Wanted

Georges Polti, in his classic treatise from the 19th century, claimed that there were only 36 dramatic situations and all stories are either based on one of those or a combination of few. In crime genre on TV most plots have become a mélange of well-used ingredients. Only through nuanced acting, competent direction, editing and camera-work the repetition can be tolerated and the show becomes watchable despite its lack of originality.

Two episodes into Wanted if you get the feeling of I've-seen-this-before-but-not-really, you're not alone. Wanted is so far a dive into a very familiar pool, yet I don't mind looking at the third offering and so on unless it runs out of breath in later episodes. The story is developing in the familiar unbelievably predictable and predictably unbelievable fashion, but it moves fast. So far, it is an "odd couple on the run" story with "bent cops" and "the devil incarnate hit-man" on their tail. There is also a hint of '24' style development with the baddies exposing themselves gradually in a stratified structure (how else would they sustain the chase for 12 eps?) No matter. It has Rebecca Gibney, maturing gracefully both as a woman and as an actor, and she is a joy to watch. We may have met her character, Lola, before on paper and on screen (attractive older woman with a compromised past and a big heart made bitter and cynical by time and fate), but she inhabits the character with such conviction that you can tell her inner struggles from the minute expressions of her face. Geraldine Hakewille, an actor I have never encountered before, is less subtle, but she manages to put some shade into her stock character (the younger, neurotic, less prim and proper than she seems foil/buddy to the older woman).

The rest of the cast is equally capable in their stock roles. Notable also is Nicholas Bell who has the type of face that can appear avuncular or threatening simply by looking at the camera. I am not quite sure about Mirko Grillini as the dead-eyed-hit-man. He might have watched one Hollywood Mafia story too many.

Direction, sets, locales, camera-work and editing are near faultless. Wanted is unlikely to become a classic of the genre but it is watchable and it will serve as an audition piece for Australian talent yet to be swallowed by Hollywood.

I went into this series knowing nothing about it. It was refreshing to see that there was a good old fashioned Australian action/drama without needing to engage the help of Vampires, Zombies, Time Travel or Superheroes. I was hooked from the moment it started. Lola (Rebecca Gibney) captured my attention from the get go with her ability to portray a gritty-real person, a tough talking no bulls%it kind of Aussie chick who like all of us, is just trying to get through the day without the inevitable curve ball life tends to throw our way. As the episode progresses we find there is much more to Lola (Rebecca Gibney) than meets the eye, and with the introduction of her kooky counterpart Chelsea (Geraldine Hakewill), the characters begin to develop and an unorthodox relationship is formed.

In the interest of not spoiling this for anyone I will only say that this series has ticked most boxes for me with the humour, the characters and the use of so many locations around our gorgeous country. Wanted has it all and hopefully it will continue to deliver the action and drama one can expect from the likes of Rebecca Gibney. It doesn't hurt that it also stars two of the hunkiest Australian actors in the likes of - Chris Murphett (Ryan Corr) and Josh Levine (Stephen Peacocke).

Yes, the South Koreans make the best mini-series these days, but the Aussies are pushing for a respectable 2nd place. Wanted is a great entry, in the 'innocent chicks on the run' genre, said chicks being Chelsea and Lola. Chelsea is young, tall & pretty, but awkward from a monied family. Lola is older & streetwise, with a murky past. Both end up at a murder scene at a bus stop (of all places) & get chased by bad guys and cops, with a bagful of money in tow.

Chief bad guy is a crooked cop who must track the girls down & get the money to its intended recipient, a mysterious bad dude. This covers all of season 1 (6 episodes) and part of season 2, where the setting switches from the Australian outback to New Zealand. Scenery & acting is excellent. Our heroes experience several close calls (maybe a few too many), but those of us who grew up watching the old Buck Rogers space serials can forgive that.

Finally, a watchable Aussie show! I was on the lookout for very salty language or explicit content (or discovering that the 2 protagonists have fallen in love... yech... kissing... underwear)... but nope... A few uncouth words here & there...but very little up towards, thank goodness. And... no: the story didn't suffer one bit.

Compelling. Addictive. Start it on a weekend when you have time to binge. Season 3 to follow... I think.

Superbly acted and written. Not your average cop drama. the plot changes every time you get up for a pint. Not a problem for the cast, which turns on a dime. Keeps the audience guessing, and engaged. Perfect for binge watching. Hard to put down. The only problem for American ears is that sometimes the Australian accents are hard to pick out from the background sound. Otherwise, a 10 out of 10.

This is good stuff for dialog writing, acting, ___location work (Bangkok! New Zealand!). and two strong, appealing female leads whose growing friendship is a pleasure to see. That said, though, there are a couple of plot devices that I started to get tired of. One is the hairsbreadth escape: one of the leads is cornered, in an impossible situation, with a bad guy's gun pointed directly at her head, and poof! something intervenes just when all looks hopeless. This happens too many times to be believed; I'm willing to suspend disbelief but not hang it from the rafters. The second is the partners-almost-split-up scene: "That's it, you need to go on without me," yet every single time, they stick together. And finally, I think the writers went to the MacGuffin shelf too often: the pair are searching for a pile of cash, no, a stash of drugs, no, the car containing both, no, a safe deposit box key... I can see why something like this would have seemed like a handy way to keep the story line going, but it started to get tiresome for me.