'Deadloch' Is One of the Funniest and Best-Written Cop Dramas in an Ugly Dog's Age

By Nate Parker | TV | August 21, 2023 |

By Nate Parker | TV | August 21, 2023 |

The fictional town of Deadloch, Tasmania has a serious problem and no, it’s not Kevin the seal stealing sausages. It’s not even Jimmy the public masturbator. It’s the dead man on the beach. And the next one. And the one after that. Fortunately, Sergeant Dulcie Collins (Kate Box) and Detective Eddie Redcliffe (Madeline Sami) are on the case, and they’ll bring the killer to justice. Eventually.

“You’ll either love this or hate it, and I don’t know which,” I told my wife after I’d watched the first 4 episodes of Deadloch by myself before we started over together. I knew she’d appreciate the intelligent writing and feminist vibe. But to get there viewers have to endure a whole lot of stupidity from the small minds populating Deadloch. A town once dependent on blue-collar labor is now home to a burgeoning lesbian population determined to make the town a progressive and welcoming community. There’s Dulcie and her wife Cath (Alicia Gardener), who moved to Deadloch after Dulcie’s affair with her former partner. There’s Skye O’Dwyer (Holly Austin), professional chef and former Deadloch resident who recently moved back with her fiance Nadiya (Mia Morrissey). And there are all the tourists in town for the “Feastival,” a winter celebration of culture, food, and the female orgasm. The local women - from Doctor-Mayor Aleyna (Susie Yousef) and barmaid Sharelle (Naarah) to wealthy landowner Margaret Carruthers (Pamela Rabe) - are confused but generally supportive. Most of the men, led by local instigator and crook Phil McGangus (Shaun Martindale) are anything but. The tension only increases as the bodies of local men begin piling up and Darwin, Australia detective\flaming wreck Eddie Redcliffe is reassigned to assist in the case.

Deadloch nails the bleak crime drama aesthetic. A dim blue filter shades every scene, and the music is appropriately haunting. The community is full of the hidden crimes and tragedies familiar to anyone who grew up in a small town; unwanted pregnancies, domestic abuse, and folks who left without warning. Truly terrible men have spent decades controlling their women’s lives, and it appears their chickens are coming home to roost. And yet the show inspires more inappropriate laughter than a circus tent full of dead clowns. Viewers are never left in the position of feeling sorry for the victims, only those they’ve left behind, which makes discovering who the killer is more of a fun exercise than a tense one.

This is a show built on character dynamics and some truly great writing from Kate McCartney and Kate McLennan. Natural and absurd by equal degrees, the narrative leans into the racial struggles of a colonized community, rural gentrification, and the struggle for women to be taken seriously in the workplace. And it does it all without preaching to its audience or devolving into camp with the possible exception of Commissioner Hastings (Hayden Spencer), who lays it on pretty thick. But the whole cast is fantastic, from Dulcie’s amateurish deputies (Nina Oyama, Tom Ballard) to wannabe footballer Tammy (Leonie Whyman) and her cousin Miranda (Kartanya Maynard), to baker and prospective love interest Ray (Duncan Fellows). But it’s Dulcie and Eddie who really shine in this one. “Straight-laced cop meets loose cannon” was already old when Lethal Weapon did it decades ago, but it really works here. Dulcie is bound up tighter than Jordan Peterson’s colon, while Eddie is such a hot mess that she’s been shipped from Australia like so much luggage. You know it’s gotten bad when you’re too damaged for a nation built by criminals.

It’s impossible to do Deadloch justice in so few words. The humor is biting and at times bleak as hell, and it’s incredibly effective. There’s a fair amount of blood, guts, and vomit, so be prepared to look away if that troubles you. This is one of the funniest and best-written cop dramas we’ve had in an ugly dog’s age, and I’ve already got my fingers crossed for a second season. Help them get enough views to make it happen. The entire first season of Deadloch is now available on Prime.