Netflix isn’t short of great TV shows to watch in June, but the one new miniseries that stands out from the pack is The Survivors.
This Australian drama has already become one of the most popular shows on Netflix, and it could even rise to the No. 1 spot.
The show is based on Jane Harper‘s 2020 novel of the same name, and it stars Charlie Vickers as Kieran Elliott, a man who lost three people close to him in a tragic incident 15 years before the main story. Kieran’s brother, Finn (Remy Kidd), and their friend, Toby (Talon Hopper), drowned. But the fate of their third friend, Gabby (Eloise Rothfield), is less clear.
In the present, Kieran musters up the courage to come home after years away, with his romantic partner, Mia Chang (Yerin Ha), and their infant child by his side. Bronte (Shannon Berry), a young woman from out of town, takes the opportunity to start asking questions about what really happened to Gaby 15 years ago. And that’s why the ensuing discovery of Bronte’s body kicks off a gripping story across six episodes.
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The Series Sets Up Two Interconnected Mysteries
Once Bronte’s body is found in the first episode, it not only sparks an investigation in the present, but it also revives interest in what happened to Gabby 15 years earlier. That puts Kieran and Mia in the heart of the unfolding mysteries, even as it dredges up some hard feelings among his family.
One of the reasons the tension is so thick in Evelyn Bay is that this is a small town where everyone knows everybody. That makes the suspicion and paranoia particularly enjoyable to watch, because the community is no longer sure who to blame for the parallel tragedies. Kieran has shouldered a lot of that burden for half of his life, and it’s only going to get heavier when the clues start leading close to home.
The Emotional Stakes Are High
The biggest conflict in this series isn’t between Kieran and the unseen killer, or even Kieran and the townspeople who have judged him for years. Instead, it’s between Kieran and his mother, Verity (Robyn Malcolm), the woman who has never let him forget that she blames him for the death of his brother.
Sometimes, Verity is content to be passive-aggressive towards her only remaining son. And there are other times when she doesn’t hide what she’s feeling. Her condemnation of Kieran mirrors his own inner turmoil and the blame he places on himself. They’ve both been carrying this inside for too long, and it’s going to come to a head.
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Ha also deserves a shout-out for her turn as Mia, because she has to deal with a lot of the emotional fallout. Not just between Kieran and his mother, but also the tension that he turns towards her. Mia is also treated like an unwelcome outsider by the rest of the town, possibly because she’s Asian. That adds another wrinkle to Mia’s refusal to abandon Kieran when things get tough.
‘The Survivors’ Has a Satisfying Ending
Without giving away the ending for The Survivors, we can say that this is a miniseries rather than an ongoing Netflix original. That means there is no cliffhanger ending, and the show isn’t trying to rope you into watching another season. By the end of these six episodes, you’ll know the full story of what happened in the past, who killed Bronte and how it all ties together.
More importantly, the conclusion provides emotional closure for the story. After this miniseries, there’s no reason to revisit Evelyn Bay, but it won’t be because the show didn’t deliver a thrilling tale as promised.
The Survivors is streaming on Netflix.
