Unlike many of the reviewers here, I am not familiar with Wallander franchise, so I can judge this work on its own merits. The plot is reasonable, the acting is good, and it would be watchable with an English (or Irish) actor in the leading role. It is not that Adam Pålsson is horrible; it is just that he is out of place. Because despite their attempts to place this in Sweden, the series is, at its heart, another Brit detective series, and could have (and should have) taken place in a town like Newcastle or Bristol.
And everyone, and I mean everyone, will watch this as a UK series, in a UK context. Hence the presence of Adam Pålsson is jarring. It seems that his only purpose is to remind us that this is supposed to Sweden, which it is not. It's hard to place his accent in the sea of familiar English accents, but it does seem rather posh, even faintly aristocratic. If a policeman would choose to live in a council estate, he would necessarily have working-class roots and a working-class accent, and for this reason (and a few others) the character is simply not believable. I get disturbed just listening to his voice. Ah, you say, "but it's supposed to be Sweden, don't be so hard on the fellow". No, this is not Sweden. It is England, so stop pretending.
And everyone, and I mean everyone, will watch this as a UK series, in a UK context. Hence the presence of Adam Pålsson is jarring. It seems that his only purpose is to remind us that this is supposed to Sweden, which it is not. It's hard to place his accent in the sea of familiar English accents, but it does seem rather posh, even faintly aristocratic. If a policeman would choose to live in a council estate, he would necessarily have working-class roots and a working-class accent, and for this reason (and a few others) the character is simply not believable. I get disturbed just listening to his voice. Ah, you say, "but it's supposed to be Sweden, don't be so hard on the fellow". No, this is not Sweden. It is England, so stop pretending.