Western Pennsylvania experts and the Pittsburgh Film Office have long said a continuing TV series show would be the golden egg for the local film industry.

“Outsiders,” which aired on WGN for two seasons, seemed to have promise. But, if the reviews are any indication, it may be Netflix's “Mindhunter” that reaches the holy grail of several seasons.

The show has some heavy-hitters backing it. The producers include Oscar-nominated director David Fincher (“The Social Network,” “Fight Club” and “Se7en”) and Oscar-winning actress Charlize Theron (who won for another serial killer movie, “Monster”).

The show is based on John Douglas and Mark Olshaker's nonfiction book “Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit,” and stars Jonathan Groff (looking much more serious than his Tony-nominated role as King George III in “Hamilton”) and Holt McCallany as two FBI agents who were pioneers in behavioral profiling during the 1970s.

Here's what reviewers are saying:

Fincher's influence felt

“Mindhunter” reveals itself as a suspense series hinging on after-the-fact investigations into the heads and hearts of known murderers. Not whodunit so much as whydidyou? And in these two episodes, it's never less than engrossing. Fincher's proven time and again that he can make even the most mundane activities and actions riveting. It could be a probing conversation between characters (often edited with the clipped, quick efficiency of a Golden Age screwball comedy), or a simple shot of a jacket slipping off of a chair. The rhythms are so precise that even moments you'd think would land with a thud, such as a time-passing montage scored to the Steve Miller Band's “Fly Like an Eagle,” come off as inspired. There's no telling if the series can maintain this level of quality, though Fincher seems much more hands-on here (directing four episodes in total, and helping to pick the filmmakers—Andrew Douglas, Tobias Lindholm and Asif Kapadia—behind the other six) than he did with Netflix's flagship original “House of Cards.” So there's reason to hope this tale about the psychology of cut-throats won't too quickly become cut-rate.

— The Hollywood Reporter

Definitely bingeable

The first two episodes are immaculately shot — all sweeping Steadicam and symmetrical mise en scène (vintage Fincher) — and the dialogue falls somewhere between Sorkin and Hemingway in that it's smart but terse. ...

Feeling like “True Detective” if it had been chilled in the refrigerator for a few hours, “Mindhunter” shows a lot of promise in these first two episodes. As the season progresses (a potential Charles Manson interview is teased) we'll find out whether it merely achieves ‘gripping, binge watch-able drama' status or if it shoots for something more artful and original.

— U.K.'s Independent

Rising above the genre

Crime drama can, at its worst, revel in the grossest sort of spectatorship. Shows like CBS's “Criminal Minds,” or ones that trade on the names of real-life murderers, can all too easily slip into gratuitousness for its own sake. (That program's star, Mandy Patinkin, quit after two seasons over its content.) But at its best, the genre tries to understand the roots of crime by investigating some of humanity's most vexing paradoxes. “Mindhunter,” curious and thoughtful, is an example of the latter.

— Time

Perfect fit for Fincher, Netflix

David Fincher's return to Netflix, after putting its originals program on the map with “House of Cards,” ... (has) a dark sense of humor to match its grim, academic nature. Fincher and creator Joe Penhall have crafted a markedly talky original series that shouldn't work at all — not really. Through two of the first 10 episodes, it's unclear what kind of long-term potential “Mindhunter” has beyond the morbidly fascinating conversations between analysts and murderers. But its mission is pure, aesthetic outstanding, and hook undeniable.

— Indiewire.com

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