In My Brilliant Career, <a href="https://comicvibe.com/netflix-is-quietly-delaying-the-end-of-its-biggest-dark-fantasy-epic/” title=”Netflix Is Quietly Delaying The End Of Its Biggest Dark Fantasy Epic”>Netflix takes viewers back to a tale set in the Australian outback in the early 1900s, based on the seminal novel by Miles Franklin. Is it a worthy adaptation, and another winning period drama for Netflix? Or is it worth skipping? Here’s our spoiler-free review.
Netflix has already released a few adaptations of period classics this year. Look no further than January, which saw Chris Chibnall’s re-imagining of Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials Mystery. And then again in July, the streamer adapted The Little House on the Prairie. The latest, My Brilliant Career, is an adaptation of the original novel by Miles Franklin, but the series twists enough of the story to feel like a re-imagining: it both introduces key original characters and re-works the story to contain different outcomes and character motivations.
For those unacquainted, My Brilliant Career takes place in rural Australia during the turn of the 20th-century. We follow free-spirited Sybylla Melvyn, a sharp-witted and fiercely independent — yet brash and uncouth — young woman. She wants nothing more than to be a writer, but as the show acknowledges from the start, women at that time were not spoilt for choice. Despite her desires for a career, Sybylla’s mother Lucy (Mirrah Foulkes) and father Richard (Nathan Page) decide it’s about time that she lays down the paper and pen and enter society. They send Sybylla to her maternal grandmother, Mrs. Bossier (Anna Chancellor), in her wealthy estate Caddagat, with the aim of making her more civilised. However, there’s an ulterior motive to her being sent there; her father has caused financial ruin in his family due to reckless business decisions, losing his land holdings. The pressure falls to Sybylla to marry a wealthy husband to rescue her family from poverty.
Sybylla is brought to life by our lead Philippa Northeast. From her energetic first scene, she encapsulates everything great about Sybylla Melvyn, from her rebellious and prickly nature, to her infectious personality and unparalleled charm. The way the series frames her, she can be easily compared to Netflix favourite Eloise Bridgerton: fiercely independent, bookish, and a modern, 21st-century feminist. But rather than Regency-era England, Sybylla is dropped into the turn-of-the-century Australian Bush. Sybylla vocally rejects traditional 19th-century gender roles; she doesn’t want to marry. She wishes to be a writer, a mindset she ardently sticks to despite the temptations presented to her.
My Brilliant Career. Phillipa Northeast and Jake Dunn in My Brilliant Career. Cr. Ian Routledge/Netflix
Rounding out Sybylla’s tricky love triangle are Christopher Chung as Harry and Jake Dunn as Frank. Firstly, Harry (more formally known as Harold Augustus Beecham) is a young bachelor with a Chinese heritage who owns the large Five-Bob Downs farm near Caddagat. The other potential suitor is a handsome British man sent to find a wife in order to secure his inheritance. Without diving into spoiler territory, Sybylla holds a particular infatuation towards one, and maintains a steadfast flirtatious-friend-zone feeling towards the other. Neither of Harry nor Frank are anything but surface level suitors; they’re both well-intentioned.
This adaptation also introduces completely new characters into the fold. The most notable of these is Nell Kirby (Sherry-Lee Watson). A First Nations horse trainer, often finding herself living in the shadow of her deceased father, Nell strikes a powerful bond with Sybylla. Like Sybylla, she also feels like an outsider, under-appreciated in her craft. Nell dreams of living a life by her own choices and becoming the foreman of Caddagat. Sherry-Lee Watson was a strong asset to the series, carving out Nell’s new place in the narrative wonderfully.
Compared to the 1979 classic, this adaptation takes a more colourful and rousing approach, complete with modern music that reflects the story’s rebellious spirit. The ’70s classic takes more of a sun-drenched melancholy style. Both suit the story well in different ways, but it’s clear that the Netflix series, naturally, is geared towards young, modern audiences.
My Brilliant Career. Kate Mulvany and Phillipa Northeast in My Brilliant Career. Cr. Ian Routledge/Netflix
When it comes to accuracy to both the original novel and the time period, the series balances authenticity with carving out its own identity, embracing the archetypes modern audiences love. It’s seamless in terms of sets and costumes. Each location has its own unique flavor and feel, from the humble stone cottage of Possum Gully, to the elegant warmth of Caddagat, to the Mediterranean-feel manor Five-Bob Downs.
But of course, then there’s the soundtrack, which I imagine will be loved by some, and disliked by others. Like Bridgerton, the show takes anachronistic pop music, remixes it into a style relevant to the time, and weaves them into its soundtrack. My Brilliant Career achieves this through stellar music choices that all work seamlessly when reinterpreted with a classical Australian flavour. Some of the most notable songs that see this treatment are Young Turks by Rod Stewart, Siren by Divinyls, Atomic by Blondie, Scarborough Fair by Simon & Garfunkel, and Don’t Fence Me In by Bing Crosby. These additions are tastefully included, elevating the show to another level of charm. They don’t feel gratuitous.
My Brilliant Career. Phillipa Northeast and Jake Dunn in My Brilliant Career. Cr. Ian Routledge/Netflix
The show also shines (literally) thanks to its sun-drenched, gorgeous sets in South Australia, where it has reportedly become the largest television investment ever made in the state. It’s a major win for Australian television, becoming the second major South Australian commission after Territory became a global top-ten hit in 2024. On that point, My Brilliant Career is the ideal show to carry the torch for Australia. This is a story that encapsulates ambition, believing and being true to yourself, and rejecting the establishment.
Watch My Brilliant Career on Netflix if you like:
- Little Women
- Bridgerton
- Pride & Prejudice
Verdict
My Brilliant Career is a modern retelling of one of Australia’s most seminal classic tales, some 125 years after is was published. The series serves a portrait of a fiercely independent, and downright fun woman who goes against the grain. It delivers a satisfying and witty narrative, each encapsulating its core themes: ambition, love, and the choices and decisions that shape a young woman’s future.
Throughout the series, we hear snippets of gushy sentences Sybylla writes in her diary. “New Year fireworks paled to a shadow beside the light that exploded inside me at his touch,” she pens after a passionate New Year’s evening. It sounds straight out of a fan-fiction; luscious, decadent, and indulgent. And that’s exactly what Netflix’sMy Brilliant Career is. If you want something that strictly adheres closely to the original story, this is not it. But for viewers seeking an unashamedly indulgent drama and fun romantic romp, look no further.
Philippa Northeast’s Sybylla Melvyn is the star of the summer. It’s impossible not to be invested in the series by her charisma alone.
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