labenji-12163
Joined Apr 2018
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labenji-12163's rating
Okay, yet another spin-off the the original Death in Paradise (DiP). I loved the Humphry character in the original DiP, so of course I watch his Beyond Paradise spin-off, and it's not bad. I don't believe this new "Return to Paradise" mysteries are bad, just the lead actress-What the Heck?!
I realize all of the detectives in the Paradise franchise are supposed to have some quirks. Ann Samson is an introvert with poor people skills, so was the original detective in DiP, Richard Poole, played by Ben Miller. He played his character's quirks subtly and naturally. Ann, on the other hand, turns DI McKenzie Clarke into a caricature with her weird, wide-eyed stare, and fish mouth (sucking in her cheeks) is just off-putting. Also, not to shame the actress, but she does NOT look 35, the same age as the actor who plays her ex-fiancé. I had to look up her real-life age because I thought she was at least 10 years older and couldn't buy them as a couple. I also looked up the actress's early photos and realized that Botox may be a contributing factor to the unusual fish mouth and causing an overpronounced eye widening. Nevertheless, I'm not loving her quirk or the storyline of a runaway bride returning after 6 years and wanting her fiancé back. We tune in for the mystery, not the unnecessary soap opera for characters we just met, so we don't really care about their personal problems this early in the game. I'll check out the first 2 episodes of season 2 to hoping Ann reads these reviews and tones down the weird facial expressions, and the writers move away from the love soap opera.
I realize all of the detectives in the Paradise franchise are supposed to have some quirks. Ann Samson is an introvert with poor people skills, so was the original detective in DiP, Richard Poole, played by Ben Miller. He played his character's quirks subtly and naturally. Ann, on the other hand, turns DI McKenzie Clarke into a caricature with her weird, wide-eyed stare, and fish mouth (sucking in her cheeks) is just off-putting. Also, not to shame the actress, but she does NOT look 35, the same age as the actor who plays her ex-fiancé. I had to look up her real-life age because I thought she was at least 10 years older and couldn't buy them as a couple. I also looked up the actress's early photos and realized that Botox may be a contributing factor to the unusual fish mouth and causing an overpronounced eye widening. Nevertheless, I'm not loving her quirk or the storyline of a runaway bride returning after 6 years and wanting her fiancé back. We tune in for the mystery, not the unnecessary soap opera for characters we just met, so we don't really care about their personal problems this early in the game. I'll check out the first 2 episodes of season 2 to hoping Ann reads these reviews and tones down the weird facial expressions, and the writers move away from the love soap opera.
