ITV viewers have spoken out in their droves about the channel's latest drama offering, Payback.
Kicking off on Wednesday night, the thriller is helmed by Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio and boasts a star-studded cast including the likes of Morven Christie, Peter Mullan and Prasanna Puwanarajah.
Christie takes on the lead role of Lexie Noble in the series who makes a shocking discovery about her husband Jared's illegal activities.
It turns out Lexie's other half has been laundering money for Mullan's crime boss Cal Morris.
But when Jared is murdered, it's left to Lexie to face the impossible task of now being Cal's port of call and picking up where her husband left off.
What ensues is a tense game of cat-and-mouse as Puwanarajah's DC Jibran Khan and colleague DCI Adam Guthrie (played by Derek Riddell) seek to bring the Noble family and their criminal clients to justice.
Cal and Lexie in ITV's Payback
ITV
There were a number of other twists and turns in the story, however, as Lexie uncovers horrifying truths about her husband's past.
The drama, which is available to stream in its entirety on the channel's streaming service, was met by a mixed reception from viewers at home, however, with some applauding Mercurio's latest work while others slammed the storyline altogether.
"Bit predictable this is #Payback," one fan fumed on X, formerly known as Twitter, while a second agreed: "Who's watching ITVs #Payback it's rather dull."
"Why does it have to be so convoluted #Payback @ITV," another weighed in while a fourth switched off: "I thought it was slow and turgid. They could have got to where they were in half the time. Not for me."
Another waded into the conversation as they admitted: "I'm struggling a bit with this ... maybe it's me #Payback."
But the criticism was met by plaudits from a number of other fans, including one who commented: "Ohh he wasn’t having an affair !! He’s a good guy in the end what a good first episode #Payback thank you Jed Mercurio and of course to ITV."
"Omg what an ending #payback," a second praised while a third echoed: "Well that was a fantastic 1st episode I’m gripped already! #Payback."
And a fourth simply added to the discussion: "The plot thickens. Incredible so far. #Payback." (sic)
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Payback is from the mind of Jed Mercurio
PA
Fans will be able to see exactly how the drama unfolds every Wednesday night or they can head to ITVX to binge the entire boxset.
This isn't the first time ITV has irked a number of its viewers in recent weeks with its latest drama series offerings.
Last month, the premiere of Yorkshire Ripper drama The Long Shadow fell flat as several viewers slammed the production over a rather distracting feature.
The channel has also come under fire for the calibre of stars in its line-up for the 2024 series of Dancing on Ice, with some branding it the "worst" line-up ever.
