Never having read the Phryne Fisher Mystery novels on which this show is based, this will be a review purely of the TV show. Miss Fisher finds that she has quite the knack for detective work, prompting her to open her own private practice: the Honourable Phryne Fisher, Lady Detective. But there is something more sinister brewing underneath it all: Miss Fisher has darkness in her past, and it might be about to break out of prison and catch up with her.
Miss Fisher: Well, I disturbed him and he ran off. I gave chase and he took a shot at me. So I did the only thing I could in the circumstances. Living in a world where the most popular shows seem to be the male-dominated variety of Doctor Who and Sherlock, I have long been craving a similar story about a remarkable woman who is amazing and beyond compare.
She takes lovers as she pleases, and upon deciding to take a case, will find ways to insinuate herself into the investigation no matter what obstacles are placed in her way. She delights in shocking the conservative society she lives in, but this does not come at the expense of her elegance, sense and compassion. She champions the downtrodden and speaks out against injustice. She treats those in her employ with respect and affection, a family in all but name. Jack is, in stark contrast to Phryne, a quiet, serious man dedicated to his job above all else.
He is good at his job, a fact that Miss Fisher quickly picks up. His stoic exterior hides a man of compassion and open-mindedness: even at his most doubtful of Miss Fisher, he never once suggests that his objections to her presence have anything to do with her gender; once he acknowledges her skills as a fellow detective, he becomes her primary ally.
All the same, he is also impervious to her attempts to manipulate him to suit herself, and quick to recognize when she is manipulating Hugh behind his back. He can hold his own in an argument with her, and is not easily shocked by her behavior, responding with wry wit, exasperation or amusement. Sooner or later, it will come in contact with the molten center of the Earth, and will blow up the whole world!
