All the Reasons Why You Should Be Watching Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries

During the last weeks of December, I caught the flu and was hella sick. The flu turned into bronchitis and a sinus infection, and I stayed half-awake on the couch most of the day. In addition to fluids and pain relief, I binge-watched Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, which was probably the best thing I could have done for myself. It’s available in the US on Netflix currently, and on subscription services like Acorn, too.

I’ve been aware of Miss Fisher for a long time, but hadn’t had an opportunity to try it until being ill rendered me unable to get off the sofa. Now I wonder what on earth took me so long because it’s WONDERFUL.

In a strange coincidence, RedHeadedGirl and Elyse were also watching, and we convinced Carrie to give them a try, and now we’re all sending each other squee-filled email about the series.

If you’re not familiar with the series, which I mentioned in a recent podcast interview with Jennifer McQuiston, Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries is an Australian television series set in Melbourne in the 1920s. It’s based on the Phryne Fisher mystery series by Kerry Greenwood, which begins with Cocaine Blues. Elyse reviewed the book today, if you’re curious, and says that while the books are just as good if not better, the series follows the books so reading or watching will spoil the mystery for the other format.

But the show is so much more than that. Every episode has an undercurrent that highlight’s women’s issues and struggles at the time, many of which, such as access to birth control and medical treatment, continue today.

Series writers and producers Fiona Eagger and Deb Cox said in an interview in 2012:

“We were a bit curious to know what it was about it that could appeal to a 16-year-old and a 70-year-old,” says Eagger. “Phryne is one of the first feminists. She chooses to live alone, she chooses not to get married. She’s got many lovers. She’s a bit of a James Bond action hero – she’s much better dressed than James Bond though.”

 

And, in yet another example of the power of any review that says, “This has TOO MUCH SEX IN IT,” this interview by Linda Holmes of NPR with star Essie Davis is marvelous, starting with the title: Essie Davis: On Playing A Sexually Liberated ‘Superhero’ Without Apology.

 “I was sent the link to Jezebel,” she says of the discussion about Phryne being, as she puts it, a “hussy.” “And I just thought it was fantastic that the reactions towards the outrage were so powerful and outspoken. And that so many people who, on the Jezebel site, were like, ‘Right, well, if that’s what everyone’s saying about it, I’m watching it.'”

Other than Samantha on Sex And The City, Davis couldn’t think of a woman on American television quite like Phryne in terms of her genuinely happily asserted sexual agency any more than I could, and we couldn’t think of many women like Phryne anywhere. “Phryne’s a superhero, really,” she says. “She’s the woman that many women would like to be. Because she is so independent and has no dependency upon men, just loves them. And as long as they don’t try and rule her, she’ll enjoy every bit of them.”

So, in case you’re not already watching and have any reservations at all about trying this show, here are our reasons why this should be the show you watch next. It’s a feast for everything. Trust us.

RedHeadedGirl: I have been preaching the Gospel of Phryne all Christmas break.

Sassy, delightful, strong, complex lady sleuth who makes no apologies about who she is.

Said lady sleuth owns her sexuality and won’t let anyone shame her for it (and the show pointedly doesn’t shame her, either)

The show demonstrates how to live with people of differing viewpoints in harmony- Phryne is a liberated woman, and her companion Dot is a reserved, deeply Catholic girl. Dot never shames Phryne, and Phryne never shames Dot. They support each other! They always have the other’s back!

THE HATS THE HATS OMG THE HATS

AND THE CLOTHES. The coats. The dresses. THE HATS AND COATS.

The dudes: Constable “Puppy” Hugh and Detective “Bonerpants” Jack Robinson are delightful and adorable.

DID I MENTION THE CLOTHES? Phryne even looks adorable while skulking around in the middle of the night.

Sarah: Do you have a favorite outfit? I love the deep purple scalloped blouse/jacket with the long back over the white trousers she wore while investigating the Miss Lavender murder.

Elyse: It’s a great “I am solving this with my large brain” sort of mystery, the kind viewers can try and solve along with her. I’m getting sick of mystery shows that rely on a device like psychic powers or CSI technology to crack the case. I like good old fashioned sleuthing.

Also as RHG said OMG THE CLOTHES.

 

 

Carrie: After binging like mad, here’s my response to why the show is so great:

YES to what RHG said about sexual agency. Also OMG the clothes (and the scenery, and interior design, and the music!)

I love that the show is rife with competence porn. After the first two episodes or so, we’re over the standard detective tropes where the cops think that the detective is awful and the detective thinks the cops are idiots. Phryne and Jack battle over turf, not competence. It’s also telling that Phryne is interested in hiring Dot based on two quick impressions – Dot needs help, and Dot is hella good at her job.

I also love how Phryne accepts people for who they are. She judges people based solely on whether their actions hurt other people. She accepts herself by this criteria, as well – she loves who she is!

The show is funny. Conversations between Phryne and Jack are especially hysterical as they tend to out deadpan snark each other. I’m also fond of Phryne and her doctor friend being quite thorough in their investigation of some cocaine.

Another thing I like about the show is that it’s not all fun and games.  People have actual emotional reactions to events, including the murders of the week.  It also subtly and effectively keeps reminding us that the atmosphere of the Roaring 20s was a reaction to a terrible, terrible war – one which has deeply affected virtually all the characters.  The show is much to fun to be depressing, but there’s also this emotional truth and power that anchors it.

In terms of being a guilty pleasure, The Downton Abbey effect is in full force here – it creates a fantasy world in which you can have every mundane task in your life disposed of by servants and never feel guilty, because in the show they are never shown actually doing very much. Although I’m still pissed at Phryne for bringing home a kid and making her butler delouse her. You adopt her, you delouse her, lady.

Sarah: StarOpal, in the comments for the podcast interview with Jennifer McQuiston wrote,

I love the approach of sexuality, especially concerning Phryne. It never feels exploitative or slut shaming, she’s very ‘I like men, so yeah.’ But at the same time shows that it, sex, isn’t necessarily the same experience or mean the same thing for everybody and, hey, that’s okay too because everyone is different. So good on you show.

YES. A thousand times, yes, and a zillion more.

And, as I mentioned earlier, each episode has a surprising depth to it. In one episode, Away with the Fairies, Phryne and Co. are investigating the murder of a woman who co-owned a women’s magazine. The remaining partner, a former teacher of Phryne’s, publishes amid the recipes, decorating hints, and fashion advice articles about family planning, higher education for women, and other controversial subjects. That magazine represents the series as a whole, really. There’s considerable complexity to every character, and every issue and every case.

As Carrie, Elyse and RedHeadedGirl mentioned, OH MY GOD THE COSTUMES. The costume designer for this series is Marion Boyce, and her work is just incredible. Why Australian paper currency isn’t printed with Boyce’s image and work on it is beyond me. It should be, especially since I suspect at least 60% of the GNP of Australia went into the costume budget, because holy opulence.

 

 

As the series develops, Phryne’s relationships with the people around her deepen, and each is fascinating. And speaking of relationships:

And then there’s Phryne and Jack, aka Detective Inspector Jack Robinson, aka “Detective Bonerpants,” per RHG. They have a very slowly developing attraction, the kind that Tumblr gifs are made of.

AND SPEAKING OF TUMBLR GIFS, here’s my favorite set:

If you’ve enjoyed this series as much as we have, we’d love to hear your favorite parts, and what (or who!) you love most. And if you haven’t tried it, I hope it’s available for you because it’s just everything wonderful in a daring, fabulous package. With hats.