If you haven't heard of Serial by now, you need to update your pop culture dosage because Serial is taking the world by storm.
Serial is a podcast produced by Sarah Koenig, who also narrates it. Where Serial stands out from other podcasts is that it just doesn't narrate a story, or tell us of a case that happened. It's a new form of investigative journalism where with every episode discusses the case that it is dealing with. So it gives you a whole multi-dimensional view of the case, and how the story proceeds.
Serial deals with the case of Adnan Syed who was convicted of first degree murder in Maryland for killing his girlfriend Hae Min Lee. Sarah basically got an email from Rabia, who happens to be Adnan's family friend telling Sarah about the unusual things in the case and how Adnan was wrongfully convicted. It intrigues Sarah and then she goes on the journey to rediscover the case and takes us along.
Along the way, new evidence comes into light, new theories pop up, and new stories are revealed that paint the case in a whole new light. There's Adnan's friend Jay who claims that Adnan killed Hay and they buried the body, while Adnan denies anything of the sorts happened. Whereas there's a girl who claims that Adnan was at the library with her, but her alibi was never shed light on. There's the case of Adnan's cell record that puts him in the spots where the murder timeline goes along. And the fact that Hey was basically a secret girlfriend of Adnan's because he was a Muslim and couldn't go public with the relationship puts Adnan in a negative light. Adnan's lawyer is a bit messed up and the prosecutor has a huge role to play in the case. Moreover, there are so many inconsistencies in Jay's confessions over time, that one can't help but wonder whether Adnan did it or not.
The narrator knows how to keep everyone hooked and just like NCIS or CID, this podcast is a complete package of entertainment. It has romance, deception, drugs, dual lives, inconsistencies, character depth and the elements that complete a whole thrilling movie or a TV show. But Serial is a podcast and it indulges the listener into all that it has to offer. It's a great story narrated very well with great background music. The structure with which Serial deals with the story is not that complex. Every episode deals with new angles to the story and lets the listener enjoy the case, and it doesn't come off as boring at all. It's interesting and easy to grasp.
Knowing the producers, and the fact that it's a spin-off of This American Life, one should expect it to be a solid case that is being discussed here: was Adnan innocent or not. Serial shows the conflicted minds of everyone and knows that it's extremely unbiased. Sarah has moments where even she doubts Adnan, but then there comes news that makes her believe otherwise. So we kind of go along the see-saw of the story that Sarah goes along.
Serial is the TV show you can never watch but were yearning to get hooked to. It's the novel you don't get the life to read but want to get to. It's the new "it" thing you need to be a part of. So if you like shows like Dexter, True Detective, NCIS, Castle etc, then Serial is definitely worth giving your time to.