Slow-burning dark detective thriller on Netflix is | UK News

Against the law drama set in the American West has captivated viewers. Dark Winds, now on Netflix, transports viewers to Navajo County in the Seventies in an immersive story that’s a homicide thriller, thriller, and Western noir all in one.

Starting with a summer time blockbuster-worthy heist scene, a collection of seemingly unrelated crimes has besieged a distant nook of Navajo County in Arizona. The show follows three Tribal police officers’ search for the reality in a slow-burn thriller that reopens outdated wounds for its protagonist, Sheriff Joe Leaphorn (Zahn McClarnon).

Since its debut in 2022, viewers and critics have been enthralled with the show. Each of its 4 collection holds a excellent 100% Rotten Tomatoes approval ranking.

Dark Winds begins with a bang in the shape of a brazen daylight theft. Armed males descend from a helicopter and intercede an armoured vehicle, killing two guards. A police officer helps the boys loot the car before blowing it up and fleeing the scene.

As they escape, an outdated man watches the helicopter fly over Navajo land. Weeks later, he is discovered lifeless and mutilated in a motel room.

The crime is a double homicide — a teenager is also discovered lifeless, but her physique is unmarked, having been seemingly scared to death. The only witness to the crime is her blind grandmother.

At the same time, Leaphorn is assigned a younger new deputy, Jim Chee (Kiowa Gordon), whose new posting brings him back to the reservation he has long averted. Rounding out the lead trio is Bernadette Manuelito (Jessica Matten), Leaphorn’s proper hand and the only feminine sergeant on the reservation.

“This brooding Navajo murder mystery begs to be binged,” said The Guardian, including: “Refreshingly, Dark Winds does not obscure some of its characters’ motivations for too long.”

“unlawful killing mysteries with compelling hooks too often fall apart as the investigations get underway and the stories drift into character digressions, but Dark Winds works in the opposite,” wrote Pajiba’s critic.

“The mystery loses none of its intrigues even as it becomes clear who is behind the murders, but it’s the character digressions that keep us riveted from one episode to the next.”

One viewer said: “As good as everyone says it is… There are not many shows built around Native Americans so I’m glad this one didn’t flame out and disappoint.”

“Well written, well acted, well paced,” wrote another. “Two episodes in and I’m hooked. So far there are three plots to follow – the murders of two reservation residents, a high-profile armored car robbery using a helicopter, and a possible conspiracy to blow up a mining operation. And then there’s spooky stuff… It sounds like a lot going on, but because the writing is so good, it’s very easy to follow the various intersecting plot lines.”

Viewers watching the credit will recognise two well-known names hooked up to the project: govt producers Robert Redford and Game of Thrones creator George R. R. Martin.

The hit show is an adaptation of Leaphorn and Chee e book collection. The novels, for which he purchased the movie rights, have been Redford’s ardour project — Dark Winds marked the third adaptation he oversaw.

Notably, the legendary actor’s cameo on the show was his last on-screen look before his death in September 2025.

The first three collection of Dark Winds can be found on Netflix. Its fourth collection is at present airing in America.