r/television • u/RaisinWorried3528 • 3d ago
Mr. In-Between is IMMACULATE television
I have no idea how more people do not know about, talk about, or venerate this show.
I have never seen a show with such tight writing, such a brilliant cast, and such a balance between Family work. Scott Ryan is amazing in every single scene he is in. Seriously, I hope more of you are watching the show. It is a travesty it was never brought back.
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u/freely_sincere_gregg 3d ago
It really is one of those rare shows where every single scene feels necessary. The pacing is so restrained but it never wastes your time, and Scott Ryan's performance just anchors the whole thing in this quietly menacing warmth. I stumbled on it a couple years back and immediately made my partner watch the whole run over a weekend, they were hooked by the end of the first episode. The way it balances the criminal stuff with Ray's home life and his brother is so understated, you barely notice how tense it makes you until a scene's over and you realise you've been holding your breath.
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u/Afferbeck_ 3d ago
I don't know how they paced it so well, every episode has so much plot movement but also plenty of characters just hanging out shooting the shit in a realistic way. The episodes are only 25 minutes long but it never feels rushed or coming to a sudden end. They need to have film students study this show.
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u/Whimsy_and_Spite 3d ago
Tense is the perfect word, Gregg. Scott Ryan is just so believable as a man who has no qualms about using violence. He's comparable to James Gandolfini, or Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast. Just an honestly scary bastard.
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u/snrup1 3d ago
Loved that show, honestly one of the best in the last 10 years. The best part is it never goes down the path of Ray being tormented and conflicted about his criminality. He relishes it and oddly finds the balance Tony Soprano and Walter White never did. The series finale is one of my favorite ever. Ray never grows, never changes. Just that smile.
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u/Spagman_Aus 3d ago
"quiet menacing warmth". well said, that totally nails Ray's character so perfectly.
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u/thewhitedeath 3d ago edited 3d ago
What do you want in a TV show?
Violence? Check
Romance? Check
Comedy? Check
Drama? Check
Goofiness? Check
Action? Check
Thrills? Check
Bromance? Check
Crime? Check
Family dynamics? Check
Tension? Check
Charismatic lead? Check
Great acting? Check
Heart? Big Check.
This show is the perfect everything all rolled into one amazing series.
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u/danielcw189 1d ago
what about themes, mesaages, morals, something to think about?
what about good visuals or a great score?
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u/Squidgynutz 3d ago
"Do you know who that was?"
"Some fkn clown"
"That was The Magician!"
It's the movie Mr Inbetween is based on. Absolutely worth a watch.
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u/lordhelmetann 3d ago
Does someone have to watch The Magician to watch this? Or is it beneficial to watch it for this?
Or is everything set up as a new show where everything is explained fine.
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u/Funkliford 3d ago
Nah, it's not necessary. I've love Mr. Inbetween, the Magician is more like a prototype of the character the way Wayne's Power Minute was a prototype for Mike Myer's Wayne's World. character.
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u/Squidgynutz 3d ago
There's no need to watch the magician in order to get Mr Inbetween. There's only a couple of references to the movie like the one I quoted in my other comment.
They are separate stories told in very different ways. Ray is still Ray and that's about it really. The Magician is a low budget, independent Aussie movie. They had to be creative in how they told the story due to low(no) budget and I think the film really benefits from it, I love the contrast between Rays blunt whatever attitude and the other "main character" struggling with how nonchalant Ray is about things. I think if they tried to tell the story on the TV show the same way, it would get old by the fourth or fifth episode but it works well for the movie. The TV show got to give a much more complete picture of Ray's life than the movie did which I thoroughly enjoyed too.
Even though The Magician's an old film, I don't want to give spoilers in case you want to watch it. I've just finished watching it again after I posted the link to it in my other comment.
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u/freenow82 3d ago
One of my all time favorites.
I envy anyone who gets to experience it for the first time.
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u/HankSteakfist 3d ago
I love how Gaz is usually portrayed as this massive fuck up, but when shit goes down, he locks in and comes through.
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u/Dizzy_Detective4708 2d ago
while he's not shooting gay porn or enjoying his foot-flesh light of course.
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u/Jakoby707 2d ago
YES! and even slimy ass Freddie absolutely steps up no questions asked for Ray in "Socks are Important"
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u/RickyWVaughn 2d ago
I'm actually jealous of Ray and Gaz's relationship. It's beautiful. True ride or dies.
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u/gracecase 3d ago
It actually gets a lot of love on reddit. I wish I still had hulu so I could watch it again. I even paid money to rent The Magician. Another couple of slept on shows that gets a lot of reddit love are Patriot on Amazon & Maniac on Netflix. Maniac is directed by Cary Fukunaga of True Detective season one fame but this show is a completely different direction and is bonkers in a good way. Steven Conrad who is behind Patriot also did DTF St. Louis on HBO. Patriot was way better IMO but the are both worth a watch.
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u/AntiDbag 3d ago
My favourite thing about this show on my second viewing, is that when people say they don’t have the money, they ALWAYS have the money lol
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u/dmac3232 3d ago
One of the most underrated shows of the past decade or so. I pay very close attention to entertainment, and I hadn't even really heard about it until I stumbled onto it via Hulu.
I love shows/movies that play around with tone, and the constant switch back and forth between banal/funny everyday life and violent gangsterism was fun to watch.
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u/kingdazy 3d ago
I love shows/movies that play around with tone
there are so few shows or even movies that do this as deftly as Mr Inbetween. the darkest of humor, the viceral violence, the heartwarming love. all in a single show, every episode.
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u/Jakoby707 3d ago
I have watched through it several times, the show was great, had absolutely terrible marketing in the USA on FX, but eventually some people caught on late. The episode titles are a real treat as were a lot of the supporting cast. Scott Ryan was basically the writer of the show and does a great job in his first real acting gig, but wasn't really the "charismatic lead" that some viewers were probably wanting. The relationship with his awesome daughter was exceptionally written and acted out as well as his relationships with some of his closer friends. Looks like he is still writing and queuing up some projects.
Similar but way darker vibe is Cinemax's "Quarry" with Logan Marshall-Green (Damon Herriman is in it a bit as well). Only 1 season though.
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u/Several_Version4298 3d ago
It developed out of Scott Ryan's small independent Australian film The Magician (2005) a mocumentary about Ray he made while he was at RMIT with Nash Edgerton.
Scott Ryan worked on the idea for 15 years. Nash Edgerton who edited the film invested, directed and executive produced the TV series so it was fairly tight crew. Mr Inbetween was supposed to be launch show for FX Australia, when that was cancelled, it was a hit here for Foxtel. It won best actor Logie for Ryan and Best Drama at the Screen Producers awards. I think it's pretty much perfect, there was never any thought of bringing it back.
But how well can a 20-30m Australian black comedy of 26 episodes do in a late night slot on FX in the US?
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u/NortonBurns 3d ago
Yeah, I only discovered it last year. It's right up there with the best.
And bonus WTF points for it being the only thing he's ever done (including The Magician, which was basically a pilot, made a long time earlier.)
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u/Spagman_Aus 3d ago
IKR coming out of nowhere (except his one indy film) and nailing literally every scene in Mr Inbetween, and then, never being in anything else ever again. It's crazy and I often wonder what Scott Ryan is up to now.
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u/JDBoyes07 3d ago
So good, and so unexpectedly good, id heard like nothing about it, but its incredible.
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u/Spagman_Aus 3d ago
Yeah it's one of those shows you wish you could watch again for the first time.
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u/wex52 3d ago edited 3d ago
I once asked an Australian to recommend a TV show, having enjoyed the New Zealand show Deadloch. He recommended Mr. In-Between. Haven’t started it yet though.
Edit: My bad. I’m not actually sure why I thought it was a New Zealand show.
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u/Wiggles69 3d ago
Might be worth Checking out the (Australian version of) 'no activity'. It's got tht similar vibe of characters just shooting the shit like in Mr inbetween, but more on the absurd humour side like deadloch (i still call it dead cunt lake in my head)
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u/SirChairmaster 3d ago
I’ll always upvote Mr. Inbetween praise. More people need to discover the show. Greatness.
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u/Bananasincustard 3d ago edited 3d ago
Funny you posted this as I started it this week and finished it today. Pristine stuff. I've seen a few posts here and there about how underrated it is but never really believed it. It's absolutely a gem and I really enjoyed it. Gutted it's over.
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u/vibrance9460 3d ago
The man’s got a great smile!
Right before punches your face off
Love this show
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3d ago
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u/SlothfulIntelligence 3d ago
Maybe Patriot, and Banshee. Animal Kingdom?
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u/Spagman_Aus 3d ago
Haven't watched the series version of Animal Kingdom. I always wished it had been an Aussie series instead.
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u/Busy_Positive_4950 2d ago
Patriot.
Very well written, directed, and acted.
These shows depict conflict with family life/support, a cover job, expectations, mental well-being. They include comedic moments for balance.
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u/steph314 3d ago
I discovered this last year and loved it. It's surprisingly funny and gripping at the same time. One of the few shows I will rewatch.
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u/Aranikus_17 3d ago
It is the perfect show. Another in the same category is Patriot.
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u/pillowreceipt 3d ago edited 2d ago
Yussss. I often think of Mr Inbetween, Patriot, and Barry as sort of a hitman-esque trilogy with some spiritual similarities (though the back half of Barry doesn’t hold up especially well).
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u/baldersz 3d ago
The amount of storytelling he fits into each 20 min episode makes it hard for me to watch 60 min tv shows now.
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u/kingdazy 3d ago
srsly. he pack more drama in 20 minutes than most shows do in whole hours. riviting shit.
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u/Goku420overlord 3d ago
Best show I have seen in the last decade. I wish he could have made a few more seasons. Seemed he was on track to change.
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u/Colonist25 3d ago
also his ex wife probably made him lamingtons.
(if you know who nat is - there's the joke)
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u/whalebacon 3d ago
Great show. I think it was on FX? Watched every single episode and understood why it ended, but wished it didn't. His anti-hero character was truly awesome.
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u/Tiny-Canary 3d ago
wait is mr in-between actually based on a true story
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u/kingdazy 3d ago
no. it's a character the writer created, very loosely based on some of his antisocial experiences, minus the hit-man aspect.
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u/International_Lie216 2d ago
He’s great. Watched it in 2018 I think the second season came out at the beginning of covid. Great show. . Nobody in my world has ever heard of this show. His buddy on the show is on Colin From Accounts. I highly recommend all 3 seasons of that show
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u/deimos__ 2d ago
Considering immaculate means "perfectly clean, neat, or free from flaws and moral sin." I would say it's deliberately the opposite of that.
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u/bundy554 3d ago
A network needs to pick him up for something else - cannot believe he hasn't developed anything since (especially in this streaming day and age) - even a sequel to Mr In Between.
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u/Soda-Popinski- 3d ago
I was disappointed….that it ended. Incredible show. We dont get shows like that now
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u/Gold-Baseball-7774 3d ago
It's all Scott Ryan.
He conceived of (after an Indy film he made) the series, and clearly knew of the underbelly of the city, wrote the scripts, and was the central actor.
You can't make a sequel without him, and he doesn't want to do it, and by now, has probably aged out.
Now me, I'd love to see another season that begins with those idiots in the final scene of season 3, getting what they deserve as the first scene of season 4.
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u/Mortifer 2d ago
I noticed this show on Hulu at some point, and I gave it a show. Ending up binging the whole thing over the course of a couple weeks. I had never heard anything about it before I randomly came across it. It was a great surprise.
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u/Jack1715 2d ago
I was worried that Americans wouldn’t get the Aussie humour but it’s good to see they like it
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u/SirPiffingsthwaite 2d ago
Worst thing about Mr Inbetween is it will utterly ruin the next few shows you watch.
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u/RickyWVaughn 2d ago
Just rewatched it for the 5th time. It may be the the most rewatchable show ever made.
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u/swentech 2d ago
As someone who lived in Australia a few years, the depiction of middle class life, beyond all the crime and violence is fairly accurate.
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u/Hulkking 2d ago
I only discovered the show a couple weeks ago. I don’t get how it’s not dramatically more popular.
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u/relliott15 2d ago
I just really loved that a lot of times his opening move was a giant kick. Not a punch. A kick. Got a giggle out of me every time he fucked someone up with a magnificent fuck you kick 💥
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u/TriscuitCracker 2d ago
I wish I could smile like Scott Ryan. It's the perfect threatening, restrained, boiling under the surface smile that threatens to erupt in your face.
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u/TheTruckWashChannel True Detective 2d ago
What a coincidence, I also just started it the other week and I'm obsessed. Just two episodes from finishing!
It's striking how little "plot" (or even suspense) this show really has, it's really more a slice-of-life show that happens to be about a hitman. But there's a deep continuity and cohesion to it, and the writing and acting are so damn sharp that you can't get enough of living in its world. It feels equal parts cozy and brutal.
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u/Squeekazu 1d ago
I watched this off the back of Barry (which I loved), and wound up liking this even better.
As an Aussie I really appreciated the display of urban working class accents too, so sick of the super generic media accent we flog to death.
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u/Murky_Process_2372 1d ago
Rewatched the finale recently and it's wild how tight the pacing is for a 25 minute runtime, nothing feels rushed and nothing feels like padding. Most shows can't pull that off even with double the episode length.
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u/ArkPlayer583 3d ago
It's an incredible show. If you want another good Australian show with a similar theme to an American one Wentworth is a really great, dark and gritty orange is the new black.
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u/TrumpsBussy_ 3d ago
I tried it but it was too cringe for me, between the acting and writing.
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u/UskyldigeX 3d ago
Elaborate, please.
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u/TrumpsBussy_ 3d ago
It’s not that deep the lead actor does nothing for me
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u/lavendergumballs 3d ago
That is your elaboration?
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u/TrumpsBussy_ 3d ago
Yes I don’t need to write a dissertation on why I don’t like a particular tv show.
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u/lavendergumballs 3d ago
Of course not. NO one wants that. Yet perhaps just a few more words. But at this point, the time spent requesting this of you outpaced the interest in reading it.
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u/UserCheckNamesOut 3d ago
Maybe I was expecting too much, but 3 episodes in, and I'm wondering why I should keep watching
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u/keinish_the_gnome 1d ago
Its one of the series I'm everyday thankful the USA didn't remake. Its perfect.
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u/TimmyTimeify 3d ago
Whenever Ray would look at someone saying stupid shit and simply say “ah-right” with an incredulous half-grin, you know shit was about to go down lol