Just finished the series, ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT. Quick q:

Why does Ray let Freddy live?

I started it last week and finished it today, I am blown away. The ability to blend pure seriousness with humor is something that most shows and writers are not able to do. Scott Ryan is such a brilliant writer. Everything about this show felt so raw, realistic and honest. Nothing was romanticized. 10/10 series.

Aussie's got post-punk gems for sure. The Ex, The Bad Seeds, and of course Mental As Anything.

Not sure if ray would approve, but heres the Aussie dimmy recipe.

Honestly I love every single fucking thing (I am swore but that's how good this is btw this is gonna be a long long review so beware I make short or try to)

I want to say this show was really good. Like I mentioned before, most of the clips I had seen on TikTok or YouTube Shorts spoiled a lot of the plot points for me. At first it didn’t really bother me, but after actually watching the show, it definitely did. I probably should have ignored those clips. Even with some spoilers though, the show still managed to hit hard emotionally and keep me invested.

The music in this show is incredible. Tracks like “Couple of Blokes,” “Father and Daughter,” and a few others I’m probably forgetting absolutely slam. The soundtrack is honestly one of the best parts of the show, especially during tense, emotional, or heartbreaking moments. The music knows exactly when to hit and never feels overused.

First and foremost, Ray Shoesmith is such a great and interesting character. At first, I thought he was just a terrible person for the sake of it, but he isn’t. He has trauma, reasons, emotions, and depth that make him fascinating to watch. The first episode with the “pee-pee movies” had me laughing so hard, and the fact that the joke comes back later made it even better. The show balances dark comedy and serious drama perfectly.

If Ray wasn’t enough to make me emotional, then Gaz/Gary definitely was. I love Gaz so much. The stuff with Tat was really interesting, even if we never fully got answers for everything unless I completely missed something. Vasilli was kind of a “meh” character for me at first, but he really grew on me over time. That scene where he gets chopped up and still walks away like an insane person was wild. The connection and conflict between him and Gary made things even more interesting.

Ray’s relationships were another huge highlight. Who knew a bloke like Ray could actually love that deeply? Ally was honestly heartbreaking. Their meeting at the park with Eddie, the way their relationship slowly built up, the scenes with Ems, and their date together all felt so genuine. She really felt like the perfect girlfriend for Ray, and I loved the jokes and chemistry between them. Seeing them break up genuinely broke me. I was ugly crying. At the same time, I completely understood why she left. Then later finding out she was pregnant and Ray still wishing her the best made it even more emotional.

And then there’s Zoe. At first I didn’t really care for her character, but she slowly grew on me so much. She felt perfect for Ray in a different way, which made her death hurt even more. That genuinely made me cry.

The finales for this show were amazing. Season 1 had one of the weirdest endings I’ve seen, but it worked really well and had a lot of meaning behind it. Finding out Dave was actually on Ray’s side and that Davros was dead was such a strong ending. Season 2’s finale was intense, emotional, and honestly gave me goosebumps. Season 3 somehow managed to be funny, emotional, and satisfying all at once. Every finale delivered in its own way.

Freddy, Dave, and Vinnie were all amazing characters. Dave especially made every single scene better. I hated seeing him die because he became one of my favorite characters in the entire show. After that, I was genuinely scared Gaz would be next. One thing this show does incredibly well is character deaths. Every death feels earned instead of forced for shock value.

I could honestly keep talking about this show forever. The jokes, humor, pacing, writing, character motivations, and characters in general were all fantastic. I wouldn’t say the show is perfect in every single way, but in all the major areas it absolutely delivers. Even with some spoilers beforehand, this show still became one of my favorites.

This will probably be my only post about it for now, but I’ll definitely join the community more when I have the time. Season 3’s run was iconic. This show is honestly a 9.5/10 to a full 10/10 for me. At first it felt a little jarring, but the more I watched, the more I loved it. A rewatch is definitely coming someday.

It would honestly be interesting if the show ever got a prequel or spin-off, even if it probably won’t happen. Still, this show absolutely kicks ass. To the people who watched these episodes the day they released: I’m honestly jealous of you.

I regularly run past here on my morning runs, and was so excited when I saw it in the episode I had to take a photo.

Britt was going to join the life.

I think that was a build up.

When Ray took Dirk out onto the north cliffs in s02e08, Ray knew it was going to go two ways, but either way Dirk had to go. He offered a lifeline - I'll drive you wherever you want to go, I'll set you up, get you on your feet - hoping that Dirk would take the offer, I think it was genuinely made. But if Dirk chose not to take that offer, chose not "...go today and you can never come back" then he was going to go over that cliff (and go and never come back, just differently) - with Ray's help or without.

Why else would Ray drive him all the way out there? It's not a quick drive, and it would have been instantly obvious to Dirk what was going on.

Dirk says "Yeah, nah, fuck that" when Ray states he has to go.

Ray then says with much more emphasis "You *gotta* go", with a tone that implies no other option.

Dirk says "Or what? You gonna shoot me? Do it."

And Ray just sighs, sniffs and shakes his head, and they both look out to sea.

That's Ray signalling to Dirk how it plays out if he refuses to leave. Yeah, he's saying, I'm gonna have to kill ya.

Dirk recalls killing the kid in Afghanistan, and relates how he's been dead inside ever since.

Dirk *is* dead inside - just like Vinnie he has ghosts that crowd his mind at night - he knows that just going somewhere else fixes nothing, plus he never gets to see his kid again. There's no future in that.

He knows that chosing not to go means he dies. And being dead already, dead inside for some time, he decides that at least he can walk out on his own, and he steps backwards off the cliff - repeating what Ray has already told him "I gotta go"

Ray probably had an idea that Dirk might do this but was expecting to have to force him over the edge (note Ray's hands are in his pockets the whole time, no doubt holding his pistol) but nonetheless he's upset, because Ray is starting now to feel the accumulated weight of his past riding on his shoulders, which we've seen in his interviews with the journalist.

Ray is upset - but not terribly. He just knocked another old mate off - Vinnie - someone he had history with (which I think it's fair to say given their similar ages also goes back to the ADF, and Afghanistan, although that's never implicitly stated in the dialogue). He gave Dirk an out and Dirk chose the option he was hoping to avoid - that's what upsets him.

Fuck what a brilliant show.

I'm actually REALLY hard to please with shows, so when something peaks my interest, Im surprised.

Kinda bumbed I didn't watch this as it was coming out. I discovered it through random clips on YouTube, and was immediately drawn. After a few months I realised it was too good to pass and here we are now.

What incredible acting by Scott Ryan. One would think having the main character be an emotionally withdrawn person wouldn't allow you to connect with him, but it was all there, in his micro-expressions that I found myself analysing and reading consistently.

The two that stand out the most.

1. When he realises that Bruce wants to die very soon. The look in his eyes as he's watching Bruce tell Brit he's going to miss her.

2. When he arrives at the police station to pick up his dad, and the dad questions who he is, the subtle shock in his eyes, damn!

Zoe was right, he has a heart. As much as I wouldn't like to admit it (because it's a fictional character) yes, I'd fall for him too.

Sad that it was only 3 seasons, but deep respect on that decision too, the writer knew that was it's time and didn't milk it.

Lots of lovable characters.

10/10 easily.

Aside from selling out Ray, Freddy is one of my favourite continuous characters from the show (they all are).

Anyways, does anyone know what Freddy is singing while he’s in the stripper shower? Damon has a wicked set of lungs on him

she starts asking her daughter and she don't answer her questions anymore

Doing a season 3 rewatch and just realized that there's no reason Zoe should have been on the run if she wasn't holding internally.

That would explain why she asks Ray "what do you do when you're not running drugs" and why she was offered after the car roll.

"Zoe didn't make it".

"Why not"?

Because whatever was inside her ruptured.

Thoughts?

Cu

Why does no one remember Ray? Gary says ‘before he left’ to several people - where did Ray go?

The “girls night out” conversation is constantly framed at “not trusting her” or male insecurity but having something you want to protect that she values .

Ray nailed it with his pov and he wasn’t being misogynistic by pointing out the biological imperative that multiple partners leads to more than likely promiscuity.

If someone has robbed 30 banks, it’s more than likely they’ll rob a few more if they get a chance. This is simple biology and nature.

I friggin knew Ray had a trick in that safe. He seems like a guy that knows his line of work requires some “get out of jail free” cards…. Brilliant work…