The Shadow Line debuts tonight on DirecTV’s Audience Network at 9 p.m. Eastern. It seems lately that you can’t throw a rock without hitting a new, gritty crime show imported from the United Kingdom.

Either way, it arrived last night shouldering a heavier weight than most cop shows at the start of a shift. Part of that is to do with the cast, top-heavy with telly pedigree. But it also is a product ...