Jun. 9th, 2025

Rec Post

Jun. 9th, 2025 06:58 pm
tinny: Commandant Karadec from the French series HPI in side profile, gentle and soft, looking at Morgane (hpi_karadec soft look)
[personal profile] tinny

Morgane & Karadec 1x05


HPI (Haut Potentiel Intellectuel) is a very popular French crime procedural in the general vein of the Sherlock Holmes genre. There are 32 episodes over 4 seasons now. Season five (another 8 episodes) will air this year, and it will probably be the last one.

Where?

The show has been exported to many countries, and you should be able to find it in your country, I hope? Prime has it, hulu has it..., it's everywhere!

TODO: list places where to watch

Is it a rec?

OMG so much yes. By the end of season 2, I was hopelessly in love. Mostly with the love story between her and the detective (which is a lot of will-they-wont-they, but the writing supports the romance every step of the way, it's brilliant), and with Mehdi Nebbou's acting. The more I'm rewatching, the more I appreciate Audrey Fleurot's acting as well - she really put everything into this role.

What?

Morgane (Audrey Fleurot) is a woman with an IQ of 160+, a single mother of three who struggles to hold a job or maintain any relationship because her brain is always running a mile a minute. She gets hired as a consultant to the police in Lille, much to the chagrin of commandant Karadec (Mehdi Nebbou). It has a bit of a Sherlock vibe, and a bit of a Monk vibe, and if you like other "consultant to the police" procedural shows, I think you'll like this one, too.

There are four seasons (and they keep getting better and better), and a fifth and final is airing right now. The only non-spoilery thing I could find in terms of reccable video is this hulu trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWRCpVZWNw8

more details
The setup in the first season is very 'standard': he's rigid and all about the rules and a good police officer, and she's chaotic and draws all the attention and doesn't respect any rules at all. So, predictably, they clash a lot. But they're also attracted to each other, and it's a lot of fun to watch.

Morgane is definitely neuro-atypical, both highly intelligent and with some adhd traits, she is hyperfocusing on one side but easily distracted on the other, and never manages to follow the big picture. Its often sad to watch how she is her own greatest enemy in that sense. But I very much identify with her on the joy of solving puzzles! While her life is chaotic, she is generally shown as capable of juggling the challenges life throws at her. Of course she gets herself and the police into dangerous situations because of her disregard of the rules and her lack of patience, and I realize that if someone had told me that up front out of context, I would have said I'd hate her - but I don't. Not at all! I can't put my finger on what exactly they did right, but I think the character is very well constructed and I empathize with her very much.

Karadec is soft-spoken and very empathetic, and I for one loved that in the portrayal of a police detective. There's no arrogance, no better-than-thou attitude, no matter who he's dealing with. He is kind and caring with the suspects and the witnesses, and he takes his job seriously. What can I say, I love him.

From the start, the show doesn't get into a rut. The characters develop, nothing is easy, and they both make mistakes, hurting themselves and others. The writing never forgets about their romance, though. There are obstacles - a lot of them - but as a shipper, I always felt very loved by the writing. From the small things, like each scene taking the time to show the leads' reactions to everything, to the big things, like them actively trying to have a relationship, the show always delivered what I wanted.

As for the tone of the show, it gets both funnier and bolder as time goes on. Some of the secondary characters have comical storylines, and the show takes itself less seriously as time goes on. I very much liked that, too. If you take all of it seriously, it can get pretty tragic, but the humor balances it out nicely.


some non-spoilery HPI caps



the only time Karadec shouts at her - because she endangered his life


first sparks


Morgane has a knack for turning up in unexpected places, kids in tow


Celine, Karadec's boss - I like her a lot, too


Morgane doesn't even get a desk, she usually sits at the window


Very misleading fanservice-y cap (but it's my fave :D)


"Karadeeeec, isn't it obvious?"


Morgane has some truly spectacular earrings



Feel free to link this rec post wherever you like.

Season 1

Jun. 9th, 2025 09:02 pm
tinny: Commandant Karadec from the French series HPI in side profile, gentle and soft, looking at Morgane (hpi_karadec soft look)
[personal profile] tinny

101 Excitement
Karadec sees Morgane's brilliance for the first time



Lots of screencaps, and my thoughts on season 1. Discuss. :)

screencaps of my fave season 1 moments - in order

101


101 Chloe
Karadec trying to explain the case progress while Morgane is feeding Chloe

101 Ludo
Morgane unable to stand by when she and Ludo are insulted - I wish they'd kept that Sense of Justice need of Morgane's, it's such an important ADHD trait, and I feel like over time they forgot she has it

102


102 Crime scene
Morgane taking Chloe to the crime scene

102 Anger
Karadec getting angry - it's the only time he shouts at Morgane, because she endangered his life

103


103 Bonnemain
Morgane flirting with Bonnemain

103 Hating his life
Karadec hating his life (because Morgane still doesn't trust the police and didn't communicate her plans with him)

103 Sparks
First sparks

104


104 Nail polish
Karadec, still drugged, looks at nail polish

104 Morgane crashes his date
Morgane, kids in tow, crashes Karadec's date

104 Celine adjusting his tie
Celine and Karadec, we see the close bond they have

105


105 Ludo
Morgane bonding with Ludo

105 Date
Morgane asking Karadec on a date (leaving him confused)

105 Hug
Morgane crying in Karadec's arms

106


106 Dream
Karadec's sex dream

106 Not a dream
Karadec repeatedly slapping himself in this ep

106 Will you ever change?
Karadec asking Morgane if she'll ever learn and her saying no

106 Morgane's dream
Morgane's sex dream

107


107 Dinner
Going out to a Michelin star dinner (for a case)

107 Where are we going?
Karadec anticipating Morgane's intuitive leap and waiting for her at her house at night

108


108 Sofiane
Sofiane! <3

108 Fanservice
Very fanservice-y cap



season 1 comments

* At first, Karadec is angry at having to lug Morgane around everywhere, and he's mostly mulish and antagonistic towards her. But as early as episode 3, he can accept that she's often right and makes connections none of them can make without her. The best thing is that he's not petty about it but changes his attitude towards grudgingly accepting her. He's still exasperated at her contaminating his crime scenes and unnerving his interview partners (suspects, victims), but I would have been surprised if he wasn't.

* Morgane for her part is very anti-police (because she thinks the police killed the father of her first child), but she's willing to work with them if they clear up that case for her. I liked that detail, because she otherwise would have flat out refused to work for them, so it forces them together until she loses a bit of her hatred of the police. I also liked that the case doesn't drag on for ages. A solution is provided relatively quickly. I also liked the consequences on Morgane a lot. She's in denial, then grief, and in the end manages a goodbye, which I loved as a gesture, especially for her daughter.

* Karadec calls Morgane "Sherlock Holmes" in ep2. My kind of meta humor!

* My biggest problem with season one were the two eps where Morgane takes her kids to work. It was so chaotic that I almost dropped the show. Both times. She let her kids do as they please, and I found that very hard to bear. (Just as it was for Karadec. I empathize with him a lot, too.) The thing is that Morgane is not a bad mother, she cares, but it's like she doesn't realize or mind how disruptive her children are. She regularly fails at organizing things, so she's used to the chaos. In hindsight, I'm very glad I didn't drop the show! :D

* Another minor quibble I have is one single scene where Morgane cries on Karadec's shoulder. That's one scene that was heightened for more drama. It looks very shippy, of course, and it's in every single fanvid, but I don't think it was realistic. I love that she does break down and starts crying uncontrollably, I just think she would not do so in his arms. I do like that he doesn't go to her (too rigid, this tracks), but I think she'd also not come to him, either. But as negative points go, this is extremely minor.

* It's fun how Karadec is always trying to exert control over his life, but fails in different ways. It's never the same thing twice, and it all makes sense.

* All through the season, Morgane's influence on Karadec is beautiful to watch. Karadec starts to accept Morgane being around, and he starts anticipating her actions. In ep 4, he lets her lead and takes heat from the captain for it, but it was the right decision in the end. So he's starting to question his very controlled approach a bit, and they try to go on a date, but when the shit hits the fan, he's still too rigid, then he overreacts, and then he retreats. And of course he blames her for it, when really she never forced him into anything. Eventually he always realizes that he's no less at fault, and he doesn't know how to deal with that. I love this so much. His reaction is always to go even more still and build up even more walls. And it never helps. :D He can't stay angry at her for long. He can't help it, she's fascinating! I get it! And when he does finally make up his mind, it's too late. Waaaah!

* So in season 1, they're starting to fall in love, but they don't manage to find their way to the other yet.

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