Treme

Series three, episode one
Evolution takes place at an almost Darwinian pace in ‘Treme’. As we return to New Orleans for a third series, few of the characters seem to have moved on much. Maybe that reflects the pace of real life, but in David Simon’s drama it’s becoming a drag.

Davis’s schemes are getting wilder, with his latest wheeze being an opera of ‘Verdi meets rhythm and blues’. Annie and Delmond’s careers are on the rise. Antoine’s still conning cabbies and getting into scrapes with the cops. Toni’s still fighting the good fight. Nelson’s still on the make, this time sizing up a real-estate deal on a National Jazz Centre – ‘a chance to monetise culture in a very smart, very civic way’. And on it goes.

The love and dedication put into this series continues to impress, there are occasional moments of greatness and the music is a ceaseless delight. But none of it’s enough to compensate for the glacial narrative or what’s looking increasingly like an overpopulated cast: too many characters with too little to say.