katharineshowalter First let me say, I love Joanne Froggatt. She is a beautiful and compelling actress and I want to see more of her in better movies and series. In fact, all the actors in DARK ANGEL are very good. Laura Morgan, Emma Fielding, and Jonas Armstrong are standouts, and Alun Armstrong can do no wrong. However, the writing and direction of DARK ANGEL leave much to be desired. Mary Ann Cotton's motivations are very sketchy -- something vaguely feminist and she states that she wanted "more" -- and so it is very hard to sympathize with her character. What we are left with is a glorified crime re-enactment from one of those exploitative Dateline or crime channel shows. What's worse is that the series creators try to suggest some ambiguity about some of the killings, which comes off as coy rather than clever. And then at times the juxtaposition of her being a tight spot to a quick cut to a corpse is almost comic. Mary Ann Cotton deserves a better treatment. There is much more to her story than is shown here.

Maria Trim OK i just assumed she was one of Britain's worse serial killers possibly responsible for over 20 deaths but was she?I was left wanting more. There was no EVIDENCE of her killing anyone, arsenic was used everywhere in victorian times even on wallpaper and yes CLEANING they used it in soft soap quite regularly most households used it. I have read more about her, and when the police checked her home where the child had died, they found nothing which would have had arsanic in it, just medicine bottles with the childs name on them, as he was being treated for an illness, yet some of these bottles were empty, and some had gone missing. Part of the evidence was it was said that Mary ann cotton had given the boy a severe beating a few days before his death, yet on the coroners first report they mentioned nothing about bruises or any beating, in actual fact they found no real reason why he died. Surely if he had been given arsenic he would have had traces of massive fit. I really think that they should commission another series now about the evidence and other issues surrounding this women. I am not convinced she was a serial killer after my research. Out of 100 children born 50 would be dead in a few months, a very high mortality rate, her mother clearly died of hepatitis and when would she have gotten time to go off and buy arsenic to kill her with and wouldn't there have been a trace of it in a teapot or did she walk around with her killing teapot. Her friend died, did she kill her or did she succumb to the same illness her sister in law had? No i am not convinced. I think the series was written well but I feel it could have gone further much further. I am not saying she didn't kill anyone but i am not sure she was the killer they were making her out to be.She had lived quite happy in cornwall OK it is said some of her children died there but then so did many children die as the chances were very very high for death. Yes i enjoyed it and it did make me want to know more, all the evidence and transcripts were purely heresay. No real evidence was found if it was now i think the case would have been thrown out. Yes they found traces of arsenic in the boys body when they exhumed him but arsenic is in the ground, and it was proved that the home where he was living with his stepmother had arsenic in the wallpaper.Her death was horrific she didn't die of hanging she suffocated as the execution was done very poorly and she took a long time to die, as she was being suffocated not having her neck broken. We know nothing of it really just supposition, and i think now it would be great to have a follow up of the case. the series must be good because it made me want to know more about the whys and wheres of it all i thought the acting was brilliant either way Mary Anne cotton was a very troubled young women but i am not convinced she was a monster.

George Wright This is not a feel-good movie. However, it is a very good drama. For me, it made for good television viewing. It deals with the evil of murder and in this case, guilt does not get in the way. Joanne Froggatt, one of the stars of Downton Abbey as Lady Mary's servant and close companion, is the Dark Angel. Her role in this movie is totally different and she performs it superbly. This is not a glossy presentation and it shows with vivid reality, the hardship of life for both men and women. Men working in unskilled jobs are treated badly and their wives suffered the brunt of their humiliation. One of the interesting aspects of this movie is how she steps out of the role that was prescribed for women in Victorian times. She is very unhappy with how badly women of her status were treated and has no hesitation in using her cunning to survive. The movie deals with relationships, class, lust, secrecy, trickery, betrayal. Make no mistake, serial murder is no way to deal with life's unfairness. What this story shows is where desperation can lead. This woman is intelligent, beautiful and capable of strong friendship. The movie doesn't hold back in this honest portrayal of Victorian life.

Ralph-Jennings Not sure which side of the bed (or whose) the other reviewer -ianlouisana got out of but maybe is a relation to Boris or permanently repressed. I found this two part serial compelling viewing, well researched, flavour and atmosphere of the times reminiscent of The Village with John Simm and Maxine Peake. Women in Victorian times had a place in society that was subservient and dependent upon male vanity and compassion. Not until after WWI, despite some notable exceptions, do they gain the independence of spirit and opportunity to exist outside the bounds of duty and childbirth. This tale relates the story of a tormented soul torn between the poorhouse and an institution she cannot or will not join. Serial killers deserve to be hanged (so was the punishment of the day) regardless of their gender. Watch and be moved by this TV drama.