A Remarkable Place to Die

Love my NZ, Aussie and British murder mysteries. This was one is very promising, but there are a lot of disjointed issues. It feels like some departments got a better budget than others. The cinematography/scenery/drone department got the best budget as the vistas are gorgeous. The fact that the name of the Remarkable Mountain Range is in the title this makes sense. But other departments such as costumes, script writing, directing, and sets did not.

Script: show is episodic and serialized. Great! The detectives solve one murder per episode, but we have to deal with murder of protagonist's father and sister, which one is not resolved in last episode. This show wanted to be serious (One Lane Bridge, Toppo) but also quirky/funny (Brokenwood, My life is Murder) which is OK with me (don't enjoy One Lane Bridge) but it is done heavy-handily. The quirky character is usually the coroner or a nosey relative/friend, but here they loaded all the shows quirkiness on the poor youngest detective. Kudos to the actor who plays him and puts up with it.

Relationship between mother and main detective drove me crazy. If any viewer made a drinking game of how many times Anais went to her mom's house to make up with her or get help with the cases and got slammed out they would be sloshed. None of these scenes moved the plot forward or made any sense.

The details of the car accidents (both the first murder and detective's sister) and helicopter are played out forever in the first 3 episodes, but the finale was literally the last 10 minutes of episode 4. It happened so quickly I had to rewind to make sure i hadn't missed anything.

Anyway an OK way to see Queenstown and NZ outside a documentary compared to other murder mysteries, but not a top notch show.

I enjoyed the first episode very much. The New Zealand scenery is a huge bonus and the South Island of such great beauty, it adds to the atmosphere. I enjoy seeing different actors rather than the UK and USA actors I so often watch. I have seen Ms. Gibney in other series and she is always a great addition . There was a mystery to solve but also an ongoing one that will tie things and people to the plot line. And no car chases at least not yet. I certainly will continue with season one as it becomes available and hope for more. Chelsie Preston Crawford is most convincing in the role of Anais Mallory.

This series is extremely slow to catch on to and the beginning of it hard to get the plot line. First of all, it's surprising that Queenstown has so many murders in just a small town in the middle of New Zealand. Then its obvious what the overall plot line is in the second episode and the third is finally a good well worth watching whole episode. The final episode ties up some of the very very loose ends and is quite gripping in places but spoiled at the very end when there is really no completion and "sewing up" of the overall plot. Also no aftermath, no real cliffhanger to lead on to another series. Not a complete waste of time if nothing else to do but not one to watch if you want real drama and plot line like I think only the Brits and Aussies can do.

I really enjoyed this show for the most part. My biggest complaint is they make Mallory into an idiot. She makes choices, and And says things that only make her look incompetent. She loses her temper constantly. And she is obsessive about things that make her again look like a bad cop and that she has no business on this case.

The scenery is unbelievably beautiful. And it truly makes me want to go to New Zealand. All the other actors are great. I've seen them multiple times from the series the Brokenwood mysteries.

Everyone else is excellent. I think if the show gets a second season and the crime is not personal then Mallory could be a better character.

Thank you Acorn TV for another wonderful mystery series. I'm picky about mystery series. If I can figure out who-done-it in the first five minutes, I'll lose interest fast. This series is wonderful since it solves a mystery with each episode, but has an ongoing additional mystery that flows throughout the season.

I really like all of the main characters and they're portrayed as normal human beings with admiral qualities and flaws. Constable Jarrod's character adds a touch of humor and sympathy with his bumbling and inexperience. Jarrod's character reminds me of Sgt. Troy from Midsomer Murders.

The main thing I would change about this show is the elimination of the "F" bomb from all the scripts. It's completely unnecessary and far too reminiscent of the garbage Hollywood slops to the public. Certainly Acorn TV is miles above that. What's the point of walking in the gutter if you don't have to. I would also make the fight scenes a touch more realistic for the main character, but this is a small item.

Good stories, nice twists and turns, great character development, beautiful scenery, and surprising who-done-its, plus good acting. This is what good television is meant to be. Thanks Acorn!