being prosecutors, not professional actors, they're actually the only ones who can act somewhat decently. Because, to be honest, the acting in this show is just terrible. Especially when it comes to one-off characters (victims, perpetrators, or their kids). I rarely pay attention to acting, but here it's just laughable in the worst possible way. Oleg Karavaev (Anna Serdyukova - also a real lawyer) - Ilyin's assistant. She's an athlete, a Komsomol member, and just a stunning beauty, always ready to help everyone. She's always on Ilyin's case, dragging in new and new visitors all the time.

Prosecutor's Check - Review I've never had to deal with law enforcement before, so I'm curious - can you really just walk into the prosecutor's office, break down in tears about how you or your partner/spouse/kid/brother got screwed over, and have everyone rush to help you? I'd love to believe it, but it's hard to swallow. The whole thing plays out like some kind of prosecutor's utopia of an ideal world. Maksim Ryumin (Mikhail Kondratiev) - Belonogov's assistant prosecutor. Like everyone here, he's responsible, noble, and shaken by human cruelty.

Prosecutor's Check - ReviewIt's a bit cheesy, especially when you compare it to Olga, who's got a natural romance going on with him. But the romance is actually pretty nice - none of that crazy drama, cheating, or stalking nonsense that Russian shows are so fond of.Prosecutor's Check - ReviewAlexander, or just Shushunder (initially played by Nikolai Khramov, but later replaced by Alexander Kasatkin), is a bit of a mix between a computer genius who can find anyone and anything in no time using just the internet, and Roma Bukin, who's desperately trying to get a girlfriend. He's the least idealized character, always getting himself into weird situations because of his attempts to hook up with someone. But it's actually kind of funny.

Prosecutor's Check - Review Prosecutor's Check - Review The one guy who really gets on my nerves is the bumbling security guard, Gena , played by Andrei Makhov. He's the only character who really grates on me - he's just so ridiculously dumb and one-dimensional. I guess it's supposed to be funny, but I find it annoying just having him show up on screen.Hey, why did they have to make him so dim-witted? I mean, this is a show that's supposed to showcase the professionalism of prosecutors, not the lack of intelligence of their colleagues (and he's a captain, to boot).

A Look at the Supporting Cast - My Review of Prosecutorial Check One thing that's worth mentioning is the supporting cast. They're a mixed bag, to be honest. There's the annoying prosecutor, Podkolyosov (Ivan Grishakov), the waitress Volya (Irina Lazareva), and the cleaning lady, Aunt Polya (Natalya Litvinova). I've got no complaints about the latter's acting skills - she's a seasoned actress, after all, but she was quickly written out of the show because the main actress left. That would've looked pretty silly, if you ask me. A Look at the Supporting Cast - My Review of Prosecutorial Check Each episode brings a whole new cast of characters connected to the investigation - the complainants, victims, police officers (who are often idle and do nothing), perpetrators, and random witnesses. To be honest, most of them are terrible. It feels like they just cast random people from the extras pool. Sometimes it even seems like they're being told to act poorly on purpose. I'm not sure why that would be the case. As for the plot, I actually find it kind of charming. Why charming? It's because it's so naive - especially in the dialogue. The situations the characters find themselves in are often pretty strange, too. And so, it's not always easy to take everything seriously.

A Psychopath and His Victim. I Have to Admit, It's More Funny Than Scary

But what's interesting is that you get to watch the cases that Ilyin and Belonogov investigate, and they're often in completely different areas of life. Plus, they might just help some naive people avoid getting scammed. Even though most of the episodes follow a similar script, it's not always easy to figure out who the main bad guy is. And every now and then, they throw in some pretty good plot twists. True, sometimes they resort to that overused trope where everything is suddenly explained at the end - the 'deus ex machina' thing. I'm not a fan of it, but I'd rather have a surprising ending than one that's predictable from the start. It's not a thriller, but as a documentary about the daily life of a prosecutor's office, it's actually pretty good.

Serial Prosecutor's Review - My Thoughts The cases they cover are the ones that get your attention - child accidents, corrupt doctors, crooked cops, and real estate scams. Most of the plots are based on real-life cases, but they're blown out of proportion.

Serial Prosecutor's Review - My Thoughts On one hand, I appreciate how the game's characters are so uncompromising and honest, genuinely puzzled by how people can live differently. On the other hand, it feels like everything's too black-and-white, with no shades of gray.

Serial Prosecutor's Review - My Thoughts Belonogov and Sasha are the only ones who break the mold, otherwise, it'd be like adding halos to everyone else.

And the way the game portrays most criminals - it's like they're all hardened villains. I mean, I wanted to do something to them just by looking at them. But honestly, I think most people (excluding psychopaths and those with mental health issues) are victims of circumstance, not inherently evil. Who knows how we'd react in their shoes?

Prosecutorial Check - Review Honestly, they overdid it with the drama in some parts - "Oh my god, he's a bribe-taker! How can he show his face?! He's supposed to serve the people, not himself! Everyone fainted in unison." Sometimes it's in tune with the theme, sometimes it looks ridiculous. Although the idea of an ideal world resonates with me - I want to believe that most police officers and prosecutors are at least a little bit like the heroes in this show.Prosecutorial Check - Review By the way, despite some naivety, many episodes aren't for the faint of heart (the show is rated 16+ due to the brutality).Prosecutorial Check - Review There's plenty of bloodshed, and even some scenes of torture. To be honest, when it comes to the cases prosecutors investigate, it's all pretty realistic. They just wrapped it up in a more artistic package and added a dash of idealism 😊👮‍♂️ KEY TAKEAWAYS 👮‍♂️

I have to admit, I've been a bit harsh on this show, but I actually enjoy watching it. In fact, I enjoyed it just as much 10 years ago as I do now, and the unwatched episodes still make great background viewing. Maybe it's just nostalgia, but I'm genuinely interested in watching it.

You can nitpick the acting, the script, and the originality of the story all you want, but at the end of the day, the most important thing is whether or not the show interests you personally. And if it does, you can overlook its flaws. At least, I always do!

I suspect Prosecutorial Review was made to boost the image of the prosecution in the eyes of the audience (just like Kadetstvo and its propaganda predecessor), but that doesn't bother me. Who knows, maybe a real prosecutor will be inspired by their colleagues' example and decide to dedicate their life to helping people for free – that's just perfect!

+ PLUS POINTS:

engaging storyline;each episode is unique;some episodes have unexpected endings;there are plenty of funny situations the characters get themselves into;good triumphs over evil, leaving you with a pleasant aftertaste of justice;the main characters do a great job, despite not being professional actors;there are plenty of teachable moments (not just about morality, but also about being wary of scammers);you can start watching from any episode, making it perfect for background viewing.- MINUSES:

The show's naivety and idealization of events are a major turn-off, and it doesn't help that most of the villains are portrayed as one-dimensional, evil characters without any redeeming qualities;The acting in the secondary roles is subpar;Almost every investigation follows the same tired script.As you've probably gathered by now - I'm a big fan of Prosecutor's Investigation, so I'm more than happy to watch it even 10 years after its release. And, of course, I highly recommend it, but with the caveats I mentioned earlier, because I completely understand that it won't be everyone's cup of tea 😊

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Thanks for reading!

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