Harry Wild is a cosy murder mystery series, filmed in Ireland, with Jane Seymour heading up the cast. Retired literature professor Harriet ‘Harry’ Wild is having a hard time adjusting to retirement and basically doing nothing. She is mugged one day, and her wallet is stolen, but, ever feisty, she tracks down and surprisingly befriends her young mugger, Fergus, played by the charming Rohan Need. One thing leads to another in the world of murder, mystery, and mayhem, and Harry picks up on a clue in her police detective son Charlie’s current case. Her resourceful new friend and Harry embark on solving the murder, which they do, and this opens the way for more cases, to the horror of her son and daughter-in-law and the delight of her granddaughter.
I am not a big fan of Jane Seymour despite her stellar career possibly because I never watched Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman and only ever saw her in Austenland as Mrs Wattlesbrooke. As Harry, Seymour comes across as quite brittle and cynical, and surprisingly awkward, which could be the fault of the script. It tries too hard to shock with a hip granny persona and there’s some sexing up of the character which is unnecessary and doesn’t work. Despite the lead being wobbly, sidekick Fergus is just delightful and has a modern teen approach to life, is very brave and would never abandon Harry in a tight situation, and is devoted to his adorable little sister Liberty, aka Stinker, who steals any scene in which she appears. Harry’s son Charlie is played by the handsome Kevin J. Ryan with exactly the right touch of exasperation one feels when a parent who should know better behaves badly. But he always comes through for his mum, which makes him very endearing.
The series is new and it’s clear there are some teething problems in transitions and staging, but only if you look for them. Social issues are touched on but there’s no wokery and shoving it down your throat. Harry aside (for now), the rest of the cast is perfect for each role. I will give Seymour the benefit of the doubt and say that with the next season, I think any rough edges will be smoothed over. It’s not a new idea having a senior female detective (look at Miss Marple for one), and at 71 Seymour is still very lovely. She is also not afraid to adopt a frumpy persona when undercover or in disguise, which happens quite often. I enjoyed the first season and will definitely watch the next one, now that Harry and Fergus have opened their Detective Agency and are taking on clients, need I say to the horror of her son and daughter-in-law and the delight of her granddaughter…
No comments:
Post a Comment