Return to Paradise

ABC is not just returning to the mystery genre years after abandoning Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries and The Doctor Blake Mysteries, it is embracing and elevating it with a prized 7:30pm Sunday slot.

How far we have come since management distanced itself from successful whodunnit titles, determined to chase younger audiences.

I can’t say whether younger will necessarily check out a local adaptation of Death in Paradise, but we’ve gone from glamorous or noir period pieces to a blue sky sunny beach, somewhere in the Illawarra.

Return to Paradise‘s Dolphin Cove certainly looks inviting enough with its mountain-meets-sea backdrop, if only it weren’t for the body count. This is the riskiest place to live since Blue Heeler‘s Mount Thomas.

Every week someone is bumped off within the first few minutes of drama from writer Peter Mattessi. That’s because the formula demands it. We’re here trying to link the clues before the ultimate denouement where we learn how close we are / aren’t (in episode 2 I was pretty close).

I haven’t watched Death in Paradise in years but I recall, as one of Britain’s biggest exports, it has an escapist setting, quirky characters, a charismatic lead and baffling cases all resolved before the credits roll.

In this ABC / BBC production you get all that through an Aussie lens, if leaning into some areas more than others. DI Mackenzie Clarke (Anna Samson) is returning to Dolphin Cove -not to be confused with Porpoise Spit- after fleeing it six years prior.

“I can’t believe you came back after what you did,” Trevor, a local taxi driver declares.

We will also learn there is history in her exit from London back to Oz. She flees the scene more than a jewel thief, this one.

It helps she is skilled at her crime-busting occupation which comes in handy when a local Surf Club President or wellness influencer winds up dead. Snr. Sgt Philomena Strong (Catherine McClements) somewhat begrudingly seconds her to the skeleton offbeat, policing unit when she needs her most, although it’s not immediately clear how Mackenzie’s UK accreditation has jurisdiction in Dolphin Cove.

There’s also another Brit cop on the case, Det. Snr. Constable Colin Cartwright (Lloyd Griffith), who is living his Home & Away dream as a job on a surf coast. Can we say token Brit for the sake of Brit audience?

There’s also Constable Felix Williamson (Aaron McGrath) and retiree turned Community Police volunteer Reggie (Celia Ireland) plus forensic pathologist Glenn Strong (Tai Hara) with whom Mackenzie has history.

The procedural elements of red herrings and clues ticking alongside the sprightly humour and alluring backdrop are deftly handled by Peter Mattessi. By episode’s end when Mackenzie reveals the killer, Jessica Fletcher-like, you had seen all the clues all along, dummy.

It’s all very silly yet satisfying without tugging on your brain cells too much. There’s very little to tie this to the flagship series, but Ardal O’Hanlon will make a cameo appearance as DI Jack Mooney. Also featuring are Aussies Andrea Demetriades and the dependable Genevieve Lemon along with guests roles from other familiar faces.

Anna Samson brings irascible confidence to a central character where the plot is more important than the feels. Special mention goes to Celia Ireland for colouring every scene she is in and Catherine McClements for conviction in limited screen time.

Dipped in it aquas and pastels, this is a crowd-pleaser debut which deserves a shot at joining the Paraverse for an audience that demands a lot of the genre, without ever wanting to delve too deep.

On that front Return to Paradise surely stays in the shallows, and between the flags, as required.

Return to Paradise screens 7:30pm Sunday on ABC.