The story takes place on a film set in 1860s New York City, during the American Civil War. A young handsome man works in New York finest. He must resolve chaos from the Five Points neighborhood. It is difficult for him to walk a straight line in crooked town.
Copper is solid ground for the BBC; it plays to its strengths. It's a period piece, and you know how we Americans love historical drama, especially if everyone has British accents.
The show's co-creator, Tom Fontana, worked on Homicide, another atmospheric crime drama set in a tough city, and the dialogue is satisfyingly rich when it's not overburdened with exposition.