TL;DR – This is a series that fires more chaos at you in the space of thirty seconds than I have ever seen fired at you in thirty seconds.

Disclosure – I paid for the Amazon Prime service that viewed this series.

Warning – Contains scenes which may cause distress.

Deadloch Review Introduction

I had no idea what I was getting into when I sat down to watch a Nordic noir translocated into the Tasmanian wilderness, and the crazy turned up to 11. Season 1 was a wild ride, but it was very Tasmanian-coded. So, I was a touch concerned when they relocated the series up north, literally as far as you could get from Tasmania from a distance, weather, temperature, and general humidity perspective. However, given how well the first season went, I had to find out if it could survive the shift, and I can now say that it has not lost one iota of momentum when it comes to the chaos.  

So, to set the scene, up in the Northern Territory, in a town called Barra Creek, a local croc tour is taking a bunch of tourists out on the river. But tragedy strikes when they find the local bull-crocodile has been murdered, but even more concerning was what was in the late crocodile’s mouth. Thankfully, Dulcie Collins (Kate Box) and Eddie Redcliffe (Madeleine Sami) were already in the area and were able to give a hand before the local detective looking into some missing Swedish backpackers came and made a mess of everything. The only issue, okay, one of many issues, is that Eddie used to live here back in the day. Now we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there may be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

It’s Always the Cast

A show like this only works because its cast is going full tilt. After all, that is the speed at which the narrative is moving. There are lines of dialogue being thrown around here that would make Gilmore Girls’ heads spin even before they translated what was being said about the humidity in nether regions. It could be so easy for the cast not to hit that speed or become a caricature while attempting to keep up. But each person rises to the occasion, even if that occasion is a whole family drawing guns at each other at a funeral.

Kate Box and Madeleine Sami are the perfect duo here because they play a duality of character so close to being silly. Yet, each actor brings a real seriousness to their motivations that makes the story land. I love that Eddie needs Dulcie to pull her back from the edge, while Dulcie needs Eddie spiralling into roboticism. You see just how important that relationship is for the show in the back half of the season when they find themselves in temporary opposition.

The rest of the supporting cast is on point and brings a level of real professionalism to this profoundly silly show. Shari Sebbens brings the moral backbone to the show, even in those moments when you actually suspect she could be the killer/s. Respect to Genevieve Morris pulling off a 180° swerve because no one showed up to her party, demonstrating how easy police power can be shifted to coercive on a whim. Cath York was almost a bit of a punching bag in the first season, there for the joke about someone overly attuned to therapy culture. However, I liked that here, while they don’t change her character, she also gets to have the defining character speech to put someone on the right track. I also think she cared more about that pub than the owners.    

Chaos Rains

To say that this is a chaotic show, I think, underplays just how chaotic it is. For example, I think just about every single person in town was a suspect at one point, and it all fit. We see trashiness knows no monetary bounds. The chaos of relationships interweaving with a murder investigation. Also, a world where a filter was never invented, and people say what is immediately on their mind without a moment’s care as to the damage or calamity that has just been brought forth. There are some lines of dialogue in this show that, to quote someone I know, “I was left shooketh”. To keep a show like this on the rails when every part of it is trying to derail, it takes a lot of narrative experience. Also, the slightly shorter season helped streamline things a touch better than the first season.  

That Ending

We mentioned the show was chaotic, but even then, nothing quite prepares you for the sheer bonkers moments that happen. A good example of this is when Dulcie straight-up lies to an antagonist, in desperation to save her life, with such confidence and bravado that the character dies by suicide because that is the only way they see going forward, and it worked in the scene. That must have been a hard sell to get past. This is not even mentioning the first major storm of the season rolling in to complicate everything, an awkward Bluetooth connection, a wild funeral shoot out, the irresponsible car chase, several murderous men on the hunt, and Chekhov’s Crocodile finally going off right at the moment you expected it to do. It is what the show needed to be, because it gives that real emotional weight to some of the most absurd scenarios.   

Recommendation

In the end, do we recommend Deadloch? If you have watched Season One, then I absolutely recommend catching the second outing. It is such a profoundly Australian work at every level that it should be championed. A chaotic delight to behold. Have you seen Deadloch yet? Let us know what you thought in the comments below.

In the end, do we recommend Deadloch? If you have watched Season One, then I absolutely recommend catching the second outing. It is such a profoundly Australian work at every level that it should be championed. A chaotic delight to behold. Have you seen Deadloch yet? Let us know what you thought in the comments below.

By Brian MacNamara: You can follow Brian on Bluesky at @Tldrmovrev, when he’s not chatting about Movies and TV, he’ll be talking about International Relations, or the Solar System.

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Credits – All images were created by the cast, crew, and production companies of Deadlock
Directed by – Beck Cole & Gracie Otto
Written by – Kate McCartney & Kate McLennan
Created by – Kate McCartney & Kate McLennan
Production/Distribution Companies – Amazon MGM Studios, okay Great Productions, Guesswork Television & Amazon Prime
Starring – Kate Box, Madeleine Sami, Alicia Gardiner, Nina Oyama, Steve Bisley, Shari Sebbens, Jean Tong, Genevieve Morris, Damien Garvey, Byron Coll, Anthony J Sharpe, Nikki Britton, Blake Pavey, Bev Killick, & Luke Hemsworth
With – Ngali Shaw, Lennox Monaghan, Storm Murgha, Reiden Corpus, Linh Cooper Tang, Syd Brisbane, Ursula Yovich, Jordan Abbey-Young, Tasma Walton, Alison Bell, Nick Carr, Julie Goss, Kira Puru, Talijah Blackman-Corowa, & John McNeill
And – Davis Dingle, Mackenzie Curtis, Ines English, Duncan Fellows, Greg Larsen, David Eastgate, Joseph Althouse, Bert Anthony, Corey March ‘Chocolate Box’, Madeline Grice, Chris Anderson, Reece Milne, Sam Williams, Jamey Rosewarne, Matthew James, George Pullar, Robin Darch, Kristina Andersen, Jack Henry, Nick Farnell, Ben Anthony, Liam Grienke, & Donk the Lizard
Episodes Covered – Croc Justice, None of Your Business, The Boys, Ladies Day Night Day Night, Amigos Para Siempre, & Curlew’s Call