The Brokenwood Mysteries

The Brokenwood Mysteries

Filming of the second episode of Series 2, at Helensville, Auckland
Genre
Directed by
  • Mike Smith
  • Josh Frizzell
  • Michael Hurst
  • Murray Keane[1]
Starring
Country of origin New Zealand
Original language(s) English
No. of series 3
No. of episodes 12 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)
Kelly Martin
  • John Barnett

[1]

Producer(s) Chris Bailey[1]
Running time 90-99 minutes
Production company(s) South Pacific Pictures
Distributor All3Media
Release
Original network Prime
Original release 28 September 2014 – present
External links
Website

The Brokenwood Mysteries is a New Zealand detective drama television series that premiered on Prime in 2014.[2] The program is set in a fictitious New Zealand town of Brokenwood and was filmed in the greater Auckland region.[1] Tim Balme conceived the series and is lead writer with Philip Dalkin, James Griffin and Greg McGee.[1] In December 2014, it was confirmed that The Brokenwood Mysteries would return for a four-episode second season set to premiere in 2015.[3] NZ on Air approved funding of NZ$4.3 million for the first season,[4] NZ$4 million for the second season[5] and NZ$4.1 million for third season.[6]

Synopsis

Detective Inspector Mike Shepherd is sent from Auckland to Brokenwood to assist the local police with a possible murder investigation. Brokenwood is a seemingly quiet country town, where Shepherd, who has an unconventional approach to his task, works with local Detective Constable Kristin Sims, who is precise and efficient at her job, to solve murder mysteries. As the series progresses the working relationship between the two moves from rocky to functional as the two get to appreciate each other's talents.[7]

Setting

The fictional town of Brokenwood has a population of about 5000, and is located some 20 kilometres from the coast. It is in a farming area, with crops ranging from wheat to viticulture, and the surrounding area is home to many people who have escaped city life (from retirees to alternative lifestylers).[8] Though the exact location of Brokenwood is not stated, it was largely written[9] and filmed in small towns immediately to the north of Auckland. The real-life town of Warkworth doubles as Brokenwood,[10] and the Brokenwood Police Station is a 1911 building that was the Helensville Post Office.

Cast

Regular cast
Recurring characters
Guest stars

Several well-known New Zealand actors and actresses have appeared in episodes of The Brokenwood Mysteries, among them:

Episodes

SeriesEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
1428 September 2014 (2014-09-28)19 October 2014 (2014-10-19)
2427 September 2015 (2015-09-27)18 October 2015 (2015-10-18)
3430 October 2016 (2016-10-30)20 November 2016 (2016-11-20)

Series 1 (2014)

No.
overall		No. in
series		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateN.Z. viewers
(thousand)
11"Blood and Water"Mike SmithTim Balme & Philip Dalkin28 September 2014 (2014-09-28)191.34[12]
Detective Inspector Mike Shepherd is sent to Brokenwood to investigate the death of a farmer after his body is found by two local fishermen.
22"Sour Grapes"Josh FrizzellTim Balme5 October 2014 (2014-10-05)131.25[13]
The annual Brokenwood wine show is disrupted when the body of the guest judge, a well-known wine critic, is found dead in a fermenting vat.
33"Playing the Lie"Michael HurstJames Griffin12 October 2014 (2014-10-12)164.59[14]
A morning round of golf for several prominent members of the Brokenwood Golf Club is interrupted when the club's owner comes staggering towards them, her face covered in blisters, before collapsing.
44"Hunting the Stag"Mike SmithTim Balme19 October 2014 (2014-10-19)141.98[15]
A stag party in two senses of the word. A group of friends, one of whom is about to be married, go hunting deer in the bush. Only three return — the groom-to-be having been shot in the head.

Series 2 (2015)

No.
overall		No. in
series		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateN.Z. viewers
(thousand)
51"Leather & Lace"Mike SmithNick Ward & Tim Balme27 September 2015 (2015-09-27)116.16[16]
The Brokenwood rugby club's coach is found dead - naked and tied to the goalposts. A second body is soon discovered.
62"To Die or Not to Die"Murray KeaneTim Balme4 October 2015 (2015-10-04)97.16[17]
A cast member in The Brokenwood Theatre Society's production of Hamlet collapses and dies after a performance. But the smell of poison leads Mike to believe that he has not "shuffled off this mortal coil" without help.
73"Catch of the Day"Mike SmithGreg McGee11 October 2015 (2015-10-11)109.73[18]
When a severed human hand is discovered in a crayfisherman's catch Mike and his team need to discover whose it is and whether its owner is still alive.
84"Blood Pink"Josh FrizzellTim Balme18 October 2015 (2015-10-18)117.114[19]
A touring musician is found electrocuted in what initially looks to be a suicide. As Mike investigates, he finds things are more murky than they first appeared.

Series 3 (2016)

No.
overall		No. in
series		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateN.Z. viewers
(thousand)
91"The Black Widower"Mark BeesleyTBA30 October 2016 (2016-10-30)N/A
102"Over Her Dead Body"Murray KeaneTBA6 November 2016 (2016-11-06)N/A
113"The Killing Machine"Mike SmithTBA13 November 2016 (2016-11-13)N/A
124"A Merry Bloody Christmas"Murray KeaneTBA20 November 2016 (2016-11-20)N/A

Ratings

Series 1 (2014)

Episode New Zealand ratings
Original air date Live Rank
Viewers
(thousands)		 Night
"Blood and Water" 28 September 2014 191.34[12] 5[12]
"Sour Grapes" 5 October 2014 131.25[13]
"Playing the Lie" 12 October 2014 164.59[14] 5[14]
"Hunting the Stag" 19 October 2014 141.98[15]

Series 2 (2015)

Episode New Zealand ratings
Original air date Live Rank
Viewers
(thousands)		 Night
"Leather & Lace" 27 September 2015 116.16[16] 5[16]
"To Die or Not to Die" 4 October 2015 97.16[17]
"Catch of the Day" 11 October 2015 109.73[18] 5[18]
"Blood Pink" 18 October 2015 117.11[19] 5[19]

International

Reception and awards

Critical response to the series has been mixed, with many reviewers impressed by the plots but lamenting the occasionally hokey dialogue. The two-hour length (broadcast length with ads) of episodes has also been mentioned by some as too long for such a series.

Writing in the New Zealand Herald, critic Colin Hogg panned the series, stating that it was "a local version aiming at that grand TV detective tradition" but that its "Dialogue is cliched, the acting aches and the locations are boring."[23] International television website "The Medium is Not Enough" was also generally negative in its review, describing the series as "genteel, New Zealand drama designed to appeal to perhaps an older demographic that likes comfortable murder-mysteries and to New Zealanders eager to watch anything that’s actually set in New Zealand and stars New Zealanders."[24]

Christine Tidball, writing for entertainment website Cheese on Toast was kinder, rating the series "charming, without being cloying, very well-written (thanks to Tim Balme) and funny, but not too funny [...] It’s also engaging, full of twists and will keep you guessing right till the end."[25]

As the series has progressed, reviews have become more positive. DVD review website High Def Standard described the first series as "uniquely thrilling TV" and "a New Zealand Midsomer Murders that isn’t afraid to venture off into Twin Peaks territory every now and again."[26] The Manawatu Standard's Malcolm Hopwood enjoyed the series but lamented episode length: "The Brokenwood Mysteries (Prime Sundays) is like our TPP negotiations. They are long, energy-sapping but satisfying if you're still awake after two hours." He added that the series was "intriguing, confusing and exhausting", and that it "deserves our support but it needs to be recorded and watched in small chunks."[27] Michael Reuben, writing for blu-ray.com, rated series one at 4 stars out of 5.[28]

The series has generally proved popular with the public, and has rated 7.0 out of 10 by reviewers on IMDb.com.

The Brokenwood Mysteries received a bronze world medal at the New York Festival's International Television and Film Awards in 2014.[20]

Cars

Mike's car is a 1971 Holden Kingswood. It has a casette player for Mike's country music casettes.

DVD releases

Title Set details Blu-ray and DVD release dates Special features
Region A/1[29] Region 4[30]
The Brokenwood Mysteries
  • Discs: 2
  • Episodes: 4
 7 July 2015 16 December 2014
  • Interviews with the stars and head writer
The Brokenwood Mysteries — Season Two
  • Discs: 2
  • Episodes: 4
 TBA 25 November 2015

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "The Brokenwood Mysteries". South Pacific Pictures. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
  2. ↑ bgarrettnz. "The Brokenwood Mysteries (TV Series 2014– )". IMDb. Retrieved 29 August 2015.
  3. ↑ South Pacific Pictures. "Season 2 of The Brokenwood Mysteries Coming in 2015". South Pacific Pictures. Retrieved 30 August 2015.
  4. ↑ "The Brokenwood Mysteries". Archived from the original on 2 April 2015.
  5. ↑ "The Brokenwood Mysteries". Retrieved 25 October 2015.
  6. ↑ "NZ On Air supports local prime time drama". 14 December 2015. Retrieved 27 December 2015.
  7. ↑ Lydia Jenkin (20 September 2014). "Brokenwood Mysteries: A moment of sleuth". NZ Herald. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
  8. ↑ "The Place", thebrokenwoodmysteries.com. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
  9. ↑ Manson, B. "Tim Balme's killer concept", stuff.co.nz, 27 September 2014. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
  10. ↑ Dickey, D. "Murder mystery comes to town", The Rodney Times, 1 May 2014. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
  11. ↑ "CastingKey". screencastingnz.com. Retrieved 29 August 2015.
  12. 1 2 3 Regan (29 September 2014). "TV Ratings: 28 September 2014". Nielsen. Throng. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  13. 1 2 Regan (6 October 2014). "TV Ratings: 5 October 2014". Nielsen. Throng. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  14. 1 2 3 Regan (13 October 2014). "TV Ratings: 12 October 2014". Nielsen. Throng. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  15. 1 2 Regan (20 October 2014). "TV Ratings: 19 October 2014". Nielsen. Throng. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  16. 1 2 3 Regan (28 September 2015). "TV Ratings: 27 September 2015". Nielsen. Throng. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  17. 1 2 Regan (5 October 2015). "TV Ratings: September 2015". Nielsen. Throng. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  18. 1 2 3 Regan (12 October 2015). "TV Ratings: 11 October 2015". Nielsen. Throng. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  19. 1 2 3 Regan (19 October 2015). "TV Ratings: 18 October 2015". Nielsen. Throng. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  20. 1 2 3 Isobel Allbury. "The Brokenwood Mysteries". TV Guide. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
  21. ↑ "Brokenwood wins at the New York festivals", thebrokenwoodmysteries.com. 16 April 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  22. ↑ Purcell, Charles (21 January 2016). "New This Week (Jan 25): War & Peace, Suits, Black Sails, Bear Grylls and live sport". The Green Room. Archived from the original on 21 January 2016. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
  23. ↑ "Colin Hogg: Porky detective no Poirot", New Zealand Herald. 1 October 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  24. ↑ "Review: The Brokenwood Mysteries 1x1 (New Zealand: Prime)", the-medium-is-not-enough.com. 29 September 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  25. ↑ "'The Brokenwood Mysteries' (TV review)", cheeseontoast.co.nz. 12 September 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  26. ↑ "'The Brokenwood Mysteries' – Series 1: Blu-ray Review", highdefstandard.com. 16 July 2015. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  27. ↑ Hopwood, M. "Enough poison to kill off possums", Manawatu Standard. 8 October 2015. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  28. ↑ Reuben, M. "Nice town. Watch your back!", blu-ray.com. 9 July 2015. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  29. ↑ Region A/1 set:
  30. ↑ Region 4 DVD set:
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