Mystery Road: Origin

Having just watched the movie and both seasons of the show I was very skeptical about how Mark would portray a young Jay Swan but I have to say he does absolute wonders as an actor, his mannerisms and approach to the character are phenomenal and remind me so much of Pedersen's Swan. It really does feel like we've take a step back in time with this show and character, highly recommend!

Amazing. I was dreading this being a bad prequel with sub standard acting compared to the original Mystery Road with the amazing Arron Pederson. But...wow. This is stunning. Phenomenal acting, brilliant cinematography and photography that just stuns you. Have you ever seen the outback? Yeah I have. I live here and this is it - bang on accurate: feel the dust.

This is the outback writ large on film. Seriously congratulations to everyone involved in this, it's a creative credit to the original, and a new and impressive addition to the Mystery Road series and movies. 10/10.

Look me up, see my reviews, I hate almost everything. I bloody loved this. Gold star folks. If you haven't watched the original series, do yourself a favour and get into that. Then, watch this and thank me. I can't recommend this highly enough. Aussie TV at its best:

First, the camera work is amazing. I will not mention any scenes that I find amazing, because I do not want to spoil the feeling, but... this series is worthy for just that.

Acting is really good. I really believed the actor was a young Swan.

Directing is probably the best part. I loved the Killing (first series) and the True Detective (first series) and this Mystery Road: Origin is there, right there with these two. Really good.

Screenplay is probably the weakest part, but it is still fairly good.

It would be hard to step into the shoes of the brilliant Aaron Pedersen, but as we enjoyed all the Mystery Road's, including Goldstone, before were prepared to take the risk. We were worried about the character development and if an authentic young version of Jay Swan would come across but no matter bc Mark Coles Smith didn't disappoint. You can see the likeness in the brooding temperament, the thinking man's scowl and then once or twice, that dazzling smile breaks through. The series delivered complexity and depth and our lead was matched with an equally strong cast.

Didn't see that twist though.

We hope ABC continues to write this series eventually linking the stories of young Jay to the older version.

The film 'Mystery Road' introduced us to Detective Jay Swan. This series takes us back to the early days of his career. It is 1999 and he is returning to work at the outback town where he grew up. He doesn't get off to a good start; he stops at a petrol station and gets caught up in an armed hold up. As the thieves speed away he finds himself being arrested by one of his new colleagues. That mistake being sorted he sets about getting settled in. Life is made slightly more difficult by his father, a former rodeo star. He also starts to take an interest in local woman Mary Allen. Meanwhile young lawyer, Anousha, is looking into the death of Mary's brother which was officially closed some time ago but she thinks he may have been the victim of foul play.

I really enjoyed the stories about the older Jay Swan but was unsure how this prequel would compare. It turned up rather well. The opening scenes really pulled me in as Jay stops to pick up his father on an outback road followed by the events at the petrol station. After this the pace is fairly languid with plenty of time spent between the moments of action. Some may think it is too slow but I felt it added to the story which has a timeless feel. It could almost have been set at any time; although historically there wouldn't have be an Aborigine in the police. The issue of race is important but this doesn't feel like a polemic; instead it is just a natural part of the story. The cast is really solid throughout; especially Mark Coles Smith, who plays our protagonist Jay Swan. The location itself can be considered a character; one can almost feel the heat and sense of isolation. Overall I'd definitely recommend this to fans of earlier 'Mystery Road' stories although it isn't necessary to have seen those to enjoy this.