Marcus Graham starred as ex-cop Elvis Maginnis, who combined running a dry cleaning business (with his mother-figure offsider Stella) with a spot of amateur sleuthing. He was a bit like Terry in Minder, skirting the law to ensnare shysters and killers who harmed his friends.
On its debut in 1997, the Melbourne-based series was hailed as the smartest and sassiest home-grown show on Australian commercial TV. There was terrific music and photography, some clever comedy to offset the action, and tantalising offbeat plots.
But episodes in the second season became too far-fetched, with too many coincidences where Elvis just happened to be in the right place at the right time. And there were jumps in the plot that were breathtakingly incomprehensible.
The show became more like a music video than a crime drama, with the producers seemingly deciding that the crime-of-the-week was simply a vehicle for hip dialogue, wobble-cam, and moody music, and that the plot was purely secondary.
Guest stars included John Waters, Belinda Giblin, Bruce Spence, Val Lehman, Ben Mendelsohn, Mary Coustas, Gil Tucker, Asher Keddie, Magda Szubanski, Tracy Mann, Frankie J Holden, Alyce Platt, Stefan Dennis, Vince Colosimo, Marg Downey, Annie Jones, Chris Haywood and Red Symons.
Elvis Maginnis
Marcus Graham Stella Kinsella
Alison Whyte Reuben Zeus
Travis McMahon Dermott Maginnis
Samuel Johnson
But episodes in the second season became too far-fetched, with too many coincidences where Elvis just happened to be in the right place at the right time. And there were jumps in the plot that were breathtakingly incomprehensible.
