Jack Irish is an Australian television series based on the novels by Peter Temple, which aired in Australia via the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It starred Guy Pearce as Jack Irish, a former lawyer, debt collector, and occasional amatuer private investigator. The series also starred Marta Dusseldorp as Intrepid Reporter Linda Hellier, Shane Jacobson as reluctant Friend on the Force Barry Tregear, Damien Richardson as former colleague Drew Greer, Roy Billing as Jack's boss and notorious racing identity Harry Strang, and Aaron Pedersen as Strang's right-hand man Cal Delray. Initially, three TV movies were released from 2012 to 2014, directly adapting the first three novels. A full series was subsequently produced, with three seasons airing from 2016 to 2021.
The show provides examples of the following tropes:
- Actor Allusion: The Cold Open of the final episode is similar to a scene in The Time Machine (2002): Guy Pearce's character imagines a happy life with his wife and two children.
- Church of Happyology: The Way of the Church is a shady Christian church in Australia that doesn't hesitate to use cover ups to prevent anything embarrassing from biting them in the back.
- "Do It Yourself" Theme Tune: Guy Pearce sings a cover of "God Will Cut You Down" for the opening credits of the series.
- "Eureka!" Moment: Jack gets these both from the Fitzroy Youth Club and Harry.
- Far East Asian Terrorists: The Muslim radicals in Mindanao when they shot up an entire village in the first season.
- Freeze-Frame Bonus: In a G-Mail page, the death of Lakshmi Agarwal was recorded to be in 2015, which is when the first season started. The second season's first episode showed a title card of three years later, making in 2018 when the second season starts.
- From Bad to Worse: Jack not only investigates the death of a couple of international students in the second season, but he realizes that a doctor he knows has her husband funds a scientist who goes rogue and hides before he's killed.
- Minor Crime Reveals Major Plot: The missing person's case and frameup job done to Jack leads him to investigate the case related to the Philippines in the first season.
- The second season starts with a vehicle accident after a foreign student somehow wanders into its path.
- Police Are Useless: The Victoria Police weren't able to get major clues to solve a missing person's case, which is why Jack Irish was recruited to solve it.
- Shown Their Work: Since some of the scenes were shot in the Philippines in the first season, you can expect to hear correct and proper Tagalog.
- Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Due to Jack stumbling onto a motel room with the dead corpse of a kidnapper and a loaded weapon nearby when VP officers raided it, it wouldn't be that hard to assume that he had something to do with it.
- During a reception party hosted by the Australian embassy, a guest notes that the plan to create a power plant may not solve tensions between native Muslim and Christian communities since the latter would mostly benefit from it.
- The Man Behind the Man: Via Crucis, a shadowy group consisting of persons from the Way of the Church, Victoria-based politicians, businessmen and other prominent VIPs. They're behind the massacre in Mindanao in trying to buy up land there by using a bogus bank to skirt Filipino banking laws and deploying contractors overseas. The culprits were trying to emulate American defense contractors like Booz Allen and Black Water.
- Western Terrorists: Jack investigate the case that leads to an Australian fighting for Muslim radicals somewhere in the Philippines.
