Season 1, Episode 1. Where the seed of addiction is first planted and spreads like fire. Hold on tight, because you are in for an overwhelming bout of passion, self-questioning, confusion and clarity; essentially a roller coaster ride.
I am a huge fan of mysteries; especially the ones that truly stump me. Serial, a radio podcast made up of twelve episodes and created by producers Sarah Koenig and Julie Snyder, tells the true story and murder of a young high-schooler, named Hae Min Lee. Adnan Syed, an ex-boyfriend of the victim at the time, was found guilty and sentenced to life in the Maryland Correctional Facility.
So, we found the killer and he's in jail. Where's the mystery in that? As co-producer, Sarah Koenig, narrates her way through all twelve episodes, we hear startling facts, inconsistent testimony, unusual circumstances and unnerving events that didn't sit well with the listeners. Koenig starts out by covering the grounds of the murder, a bit about who the victim was and who the convicted murderer was, then moves onto the state's case, then the defense. But as she unravels bit by bit, it is clear that not everything adds up. And, as Sarah Koenig says herself early in the first episode, someone is lying, but who?
After the first episode, I became obsessed, right along with the rest of America. It's so addicting that last year I went straight upstairs to my room after Thanksgiving dinner to lay on my bed and listen to the podcast. I didn't even bother to come out for pumpkin or apple pie. I was hooked like a dog to its bone.
After listening to the entire season three times now myself, I am going to tell you that you need to listen to it. Listening to it all those times has still left me stumped and undecided on how I feel and what I believe about the guilty verdict of Adnan Syed. However, I can't explain why because you just have to listen to it yourself to find out why each piece of evidence (or lack thereof) needs to be taken seriously.
Now, it's your turn to listen to it if you have not already. Why? Because it will challenge the way you think about the legal system. Because you will catch yourself believing two people at once, when you know it is a fact that one of them is lying. You'll ask yourself, What other lies do I believe so easily in my life? You need to listen to it because you'll find yourself craving justice for the murder victim and her family. Because you will find yourself considering the possibility that an innocent man was found guilty, but at the same time believing he really is a murderer.
Because now, 16-years later, and two-years after the first episode of the podcast premiered, this case is getting a new trial. Because if the new trial goes the way everyone is expecting it to, either an innocent man or a murderer will be set free.
