The BEST episodes of The Brokenwood Mysteries
Every episode of The Brokenwood Mysteries ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of The Brokenwood Mysteries!
The Brokenwood Mysteries is a New Zealand detective drama set in the fictional town of Brokenwood, where the unconventional Detective Mike Shepherd and his team solve intriguing murder cases in a seemingly quiet rural community.
#1 - Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend
Season 12 - Episode 6 - Aired 5/11/2026
When a woman is murdered in Ray's restaurant, Trudy is found at the scene covered in blood and becomes the prime suspect; as Mike and the team investigate, they uncover a web of lies, secrets, and a deadly scheme.
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#2 - A Real Page Turner
Season 6 - Episode 2 - Aired 11/17/2019
World-renowned crime-writing author Jack Rudd visits Brokenwood to give a reading at the local book club from his latest novel ‘Knife in the Back'. He visits — but never leaves, falling victim to a method of murder portrayed in his own book.
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#3 - Dead Men Don't Shoot Ducks
Season 6 - Episode 3 - Aired 11/24/2019
The members of the Brokenwood Duck Stalking Association are set to shoot on the first day of the new season. Fingers are ready on the trigger as the eight hunters wait patiently for ducks to fly. But then the misty morning presents an unusual sight as a lone wildlife protester sails into the duck shooting cove. Ducks fly, shots are fired but only the protester, Leslie Garrett, falls down dead. With nobody prepared to take the blame Mike and the team are led to believe Leslie was shot by a mysterious ninth hunter seen briefly through the mist. Unable to determine who it was, Mike is forced to think more laterally than usual. Was Leslie's death just a case of careless use of a firearm or were the ducks never the target in the first place?
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#4 - They're Out There Alright
Season 12 - Episode 1 - Aired 4/6/2026
When a chef is found dead in a crop circle, alien abduction theories spark as a UFO convention arrives in Brokenwood; but after another death occurs, Mike and Kristin investigate whether the truth is extraterrestrial or all too human.
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#5 - Good as Gold
Season 8 - Episode 5 - Aired 9/4/2022
A 160-year-old family feud over gold becomes the main motive for murder when a modern-day cowgirl is gunned down in cold blood.
#6 - Midnight in the Garden
Season 12 - Episode 3 - Aired 4/20/2026
A lavish New Year's Eve masquerade comes to a tragic end following the death of its mysterious host the following morning; as gripping secrets emerge, Mike and the team must unmask the killer among the party guests.
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#7 - Dead and Buried
Season 6 - Episode 4 - Aired 12/1/2019
A suspicious suicide in Brokenwood Women's Prison leads Mike and the team to uncover a complex murder. And for Mike this one is personal — he knew the victim Corina Doyle from his days prior to Brokenwood. As Mike and the team investigate they're brought into contact with several familiar female convicts from the past: Trudy Neilson, Brenda White and Rayleen Hogg. They're all doing their time and all up to no good. And with Corina's passing new information surfaces about an old crime. A secret from her past that will answer a nagging question that Mike has carried for 8 years. However, for that secret to come out, Corina had to entrust it with someone and that someone wants Mike to do a deal.
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#10 - How the Other Half Dies
Season 11 - Episode 4 - Aired 5/12/2025
When Brokenwood’s elite begin to act strangely, the occurrences come to a head after a wealthy man is crushed by a chandelier in his home. As Shepherd investigates, he uncovers a tangled mystery filled with greed and revenge.
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#12 - Dog Day Morning
Season 7 - Episode 3 - Aired 6/27/2021
When four masked men attempt to rob the Brokenwood Savings Bank, it's up to Mike and the team to determine which one of them pulled the trigger and killed the bank manager.
#13 - The Scarecrow
Season 4 - Episode 3 - Aired 11/12/2017
Philip Henderson stands next to an impressive scarecrow amidst a field of damaged vegetation. His whole crop has failed. The scarecrow may have kept the birds away but this catastrophe is something bigger. Angered and distraught, he confronts his neighbour, the cantankerous Doug Randall, and accuses him of spray drift. Doug is having none of it and an ugly altercation ensues. The following day Philip is discovered dead in his field – the victim of an obscure poison. Suspicion falls on Doug and his new wife, the strident and doggedly loyal Trudy Neilson, whom it was well known had ongoing tensions with Philip over an unpaid bar tab at her pub, The Toad and Lion. But as Mike and the team dig further into the mystery, more suspects come into play. Philip’s other neighbour is the cagey Tamati Taylor, who is less than forthcoming, but as it transpires Philip had a twin brother. Why does he seem remarkably unmoved by the death of his sibling? Following a hunch, Kristin turns attention to the little organic café in town called the Sage Locust and her friend, the owner Dahlia Freyberg. Philip was one of her suppliers – but a supplier of what? And what exactly was in the salad Philip ate when he last visited the Sage Locust? And if the scarecrow was meant to frighten the birds why have all the bees disappeared too?
#14 - All Hallows Eve
Season 11 - Episode 3 - Aired 5/5/2025
After a man is fatally stabbed during a séance, and no weapon is found, Shepherd digs into the eerie incident to catch the murderer. Questioning if supernatural forces were involved, the team must separate superstition from reality.
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#19 - Over Her Dead Body
Season 3 - Episode 2 - Aired 11/6/2016
Brokenwood is in mourning as beloved local poet Declan O’Grady is being farewelled at St Judas Church after being struck down by cancer. But things go from bad to worse when his coffin accidentally falls from the hearse revealing that the corpse inside is not Declan but a young woman identifiable only by a notable scarlet tattoo.
#21 - Three Coins in a Fountain
Season 8 - Episode 4 - Aired 8/28/2022
When the world champion of the curious sport of Spoofing is found dead in a fountain, the Brokenwood detectives must determine who was willing to commit murder in order to win at all costs.
#22 - As If Nothing Had Happened
Season 4 - Episode 4 - Aired 11/19/2017
Sunset Manor is a rest home in Brokenwood for the aged and bewildered. The new resident is Edward Alderston. Having recently lost his wife, his family has decided Sunset Manor is the best place for him, especially now that the Alzheimer’s is taking hold. Mrs Marlowe is a regular visitor, offering sing-alongs at the piano for the residents. But Edward is hoping for more of an ally than that. He’s planning an escape. In fact he’s been practicing. The only problem is he can’t remember the plan. But when a man is found with a Samurai sword through his back floating in his swimming pool in the neighbouring street, Edward’s exact whereabouts becomes of real importance. The man was Mitch Waterson, an ex-finance company high-flyer, responsible for the loss of many millions to many people – in particular, he is the one responsible for many elderly losing their life savings. Mitch was responsible but never held accountable. It would seem now that the accountability has been sought. Revenge has been exacted. So when Mike, Kristin and Breen begin searching for motive they need look no further than Sunset Manor. Many of the residents were victims to Mitch Waterson’s Ponzi schemes and are thrilled to know he’s met a grisly end. However, the problem is not only who might have had the gumption and opportunity to do it but– can they remember doing it?
#23 - No Return Ticket
Season 12 - Episode 4 - Aired 4/27/2026
A celebratory vintage train ride ends in tragedy when a bride is murdered and thrown out beside the tracks; as Mike and his team investigate, they must dig through old rivalries and family tensions to find the killer hiding on the train.
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#24 - Bride Not to Be
Season 5 - Episode 2 - Aired 11/4/2018
The Cream Boat is a charming vessel that chugs its way up the scenic Brokenwood waterways. It carries sightseers and Christmas parties and often Hen Parties. Professional tennis player, Ophelia (Fee) Marley, is one such lucky Hen. Her Bridesmaids have organized a big day migrating from the township via the Cream Boat to the Tidal View Lodge where they overnight. The following morning the Cream Boat returns to pick up the girls, but as the captain is about to dock a macabre and ethereal sight greets him. Fee is floating semi-submerged downstream in her wedding dress and veil. At first it may seem a tragic drowning; a result perhaps of too much revelry. But Gina reveals she was in fact dead before she entered the river.
#25 - From the Cradle to the Grave
Season 8 - Episode 1 - Aired 8/7/2022
Mike Shepherd and the team get a lesson in local history when the Brokenwood museum uncovers a dead body in the most unlikely of places.