Return to Paradise

Beautiful scenery backdrops a murder mystery show led by a quirky detective with a shady past. The humor is light although the first episode didn't have the intriguing plot that the French/British series it's based on has. It's passable, but the lead actress doesn't seem' comfortable in her role as a weird police officer with commitment issues and an emotional retinue understaffed. Her facial expressions tend towards pantomime. She over does the confusion of other's responses to her which seems unlikely given it's a personality trait. The second episode was better and the lead seemed more convincing in her role as a sociopath. This is an ok show but lacks the Caribbean vibe of the original. Recommended to soft mystery fans.

I did look forward to this series and loving the scenery of the South Coast of NSW. One of my favourite holiday destinations. Going into the story I was struck that it had the familiar elements of "Sea Change", the lead even looked like Sigrid Thornton, but the vet was no Diver Dan. They maybe over doing the "quirky", however, I'm willing to keep going, if only for the scenery. The other characters are what you might expect from the original series, the gruff but likeable commander, a ditzy pc. Somehow, this might have more of a personal story attached other than catching the crook. Australians are good at detective drama/comedy so let's hope this turns into a gem.

The formula is the same as Death in Paradise (which I have enjoyed over the years). The first episode was a little slow but after just watching the second episode I think the show is starting to come into its own and it too is enjoyable. The characters are starting to be fleshed out and their individuality and quirkiness is nice to see. I do think Anna Samson is probably the weak link in the cast however I've only seen a couple of episodes and she may soon shine. The rest of the cast seems great. The scenery is also great and typical of NSW. I'm looking forward to future episodes. I recommend watching!

The main attraction of the main series and its spin-offs is always nature. As an Australia and nature fan, you will of course get your money's worth. The plots have not been reinvented. It's the old "Death in Paradise" concept with a little "Beyond Paradise" sprinkled in. For me personally, it was nice entertainment to watch the team getting together and solving cases. What I personally could have done without is the love triangle. This concept is outdated and boring for me. I was annoyed that it was used again for the series. It would have worked well without it. The stylistic device "will they or won't they" rather annoyed me. I don't think it's still appropriate for people of that age, who have learned to communicate better and are better able to self-assess their actions than previous generations.

Used a VPN to watch and it exceeded my expectations. I thought it would be a fun watch but not live up to the main show and Beyond Paradise. But I would have to say that I'm impressed by EP 1. Mackenzie is very strong as a lead character and I'm really liking the dynamics, especially between her and Philomena. I really like the nods and ties to Death in Paradise.

I'm really excited to see more and for it to eventually be aired on BBC One so more people will see it. Very strong spin off and I'm glad it's a part of the paraverse, I've seen that it had a strong debut in Australian which gives me hope they'll want to produce more in the future (if the rest go well as well of course).

I saw some people say Mackenzie is female Richard, I would have to disagree, but that's just me.