Love the new Chief - Rodger Corser. Dislike the direction taken with the return of the wife. Also longed for Jean and Blake to finally find each other - they do a great job of solving mysteries together and I thought that might be the direction the series was taking us. The new Nick and Nora Charles - 1950 style. Disappointed with the unexplained appearance of his wife and it does not make sense to me. Blake could not find her for years, yet she can find him and get there - snapping her fingers? Where did she get the money?? Greatly Disappointed in this turn of events. Had Blakes's daughter appeared - maybe? Certainly would have thrown in some complications for Blake. Disliked seeing Joel Tobeck and Cate Wolfe leave the series - especially Cate. She has been such an interesting character in the series and thought she and Charlie might become more than friends.... BUT THE RETURN OF THE WIFE IS NOT WORKING FOR ME -AT ALL.:(
7 Reviews
Charlies Cousins is Good Actor
paulavery29 December 2017
The actor is definitely a spunky guy! I hope there are more shows sent to the U.S. with him as a main character. Enjoy Dr. Blake Mysteries, too bad there is not going to be more seasons according to the Daily Mail. Saw this episode on the Public Broadcasting Channel. The show is an exciting window on some of 1950's Australian Culture.
The Relationship Continues
Hitchcoc15 July 2018
The good doctor comes home and is immediately called to the scene of a murder. During a lull between a certain type of race, a man's body is found dragged under one of the cars. Apparently, there is some considerable rivalry here and Doctor Blake begins to piece together evidence. Unfortunately, during the pursuit of the murderer, the Captain suffers a severe leg injury. We are also kept in the dark concerning Doctor Blake's relationship with Jean. I never was totally submerged in this series but it is fun to be watching the characters once more.
The open road
iainmact3 May 2017
Love the series so far but do have difficulty with inaccuracies. I could get under my fathers FE Holden without a jack, also the FE/FC series Holden had a fuel consumption of 21.5 mpg not 10 as suggested. Maybe the writers could get more accurate information by contacting the local Holden car club.
Deadly motor racing
TheLittleSongbird1 May 2018
'The Doctor Blake Mysteries' may not quite be among my favourite shows of all time, but it's a riveting series that keeps getting better and one of the better detective drama shows in recent years. It is always fascinating to see a mystery series from outside England and America, and 'The Doctor Blake Mysteries' is one of the better examples.
Unfortunately, 'The Doctor Blake Mysteries' tends to be buried within daytime television scheduling, both on the BBC when first getting into it three or so years ago and on not as much watched channel (i.e. Alibi). It also tends to be aired at a time where most people will be at school or work, for me it was during sporadic periods when not needing to go into music college. The series deserves much better than that when it has consistently been one of the better shows to be aired in the early afternoon.
Season 4 gets off to a very good start with "The Open Road", albeit there are far better episodes of 'The Doctor Blake Mysteries' including all the episodes of the previous season. Not that there is much wrong with it per se, it just lacks the extra something of the best episodes, ones that had more tension, poignancy, darkness and a more personal nature. It is agreed that there are some sloppy inaccuracies regarding cars, considering that the mystery is centred around them it was not easy to ignore or forgive. Though am not going to mark the episode down harshly just because of that.
Am glad to see the back of Munro. His combative relationship with Blake did get finally more interesting in the last two episodes of the previous season, but the character with his cold fish nature never did it for me.
By now, 'The Doctor Blake Mysteries' felt like it had found its feet and had established things well by this point. Relationships and characters continue to deepen, the mysteries are even twistier and the pace has more lustre.
Like the rest of 'The Doctor Blake Mysteries', "The Open Road" is exceptionally well made. The post-war period is beautifully evoked in the sumptuous but also atmospheric settings and scenery and charming costumes and period detail. It is beautifully shot and atmospherically lit, the dark grey-ish tinge being very appropriate and adding much to the overall feel of the episode. It is scored sensitively and the haunting theme tune gets embedded in the brain, while the direction is suitably restrained.
Writing continues to be very good with the tone established very well. There is great thought-provoking dialogue that always makes the mystery elements interesting but the atmosphere doesn't ever feel too grim. The story is riveting, suspensefully written and you care about having it solved. The solution is not obvious nor is it too complicated, very neat without being too pat. The characters are well written and more than just stereotypes, Lucien Blake still has it in how fascinating a character he is.
Craig McLachlan is superb in the role as well, quite possibly his best role and certainly the best acting he's ever done. He seemed an unlikely choice at first, but the character suits him perfectly. All the acting is very good actually, and seldom if ever any less. The relationships between the characters are well worth investing in.
In conclusion, very good and could have been great if more thought was put into the accuracy side of things. 8/10 Bethany Cox
Unfortunately, 'The Doctor Blake Mysteries' tends to be buried within daytime television scheduling, both on the BBC when first getting into it three or so years ago and on not as much watched channel (i.e. Alibi). It also tends to be aired at a time where most people will be at school or work, for me it was during sporadic periods when not needing to go into music college. The series deserves much better than that when it has consistently been one of the better shows to be aired in the early afternoon.
Season 4 gets off to a very good start with "The Open Road", albeit there are far better episodes of 'The Doctor Blake Mysteries' including all the episodes of the previous season. Not that there is much wrong with it per se, it just lacks the extra something of the best episodes, ones that had more tension, poignancy, darkness and a more personal nature. It is agreed that there are some sloppy inaccuracies regarding cars, considering that the mystery is centred around them it was not easy to ignore or forgive. Though am not going to mark the episode down harshly just because of that.
Am glad to see the back of Munro. His combative relationship with Blake did get finally more interesting in the last two episodes of the previous season, but the character with his cold fish nature never did it for me.
By now, 'The Doctor Blake Mysteries' felt like it had found its feet and had established things well by this point. Relationships and characters continue to deepen, the mysteries are even twistier and the pace has more lustre.
Like the rest of 'The Doctor Blake Mysteries', "The Open Road" is exceptionally well made. The post-war period is beautifully evoked in the sumptuous but also atmospheric settings and scenery and charming costumes and period detail. It is beautifully shot and atmospherically lit, the dark grey-ish tinge being very appropriate and adding much to the overall feel of the episode. It is scored sensitively and the haunting theme tune gets embedded in the brain, while the direction is suitably restrained.
Writing continues to be very good with the tone established very well. There is great thought-provoking dialogue that always makes the mystery elements interesting but the atmosphere doesn't ever feel too grim. The story is riveting, suspensefully written and you care about having it solved. The solution is not obvious nor is it too complicated, very neat without being too pat. The characters are well written and more than just stereotypes, Lucien Blake still has it in how fascinating a character he is.
Craig McLachlan is superb in the role as well, quite possibly his best role and certainly the best acting he's ever done. He seemed an unlikely choice at first, but the character suits him perfectly. All the acting is very good actually, and seldom if ever any less. The relationships between the characters are well worth investing in.
In conclusion, very good and could have been great if more thought was put into the accuracy side of things. 8/10 Bethany Cox
Who Wrote This Rubbish?
jamesmoule29 February 2016
The first rule of writing is "Write about what you know." This episode continues the tradition of total disregard for historical accuracy. I can hear the producers saying "No-one will notice that". Anyone of my age will know that the Redex / Ampol car trials did not have more than half of their entrants driving Vanguards. I had to laugh at a preview: "Fast women, fast cars" - (show Series 1 Elephant Standard Vanguard, surely the slowest car every built). At one point during a post Mortimer examination, a doctor confidently identifies the marks on a dead man's chest as having been caused by a Vanguard or a Holden. No doubt her medical training involved dropping cars on people and learning the bruising patterns thus produced. At the climax, the villain lowers a jack, allowing a Holden to trap the good doctor and threaten his life. In truth, these cars had enough ground clearance to permit a mechanic to slide underneath without the car being on a jack. There were other examples those mentioned above give the general idea. I guess Stuart Page, the writer, is under 30 and thinks that everyone who is likely to watch the show is as ignorant as he is about cars.
The Open Road
Prismark1026 November 2018
Doctor Blake does not know much about cars. When a mechanic is found dead as the angry race driver drove off dragging his body, he needs to use his investigative skills that tells him that the mechanic had died well before this time.
The Open Road takes place during a famous road race. There has been sabotage. Doctor Blake may not be familiar with cars but his assistant seems like a forensic wizz.
The opening episode of the fourth series starts off decently enough, there is tension. The period setting looks great. Craig Mclachlan has become a better actor since his Neighbours days. It never goes above average to me.
The Open Road takes place during a famous road race. There has been sabotage. Doctor Blake may not be familiar with cars but his assistant seems like a forensic wizz.
The opening episode of the fourth series starts off decently enough, there is tension. The period setting looks great. Craig Mclachlan has become a better actor since his Neighbours days. It never goes above average to me.
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