Miss Fisher fans should check out this reboot, preferably after being prepared for what's the same, and what isn't. Here are some key points:
1 - The scripts closely follow the original in both the mysteries and the players, with some East-West and temporal adjustments. The 30 episodes of Miss S's first season are clones of 15 tales from Phryne's first two seasons, stretched into 50+-minute two-parters. The more you remember from before, the less you'll be surprised by the outcomes. This one's set in the 1930s - a decade later than the former, reducing the carryover from World War I in everyone's backstories. They do include the running thread of the heroine's childhood trauma from the creep who abducted her sister.
2 - Miss S is wealthier than Phryne. Her mansion makes Miss F's elegant abode look like tract housing. Her car is more exotic, as well. The Shanghai sets and costumes in general are a bit more lavish than in the Australian original.
3 - The supporting players are quite similar. The new will-they-won't-they police inspector, Weiguang Gao, is more handsome than his counterpart, but even more of a stiff. A few characters repeat in diminished roles, like her aunt, doctor friend and butler. A huge bonus comes from the casting of her new assistant/protege. Guanjin Bu takes Dot's charming innocence to new heights. She's petite and absolutely adorable, making her growth in the job even more delightful. Her constable love interest is more of a dufus than the original's Hugh, adding to the comic element.
4 - The biggest difference between our eponymous women may be due to cultural constraints. Miss S. Is as bright, confident and worldy as Phryne, but more reserved in her degree of coquettishness. Her flirting is relatively tame; her amorous byplay virtually non-existent. She shows more leg, particularly in long Chinese dresses with deep side slits, but no decolletage. Miss S. Is also more of a damsel in distress during physical encounters, lacking the toughness and survival skills Phryne periodically summoned for self-defense. For Western viewers, that's quite a loss. Instead of Emma Peel's putative grandmother, we get a younger, hotter Jessica Fletcher.
I hope these comparisons help maximize your enjoyment of this charming series.
