The Gone

I really enjoyed this series, and it was perfect for bingewatching on a rainy weekend.

As a fan of Scandinavian-set noir crime series, I've been looking forward to The Gone, and to see how it would work. I wasn't disappointed.

The weaving of Kiwi and Irish themes, cast and cultures worked really well. Sometimes, this approach can feel forced but for The Gone it felt authentic and relatable.

Wonderful Kiwi cast and New Zealand scenery. Leads felt like a good match and were genuine and relatable.

The plot line wasn't overworked, but there were still enough twists and turns to keep me hitting 'Next episode'.

I liked it when the detective hero loses a fight with a passing teenager right at the start. Refreshing not to have the lead character a super-hero who outfights everyone.

We then get a glimpse of New Zealand society. In particular the life of the Maori.

How they were ill-treated in the past, and are still far from equal.

And also real imperfect characters. Different from each other.

We start with one mystery, and then several more crop up.

The season ends with at least one mystery cleared up. More for Season two, I assume.

And some excellent scenery. Places where real people are living and having complex lives.

I really enjoyed this drama, it had suspense and beauty to add to this enjoyable story. It had left us with some questions that hopefully will be answered on season 2. But the acting was great and believable, the New Zealand countryside was amazing and added to the suspense of the storyline. I feel for the characters and how their lives are intertwined, and also the Maori culture is brought out in the storyline is interesting as well. It's an interesting twist of suspense and culture. The last couple of minutes of the last episode was rather scary and has me hanging on waiting for the next season.

Really enjoyed this! Felt the characters were well rounded and enjoyed finding out all their back stories.

The plot was well thought out and a bit different to usual NZ dramas. The mix of Irish, New Zealand and Maori characters was excellent all the cultures creating diverse aspects to the plot.

There were some cliches like the moody detective with a secret but he wasn't a drunk and his secret was very different which kept him interesting.

Any negative reviews are just being picky this is definitely a higher standards than your typical terrestrial tv drama.

Loved the scenery the plot and the acting just have to wait patiently for season 2.

I can't believe people are giving this show anything less than a 7. It's thoroughly engaging and entertaining. Great story. Great characters. The scenery is of course spectacular and beautifully shot. All the leads are spot on. Acting is brilliant. Someone complained it's too long. ????? I totally do not agree. There were many scenes when the director could have called cut maybe 3 seconds sooner true. But to make that a serious complaint is to be a complete whiner. I'm in my late 60's and been watching TV my whole life and have no patience for poor quality TV or a dud watch. There is so much to watch, I have a long list of shows to watch and never sit through anything I'm not completely enjoying. This was a thoroughly enjoyable watch and I highly recommend it.