If you mix the breezy comedy style of Killing It with the criminal edge and Australian setting of Mr. InBetween, then you get the delightfully vicious Sunny Nights. Recently launched on Hulu, the crime comedy series is exactly what fans of the genre need right now, where you can get lost in the bizarre and surprisingly violent antics of a brother-sister duo trying to launch their start-up business in the spray-tan industry under the unforgiving sun of Sydney. Going into the series, you may be prepared for a slapstick comedy, especially since it stars **D’Arcy Carden *and Will Forte, but **Sunny Nights ***shocks you with a compelling crime narrative that unfolds steadily with greater stakes and gripping turns. It’s the perfect weekend binge (with an impressive 100% RT score) as it immerses you in the vibrant criminal underbelly of Australia with belly-aching laughs and a healthy dose of graphic violence.
Sunny Nights opens with the bizarre scene of a crocodile wandering through a sewage system and onto a golf course until a projectile hits it in a bloody and fleshy explosion; that pretty much sums up what to expect from this chaotic series. The mercurial Vicki (Carden) and her more orderly brother Martin (Forte) are in Sydney trying to sell their on-the-nose product, “Tansform,” but get caught up in the city’s criminal underworld after Martin accidentally goes on a date with the wrong woman, Susi (Jessica De Gouw). In an effort to survive, stay out of prison, and still launch their start-up, the sibling duo navigate the eclectic characters of the city and come across some of the most out-of-the-blue and merciless bursts of extreme violence.
What immediately hooks you into the series is the siblings’ dynamic, one that is equal parts fun and tension and carries us through to the end of the twisty narrative. Vicki has always been the black sheep of the family, often finding herself in trouble or in prison as she follows her impulses no matter how nonsensical they are. Meanwhile, Martin is the sensible risk analyst who left his previous job on this joint venture in Australia, with his own personal motivations of reconnecting with his ex-wife (Ra Chapman), who had moved there. Their personalities constantly clash (even if there’s an ongoing gag about people mistaking them for a couple), organically weaving in hilarious confrontations and banter littered with pitch-black comedy throughout their journey.
There are more things scarier than Australia’s wildlife.
We can rely on Carden and Forte to have impeccable comedic timing, but the actors also ensure we keep rooting for these characters throughout their questionable decisions. Carden’s Vicki is rough-around-the-edges and has a steely spine that makes her suit the criminal storyline (even if it also makes her a target) but it is layered with an irrevocable loyalty to her brother, despite their differences. On the other hand, Forte gives Martin a vulnerability beneath his straight-laced demeanor that earns our empathy very quickly. Together, the co-stars are a magnetic duo we simultaneously laugh at but admire for their sibling bond, especially as water-boarding, snow globes, and mascots threaten to fracture it.
The idea of tossing regular people into the treacherous pits of hitmans and loan sharks is not a new one, but Sunny Nights blends an Australian setting with its own quirky flair to spew out a vibrant underworld to get lost in. It presents us with a lived-in world where we are not subjected to arbitrary shots of the Opera House and has the grungy edge of an Australian crime drama, while also offering a dash of surrealism that takes advantage of the country’s icons like crocs and Tim Tams. We navigate the landscape through some creative scenes like a mouth’s POV of receiving an involuntary tooth extraction, peppering the sunny palette of the show with moments of horrific and excruciating pain.
The criminal underbelly itself is lined with a supporting cast, each memorable in their own right. De Gouw’s Susie is a highlight among them, capturing both the ruthlessness one must embody to survive and the wavering loyalties of someone who is trapped by ulterior motivations and extraneous circumstances. We also get the terrifying Mony (Rachel House), who holds fiercely onto her criminal legacy while her world falls apart, and the man-of-few-words Terry (Willie Manson), who has cracks on his surface that even we can sympathize with. The world is just as rich, complex, and intricate as the central storyline, one that is perfect for a weekend binge.
Sunny Nights is a show that has equal parts sun and gloom, where Carden and Forte’s comedic chops gives reprieve from a plot that becomes increasingly and deliciously twisted. At its core, it is a crime show that navigates moral complexities and bizarre scenarios, all while giving us a reason to chuckle when the shadows become too dark.
](/tag/tv-show/sunny-nights/)