KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 8 — The first season of Apple TV’s Truth Be Told had an interesting premise; a crime podcaster turned actual mystery solver.

Octavia Spencer as the unlikely gumshoe unravelled a case where she might have unwittingly condemned the wrong man to punishment and her somewhat guilt-ridden crusade was interesting though somewhat bogged down by too many extra threads.

Season one of the show felt more like a family drama than a whodunit, what with the overarching theme of the show being family secrets and the lengths people would go to keep them.

Perhaps I am too used to more simplistic crime shows but it was sometimes rather tiresome to see the show bogged down by Spencer’s character, Poppy, and her own personal conflicts.

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The unnecessary love triangle felt like it belonged in some other show. It might have been forgivable if it added some levity to the show but it just added to the heaviness of the story.

Through it all, however, Spencer brings a dignity and gravitas to the role and a quietness that manages to keep the show from devolving into soapy melodrama.

In season two, Spencer is joined by Kate Hudson who plays a lifestyle guru with a troubled past, who considered Poppy a sister.

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Again, Truth Be Told in the second season revolves around family but not just ties of blood but found family.

Hudson embraces the nuance of her character, the chipper, outwardly inspirational facade that hides a damaged psyche and a brittleness formed from a troubled childhood.

The two actors prove a striking contrast in their characters both physically and emotionally, playing off each other well enough to make their relationship the most interesting part of the show.

If you liked the first season, the second season will prove to be more satisfying and if you see the show as a character study rather than a mystery to be solved, it would be easier to justify as a watch.

This is not a show to binge, it’s too slow and depressing for that. 

Instead watch it as slowly as the show goes and let the questions it asks be ones you answer in your own head.

Truth Be Told isn’t for everyone. For the ones who like a slow, drawn-out tale where nothing is quite like it seems, this might be worth taking your time.