Credits: Created by Derek Simonds – Starring Bill Pullman, Matt Bomer, Chris Messina, Jessica Hecht, Eddie Martinez, and Parisa Fitz-Henley

Detective Harry Ambrose (Bill Pullman) investigates a suspicious car accident involving Jamie Burns (Matt Bomer), a seemingly ordinary schoolteacher whose relationship with an old college friend leads Ambrose into an increasingly disturbing investigation.

One of the things I’ve enjoyed about The Sinner is that it approaches the traditional murder mystery a little differently.

In the first two seasons, we know who committed the crime almost immediately. The killer has been caught, and Detective Harry Ambrose isn’t trying to figure out who did it. He’s trying to understand why.

That approach makes Ambrose a particularly interesting character. He’s not a man of action. He’s curious, a little odd, and sometimes off-putting. He’s almost like a psychologically damaged Columbo. He doesn’t need to chase suspects through the streets or pull out his gun. He observes people, asks questions, and keeps digging until he understands what led them to do something terrible. And his investigations usually uncover something much bigger than the original crime.

Season three takes much of that away.

This time, the crime unfolds more gradually, and while we have our suspicions about who’s responsible, the killer remains free for much of the season. Instead of watching Ambrose unravel the circumstances surrounding a crime that’s already been solved, we’re watching him try to gather enough evidence to catch someone.

That’s a much more conventional detective story, and I don’t think it’s nearly as interesting.

The season also pushes Ambrose into situations that don’t always make sense for the character. He becomes personally entangled in the investigation, his family gets pulled into the danger, and he makes a number of decisions that left me wondering what the hell he was doing. I understand that Ambrose is a complicated man with his own psychological struggles, but there were several moments when his behavior felt less like a natural extension of the character and more like something the story needed him to do.

That’s frustrating because Bill Pullman remains very good in the role. Ambrose is still an interesting character to spend time with, even when the writing takes him in directions I don’t particularly believe.

Matt Bomer is the season’s biggest strength. He plays Jamie Burns, a schoolteacher whose past with an old college friend becomes central to the mystery. Bomer is terrific, and much of the season depends on his ability to make Jamie’s increasingly troubling behavior compelling. He’s given a lot to do, and he carries the story even when the investigation starts to drag.

Chris Messina is also very good as Nick Haas, Jamie’s former college friend. Their complicated relationship is an important part of the story, and Luke David Blumm does a remarkably good job of capturing Messina’s mannerisms in the flashbacks. Eddie Martinez is a welcome addition as Detective Vic Soto, Ambrose’s colleague, while Jessica Hecht plays Sonya Barzel, an artist who becomes increasingly involved in the investigation.

The mystery itself also feels like it spins its wheels during the middle episodes. We spend much of the season knowing who’s responsible for what’s happening, but the police never seem to have enough evidence to do anything about it. The walls appear to be closing in, only for things to stall again. After a while, that cycle becomes frustrating.

Instead of uncovering a larger crime or discovering something that changes our understanding of what happened, we’re often waiting for Ambrose to catch up with what we already know.

And that’s where the season really lost me. There are some compelling moments, particularly thanks to Bomer and Pullman, but the story takes a long time to get where it’s going.

By the end, I was ready for it to wrap up.

The Sinner is still an interesting and well-acted show, but after a second season that I thought was excellent, this felt like a step backward.

It traded much of what made the series distinctive for a more conventional thriller, and I don’t think the trade was worth it.

TV Verdict: Worth Watching