Tag Archives: Australian Television

The Airport Chaplain: Season 1 – TV Review

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TL;DR – An interesting show with compelling characters that gets stuck in backstory rather than making the most of its central thesis.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I watched this on SBS On Demand.

Warning – Contains scenes which may cause distress.

Airport Chaplain written on the back on a vest.

The Airport Chaplain Review Introduction

When I watched God Complex, I was instantly hooked by one of the more interesting premises on television this year. How would the titular Airport Chaplain work in a system full of tension, staff and management, the frustrations of passengers, or the different requirements of different faiths? Now that I have watched the whole season, I am both impressed and a bit frustrated with how it all played out.

So, to set the scene, it is a chaotic day at Victoria Airport: planes are being delayed, a flight from Shanghai has been circling for half an hour with a dead body on board, and there is a security incident happening. It is one of those days when you need a fixer to help smooth these things over, which is a good thing: Airport Chaplain Tobias Wallace (Hugo Weaving) is on the case. Now, from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

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The Airport Chaplain: God Complex [S1E1] – TV Review

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TL;DR – This premiere was a good grounding episode for all the drama, conflict, and vibes of the series.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I watched this on SBS On Demand.

Airport Chaplain written on the back on a vest.

The Airport Chaplain Review Introduction

When you hear that Hugo Weaving is popping into an SBS series all about being an eccentric airport chaplain, well, you need to see what all that is about. It is one of those odd combinations that draws you in, and I am glad that it is also interesting.

So, to set the scene, it is a chaotic day at a Melbourne airport: planes are being delayed, a flight from Shanghai has been circling for half an hour with a dead body on board, and there is a security incident happening. It is one of those days when you need a fixer to help smooth these things over, which is a good thing: Airport Chaplain Tobias Wallace (Hugo Weaving) is on the case. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

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Deadloch: Croc Justice [S2:E1] – TV Review

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TL;DR – A delightful return of a wonderfully amusing Australian show

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

"Don Darrell's Best Best Jumping Croc Tours"

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.  

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 episode as a whole, so there may be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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Sunny Nights: Season 1 – TV Review

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TL;DR – This is a profoundly chaotic show, some of that is intentional amusement, and some of that is unintentional interactions of tone and pacing.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

Will Forte looks at a snow globe covered in blood.

Sunny Nights Review –

There are times when a single pitch is enough to get you to take a chance on something: Will Forte and D’Arcy Carden are siblings who get in over their heads with Rachel House, a mobster, as they try to push their spray tan business in Sydney. That is a sentence that makes you want to see how the hell they pull such a chaotic idea off. Well, it worked for me if nothing else.

So, to set the scene, American siblings Martin (Will Forte) and Vicki Marvin (D’Arcy Carden) have moved their spray tan business, Tansform, to Sydney, Australia. Martin is going to get back with his wife after they separated and she moved to Sydney. Vicki is there to help get out of the life she’s in and make some bank. However, they are both profoundly outside of their element, even before Martin gets catfished, and all of a sudden, they are up to their ears in debt and might just have the mob after them all because of an exploding crocodile. Now, from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.  

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NCIS: Sydney – Fire in the Hole [S2E2] – TV Review

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TL;DR – Conceptionally, it was one of their stronger episodes, even if it was a bit silly.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Paramount+ service that viewed this series.

A Tall Ahip on Sydney Harbour with the Bridge in the background.

Historically, this series does its best when it makes the most of its dual nature of being designed for both Australian and American audiences. It creates friction and conflict where good stories lie. Today’s episode might be one of the better examples of this.  

So, to set the scene, two significant moments are happening for the crew of NCIS: Sydney. On the harbour, Jackson (Sean Sagar), Doc (William McInnes), and Evie (Tuuli Narkle) are exploring why a former navy officer has washed up on the shoreline in old-timey naval garb. Meanwhile, JD (Todd Lasance) and Mack (Olivia Swann) are organising the Force Protection Detail for the USS Perez. It should be a typical day, bar from the fact that the dead navy officer just showed up for work. We will be looking at the episode as a whole from here, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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NCIS: Sydney – Heart Starter [S2E1] – TV Review

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TL;DR – I think this first episode did everything that it needed to do. It tied up the cliffhanger from last season and gave it the motivation to move forward, even if there were a couple of missteps.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Paramount+ service that viewed this series.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge.

NCIS: Sydney Review –

Back in 2023, there was this odd experiment that played out across the streaming space: what would happen when you smashed an American and Australian Police Procedural together and then put it into the weirdly optimistic world of the NCIS franchise? Well, there were some missed opportunities, but overall, by the end of the season, it had found its feet. The question then becomes, can they continue that good work into their new season?

So, to set the scene, while we may start with a funeral possession, the episode actually begins in the moments after the season finale, Blonde Ambition, with Mackey (Olivia Swann) drawing her gun on the now fundamental suspicious Colonel Rankin (Lewis Fitz-Gerald) who JD (Todd Lasance) just phoned on an assassin’s phone, which would be more of an issue if he didn’t just have a heart attack. An international assassin was killed, and a child returned to their father. But a tier one villain is out of custody and on the run, and the powers at Be are looking for a scapegoat, and they are coming for everyone. We will be looking at the episode as a whole from here, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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Nautilus Season 1 – TV Review

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TL;DR – When this series comes together, it is a delight to watch. Unfortunately, a lot of the episodes are a bit hit or miss.  

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

The crew does a slow walk.

Nautilus  Review –

In today’s re-make/re-boot culture, there are stories that you hear over and over again because they are in the public domain. Sure, it is great to see another take on Peter Pan, but there is a treasure trove of works in the public domain that are interesting and ready for interpretation through a modern lens. Today, we are looking at just such a property that has not been delved into since 2003’s The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

So, to set the scene, it is 1897, and the British India Company has stretched its influence across the globe through colonisation and imperialism. One of those ships, in its vast navies, was on its way to Bombay when something rumbled the ship from below. They could have let it go, but Captain Youngblood (Jacob Collins-Levy) had to hunt it down. The only problem is that what they saw was not a beast but a craft unknown to science at the time and one that just ripped their hull out from underneath them. For this is a machine, a machine made of metal, that can travel under the water and is led by the magnificent Captain Nemo (Shazad Latif). We will be looking at the season as a whole from here, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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Last Days of the Space Age: Only Kids Dream About Being Spacemen – TV Review

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TL;DR – This is an interesting, if overwhelming, exploration of the characters that we will be getting to know across the series.  

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ Service that viewed this series.

The Moon rising through a smashed windscreen.

Last Days of the Space Age Review –

One area that truly excites me is space, its exploration, and the history and impact that it has had on the world. Everyone can cite that one story about a pencil v pen in a spaceship or one small step for man, and that is this far removed in time from when it happened. What must the impact did those events have on the world in the years just after it happened? Well, in today’s series, we explore just that.

So, to set the scene, it is a tumultuous point in Perth’s history as several competing factors look to crash into each other just when the world’s spotlight is placed on the city. These fracture points are brought into stark highlight when a brick goes flying through the front windscreen of Tony (Jesse Spencer) and Judy Bissett’s (Radha Mitchell) as they travel at 60km an hour. How do you get on when you have a house divided? Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.     

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Population 11: Season 1 – TV Review

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TL;DR – While it gets messy in the middle, it starts and ends strong, and has a fundamentally entertaining cast.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

The outback full of termite mounds.

Population 11 Review –

If there is one thing that Australia can do very well, it is the mystery set in the Outback. Indeed, some of my earliest TV memories are of the wild and wonderful Jeopardy, which, if you are Australian or British of my age, you will know well. But in the world of Scrublands and Deadloch, we get a new entry today with Population 11. Where we will get into the red dust and possibly tangle with some aliens or people in alien suits … probably the last one.  

So to set the scene, on a quiet night in the Outback surrounded by stars and termite mounds, a man stands alone, looking at a giant tree. That is, until a light appears from the heavens shining down on him, and while he runs, he is not quick enough. Sometime later, a strange American man from Cincinnati, Ohio, arrives in the town of Bidgeegud, which is so tiny that the pub and the church are in the same building. The man Andy (Ben Feldman) is here for the UFO tour led by Hugo (Darren Gilshenan), but maybe that is not the only reason he is there. Nor may it be the only thing going down in this small town. Now from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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