'Ms. Fisher's Modern Murder Mysteries' Season 2 Leans In to the Sexual Revolution

Acorn TV debuted the second season of Ms. Fisher's Modern Murder Mysteries this week, with the first episode landing on the service on June 7. The series, a spinoff of the beloved cult favorite Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, brings the period piece crime capers forward a generation, from the roaring 20s to the swinging 60s. The new season is comprised of eight episodes - four of which were available to screen for critics - and stars Geraldine Hakewill as the titular Peregrine Fisher, long lost half-niece of the late Hon. Phryne Fisher. But though the new season sees Peregrine much more confident in filling her aunt's shoes, the show is still trying to find its footing.

When Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries was canceled by Australia's ABC in 2015, it came at an ironic time. The series was not doing enough numbers in its home country of Australia to justify more episodes. (ABC had already attempted to cancel it once before after Season 2 but relented.) But overseas, the show was hitting its stride via Netflix, garnering a giant fanbase on the flip side of the globe. With lead actor Essie Davis no longer interested in filming full seasons down under but streamers like Acorn TV eager to license more episodes, ABC then commissioned Ms. Fisher's "MODern" Murder Mysteries in hopes of a streaming bump.

Unfortunately for ABC, that didn't happen, but luckily for everyone else, Acorn TV stepped in and picked up the slack. The new season is the first of the Fisher franchise bankrolled by the streamer, and some changes have come along with it. For one thing, the capitalization of "Modern" is no longer so "MOD" heavy. For another, the new episodes have been reduced from the overlong feature-length adventures of Season 1 back down to the far more manageable 45 minute run times of the original Miss Fisher episodes.