Qi pao mei tan

I have watched many of the Miss Fisher's Mysteries - still haven't seen Crypt of Tears yet, so I can echo some other reviewers. While these do initially follow the basic profiles of the characters and some of the plots, the shows come off as a totally different experience for me, especially from a cultural sense. Like anyone who covers a good song, Miss S is successful in making this show its own enjoyable take.

I'm trying to avoid having to do a spoiler tag, so here goes. What did I enjoy most about the show?

1) Su Wenli is so likeable from the very beginning. I honestly think her some of her best scenes in the whole show are her interactions with Su Yun (Li Ya Zhen). Her emotion just pours through the screen sometimes. Plus, Yili Ma is just a classic beauty, looking gorgeous in every outfit and I admit I had a little bit of a crush going on.

2) The best character arc for me is Tao Zi's. She may be my favorite. Her transformation over time is just more satisfying than Dot's arc, as well as her relationship with Xiao An.

3) I have greatly enjoyed the relationship between Inspector Luo and Miss Su, much more than 'Phrack'.

4) The show doesn't take itself too seriously. I mean, there are plenty of serious moments, but the humor, though sometimes a little on the nose, just works so well.

5) I thought the acting was great. By the end of these 30 episodes, everyone seemed to have found their stride.

The only reason I didn't give it a 10 was mostly because of the production value:

1) some of the small inconsistencies with localization on the subtitles (especially when it came to describing medical conditions). Fortunately the context of the show gave no problems in identifying the afflictions or conditions of certain characters. And I don't mind subtitles anyway.

2) Props at times were a little anachronistic. Wenli browses through a PATRICIA CORNWELL book while in Inspector Luo's office. A unicycle at the cirus has a modern knobby BMX type tire on it. Little things like that.

3) Some of the set pieces were a bit on the cheap side (the jail, the walls of the sauna room in Episode 2). A couple of times I thought a wall might fall over.

Some viewers may not be used to the way the script delivers each story with its approach to dialogue, whereby there are often times when in a conversation one character may rephrase and repeat what another one just said a minute or so before. Also, people may not be used to how characters speak another character's name to express concern over their emotional condition. If Wenli was upset and crying, instead of saying "Wenli, I'm really sorry about your sister," the other character will just say "Wenli..." or perhaps use their full name. I watch a lot of shows from Japan, Korea, and China, so I'm used to this.

I really really liked that HBO didn't release a dubbed version. So much is lost in a dub. Although the 70s and 80s Shaw Brothers kung fu movies have a certain nostalgia about them with the sometimes terrible dubs, my experience has always leaned towards the slightly unfavorable. Miss S would have had a totally different atmosphere and loss of enjoyment without being able to hear the emotion and tone of the native Mandarin (and some Cantonese here and there).

If you like fun murder mysteries that have occasional crazy twists where you do find yourself maybe second-guessing what you had right from the beginning then you'll love Miss S. Kudos to HBO for bringing this to America.

This series pays a nice homage to the "Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries". If you are a fan of the original series set in Melbourne this is quite a treat. Miss Su is Phryne Fisher with the series being set in Shanghi instead of Australia. It does incorporate some cultural differences but the spirit of the lead remains the intact. An independent woman of means who becomes a lady detective in the 20's. The costumes are a delight, and much of the original storyline remains intact. I would recommend the Essie Davis version as a first introduction, but this is a very nice adaptation.

I really loved everything about this series! I thought it was so fun and very well done. The actors were all phenomenal, and the two leads have fantastic chemistry - I was completely engrossed by their developing relationship in the last 6 or so episodes! The outfits and settings were all beautiful, and I want to buy so many of her clothes!

Each case takes up two episodes, and I appreciated that they felt well-developed. There is also a theme running throughout about the disappearance of her sister when she was a child, which culminates in the final episode. I see from other reviews that some people didn't love the final episode, but I really enjoyed it.

I'm now reading the books because I have become so obsessed with this show, but I will say that I so far I definitely prefer the show. I hope they consider doing another season to incorporate the rest of the Ms. Fisher mysteries. I'm currently re-watching the show because I loved it so much! Don't let the subtitles scare you away, this show is so worth it! Highly, highly recommend!

I just finished Miss S. Simply wonderful. The production was top notched, beautifully done. The acting was fantastic! If you liked Miss Fisher, you should LOVE this! It is fun to compare the 2 versions. There aren't that many differences and the ones that are actually made it more enjoyable. And the fashions on Miss Su and Inspector Luo are beautiful. In fact Inspector Luo dresses better than Detective Robinson. I hope they do the rest of the Miss Fisher stories. GREAT fun! A must see! I really can't anything wrong with it at all. Don't let the fact it is Chinese stop you from watching. I'm a middle-aged white woman from Texas.

Well of course it's based on the Ms Fisher series, but so what? It stands on its own as an entertaining, likeable and enjoyable series. The key characters are fun, interesting and act with great chemistry. If it's not true to its time for all things, then it's still very appealing. Miss S and the Inspector make it all worthwhile and their restraint while flirting made it only more enjoyable. The support cast have their moments and generally strengthen the show's appeal, though I agree old Uncle Xiang is a bit dopey and useless. Overall a good show and while was hoping to use it to improve my rusty mandarin, I found the subtitles absolutely necessary and sometimes quietly hilarious.