As the opening episode of North Shore begins, a group of people party on a yacht. A body is found in the water. It is believed that the body is that of Sophie Chalcott who is the 19-year-old daughter of the British Trade and Industry Minister, Abigail Crawford. Max Drummond (John Bradley) speaks to Kilroy who asks if he has seen this. They’ve invited to send someone to Sydney to observe the investigation. There is no evidence of foul play yet, but the Chief Constable has asked for someone to volunteer. Max is told that he will be that person even though he has Michael Mason’s committal hearing in the morning. Max tells his wife and says he won’t go if she doesn’t want him to.

Before long, Max Drummond is on the plane heading to Australia. Max remembers Michael Mason’s flat being raided and a colleague possibly planting evidence on him. They all want Mason for murder so it is called a step in the right direction. Abigail Crawford (Joanne Froggatt) learns about Max Drummond coming to Australia to observe the investigation and the fact that they happen to be on the same flight. The Secretary of State recommends the man swap seats with Max so he can sit with her. Max joins her. Abigail has seen his CV and thinks it is impressive since he went to the university.

They begin talking about Sophie, but Max doesn’t know much and suggests it might’ve been a tragic accident. DS Meg Driscoll (Kirsty Sturgess) and DC Paea Leniu (Chris Alosio) speak to the man in charge of the autopsy to see what he can tell them. He admits it is difficult to say whether she was murdered. He will be able to tell them more after the autopsy, but has three in line before Sophie. Before they go, they learn that Sophie has swelling that could only occur before death. Max talks to Abigail about not having children although he is married. They tried for a baby, but Max thinks they might’ve decided to give up now. Abigail used to think there would be nothing worse than not having children.

She admits she is using valium and vodka to remain composed. Sophie used to complain about her composure. Abigail was 23 and had only just married when she had Sophie. Max tries to find out more about Sophie. As he looks through photos of Sophie, Abigail tells him more about her daughter. She wants to make sure Max will do everything he can to bring them to justice if someone was responsible for her death. DS Meg Driscoll tells DCI Andrew Newell (Rhys Muldoon) that he’ll have to tell the press they’re not sure pending further investigation. When asked about the bruise on her cheek, Andrew suggests it could’ve been caused during rough sex. He is going to give the case to Rob because she doesn’t have the experience.

Meg suggests the headlines will say the male boss believes the job is beyond the female cop. Andrew relents and agrees to let her handle the case. She learns that she’ll be dealing with the cop from London. When they get off the airplane, Max watches Greg Hardy (Matt Passmore) comfort Abigail. He is told that Greg is the leader of the Labor Party. Her husband is at the motel after flying in last night. Abigail introduces Greg to Max Drummond. They’re warned that there are cameras outside. Abigail understands Greg needs the publicity after slipping in the polls. Max meets his driver while Abigail goes to Simon (Dan Spielman). After a long wait at the station, Chief Inspector Andrew Newell introduces himself to Max Drummond.

Max is introduced to the rest of the team as they go through Sophie’s movements on the night in question. Meg is immediately not impressed with Drummond so she shakes her head. Paea tells everyone that Sophie and her boyfriend Tom disembarked the boat just after 10. When they split up, Sophie leaves with her friend Erica to go to a bar on Loftus Street. Sophie leaves alone at 11:12 PM and heads to the corner of Bridge Street. That is the last time she was seen. Erica claims Sophie told her she wanted to get some fresh air and she’d meet her at home, but she never made it back. Meg asks Drummond if he has been offered coffee. He says that’d be great.

Meg tells Lachie to show him how to use the coffee machine. Then, she is told that Sophie’s parents are ready to identify the body. As they leave, Max asks about tracking Sophie’s phone. He is told that she dropped it overboard while trying to take a selfie. Meg learns that 500 bucks was taken out of Sophie’s bank account eight hours after her body was found. Cindy is looking into getting CCTV. Abigail and Simon prepare to identify Sophie’s body. After seeing the body, Abigail quickly confirms it is Sophie and begins sobbing. She demands to know if they have any additional information so Meg says the autopsy confirmed there wasn’t any water in her lungs so she didn’t drown.

Sophie died before her body entered the water. The bruising on her cheek happened before she died and a tiny fragment of stone was found in a wound on the back of her head. It isn’t the type of rock found in the harbor. Meg explains that they’re now treating this as a murder case. Meg leaves them with Drummond who can escort them back to their motel. Max asks Meg about meeting up later so they can discuss the case. She eventually agrees to meet him later. Abigail wants to go see Sophie’s boyfriend Tom because she wants to make sure he had nothing to do with this. They go to Lloyd’s house. Simon admits he does some work for Lloyd. Although Abigail says he is an accountant, Simon says it is more than that since he does tax management and estate planning.

Max learns more about how Sophie met Tom. When Tom Macklin (Max Mayer-Rayment) sees them, he says he is so sorry. They’re introduced to his friend Oscar Aruzzi (Jonathan Lagudi) who came to offer his condolences. Max shakes Oscar’s hand and notices wounds on his knuckles. Tom learns that the police believe Sophie was murdered. Tom insists he doesn’t know what happened to her or where she went. Max asks why she went with Erica. Tom says Erica had a fight with Oscar. Lloyd Macklin (Rob Carlton) comes in to say he is sorry. Sophie worked as an intern at Lloyd’s company. Tom begins crying while saying he really loved her.

Later, Abigail gets off the phone with Mark and tells Simon that the Prime Minister sends his condolences. She asks Ben (George Pullar) to set up a meeting with her Australian counterpart so she can try to push the trade deal forward. She wants five minutes with Greg Hardy as well. Ben wonders if that is wise since she shouldn’t be seen as taking sides in the Australian election. Abigail says he is a family friend and will likely be the next Australian Prime Minister so there is no point in passing up an opportunity. Once Ben leaves, Simon complains about Abigail continuing on like nothing happened. Abigail says they have to be strong or this will destroy them.

Max speaks to his wife on the phone from his motel room. They talk about Meg who might feel threatened by him. Max suspects she isn’t the only one who doesn’t like him. Meg prepares to meet with Max who doesn’t show up. The next day, Meg watches the interview with Erica. Max apologizes to her and explains he fell asleep. She wonders if it is payback for not sending a car for him. Max tells her about the scratches Oscar had on his hand. Meg thinks he knows it is her first case and doesn’t trust her. When Max asks what he can do to help, she tells him to do nothing. Cindy Yoo (Cassandra Sorrell) shows them the CCTV footage she managed to get.

It shows that Erica withdrew the money using Sophie’s ATM card. Lachie is asked to talk to Sophie’s bank to see if her account has been used again. As for Max, he is told to finish watching the interviews. Abigail tries to speak with Greg before he leaves. Meg and Paea try to leave without Max only to find him in the backseat of the vehicle. In private, Abigail tells Greg that Sophie was his daughter. Sophie went to a doctor and learned that she had HCM which is a genetic condition. Abigail and Simon don’t have it though. Sophie realizes that Simon must not have been her father. She also knew about Greg. Abigail thought Greg had a right to know although Simon will always be Sophie’s father.

Max speaks to Erica’s neighbor and learns that the girls had a break-in about a week ago. Meg reminds him that he can’t question people because he doesn’t have jurisdiction. Greg talks to a colleague about the revelation. Sophie had already told him even though he didn’t tell Abigail that. Jordan told him he’d fix this and it is finished with. Paea says she went home to Tasmania for a couple of days and left a note for the cleaner. Lachie calls after getting Sophie’s statements. There was a 20,000 withdrawal from her savings account yesterday to EG Payton. They suspect it was Payton. Lachie is tasked with finding out whether she has left the country.

Max says it is a good thing they didn’t have her accounts frozen since they have a person of interest now.

 

North Shore Review

The opening episode of North Shore had a lot going on as it attempted to introduce a large cast of characters and set up the story around Sophie’s murder. As it settles down in future episodes and focuses more on the investigation, it may get better and become more enjoyable. However, there is a lot to dislike about the episode and possibly even the series as a whole.

For starters, it is hard to pinpoint anything that North Shore does differently although this may not be an issue for viewers who don’t watch a lot of television. A bigger problem could be the fact that there are no sympathetic characters so far. Max Drummond is portrayed as a sad sop while Meg Driscoll and Paea Leniu are slightly obnoxious bullies. Meg in particular came off as being very annoying and immature in this episode.

We’re also seeing some of the same people in the same roles they just recently played. Unfortunately, the episode didn’t inspire a lot of confidence that the next episodes will be any better or that the series will be memorable. It is really unfortunate because there are some talented actors and actresses in the cast.

The opening episode scores a 5 out of 10. Recaps of North Shore are available on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support our independent site at this link. Learn more about advertising on Reel Mockery here.