When did crime thrillers become dramas?

As a writer, with my own crime thriller series, and an avid watcher of crime series, there is a pattern I see, maybe you do too, where crime series or films are stereotyping crime fighters, whether police or other government agencies, as being dysfunctional when it comes to their personal lives. It's become a sub-plot in many series and films, especially with American films and series, although I have seen it with some British series and others - although less the case in European series. It is the same pattern, different people, but nearly identical sub-plots: the dedicated copper or detective is busy trying to find who pulled the trigger and is away a lot from his or her family or partner, and consequently, almost always, the partner and/or family has a meltdown, and arguments ensue, even breakups over the fact that they are "never home" and are more interested in their jobs than... Well you get it.

The same, drippy, boring sub-plot has been inserted into nearly every crime series I have seen, and the question I ask, as a writer, is WHY?

We don't watch crime series to engage in the private lives of the investigators or cops, we watch them because we want to see WHO pulled the trigger, we want to see good solid police work to track down the killer - not, and I repeat, not the backstage upsets with their spouses or partners, who, for some stereotypical reason which only script writers and producers can explain, repeatedly force us to watch the shredding of familial or intimate relationships as the cop or detective or agent delves deeper and deeper into the case.

One assumes, logically, that if you hook up with a cop or detective or whatever, that it is not a 9-to-5 job, but in American crime series, in particular, they tend to insert this piece of drama as if it is inherent and relevant to the crime being investigated. It is not - and it is tiresome to see the same scenario played over and over again. In fact, if anything, it promotes the idea that becoming a cop or detective is a contractual agreement that you will never have a happy family or love life.

I saw this trend years ago when I created my crime fighter series, so I decidedly went the other way. The crime fighting team in my books, headed by Keeno McCole, who take on the big fish in the ocean, chasing down the perps in Canada and globally, wherever it takes them, are not dysfunctional. Keeno McCole, who heads up the unit, is in love with ONE woman, and she understands more than anyone that his dedication to the job and his passion to nail the bad guys, is not personal. She never complains about the time he is away from her, or the danger he faces, because she understands the sacrifice he is making to clean up the scum from Canadian streets.

My series focuses ENTIRELY, on following the trail of blood and dead bodies - the action, the near-death episodes, the gun and knife fights and more - but sadly, no drama when it comes to their personal lives.

The Keeno Crime Thrillers

For that reason, the series will probably never make it to television or big screen except possibly in Europe where police procedural is more important than backstage drama - but you might find it refreshing to read a series about a crime fighting team which is 100% focused on one thing - putting the bad guys in the ground.

Réal Laplaine

Author of high-concept thrillers

www.reallaplaine.com