The Secret LIfe of Us looks at the intertwining lives of a number twenty-something guys and girls all living in a block of flats in the trendy Melbourne Bayside suburb of St Kilda. I liked the concept of TSLOU and the story plots and acting were very engaging early on. However, by the time Joel Edgerton's character Wil left in series 2, certain weak elements had entered the show and it appeared the writing was on the wall. However, series 3 held its own and the introduction of new characters in series 4 gave the series a freshness that it needed. Alexandra Schepisi Anna Torv , Stephen Curry and Brooke Harmon were just right for the final series.I agree with a previous reviewer that Deborah Mailman's character Kelly failed to evolve and in my opinion her ingratiating busybody persona was irritating. The acting of Deborah Mailman was good, it was just that the character was not convincing and it was hard to believe that someone battling obesity could be central to the unfolding events of life in a block of flats peopled by cool young adults and the romantic focus of so many young males. Also, Sybilla Budd's character Gabrielle was rewarded with too much screen time and not enough interesting character development. Her acting grated a little and scenes with Claudia Karvan confirmed how good an actor Claudia is.By comparison, characters played by Claudia Karvan, Abi Tucker, Joel Edgerton and Damien de Montemas grew and enriched each scenario. The character Evan Wylde was probably the one with the most potential and was indeed beautifully played by the terrific actor Samuel Johnson. But I just think the writers didn't quite know how he should relate to Claudia Karvin's Alex, and their relationship as flatmates and possible lovers never quite found its basis in believable exchanges and by the end was flagging. And when Spencer McClaren's character Ritchie made it through a life-changing crisis, it became difficult to give him much to work on after that. Even Abi Tucker's Miranda ran out of puff.I know the show tried to cover many issues and this aspect has been criticised, but without issues in a drama, what's left? Just the minutiae of life - and we all know how interesting that is! 8/10

There are so many problems with this over-polished, hugely unrealistic show...First of all, the cast. The guy who plays Evan and the actress who plays his clandestine love (I forget the name...) are the only two solid actors, the rest are to the most part rank amateurs; in particular the woman who plays the big-nosed Gabrielle (Steffi Graf's little sister) comes off as a zombie almost, with only one facial expression on offer: that of a grinning-yet-annoyed fool.Secondly, the political correctness. We have a bunch of goody-two-shoes PC morons with views that are textbook TV/movie propaganda garbage. The way they go about discussing women's rights, race relations, drugs issues, gay rights - and just about everything else - is so carefully worded, it almost comes off as a bunch of slogans one would expect to be created in the marketing departments of various left-wing parties and organizations, and not as the kind of natural, flowing dialogue that real people engage in. That TSLOU would be PC was to be expected; after all, every single Aussie show (and many movies) I've seen were heavily infested with that syrupy world-view (even worse than in the U.S.), but this serial takes it to ridiculous extremes; there is barely an episode in which someone - usually a woman (oh, how PC!) - doesn't make a detailed commentary on some political or social issue - in one breath. That makes TSLOU one of the preachiest TV series ever, making me wonder if the producers were more interested in promoting their political beliefs than actually entertaining the viewers with realistic characters. Hence I have to wonder who financed this crap in the first place...One of the worst examples of this was when one of the male characters finds out (a little late in his life, perhaps?) that he actually might be gay. The plot that develops from there is high melodrama/camp of the most pathetic sort, verging on the unintentionally funny, one absurd plot twist following another.The worst and most disgusting example of Marxist propaganda came in form of a casual dialogue in which Big-Nose and her ex discuss how wonderful Fidel Castro and his Cuba are. "Everyone there is so happy". Which Cuba are they referring to, the Neptunian Cuba? A typical example of spoilt, decadent, elitist Westerner writers day-dreaming about a genocidal political system, while justifying all its dictators every step of the way.Another absurd character is the aborigine girl; her behaviour is often in sharp contradiction to what she said or did only episodes earlier. Bad writing, yet again.The show could have been much better if some roles had been cast with better actors (nepotism?), and if there was more focus on interesting plot-lines rather than third-rate preaching for the masses...

Just bloody brilliant!! 'The secret life of us' is an experience on another level. The characters are not only believable and lovable, they make you angry, you cry, you scream out of happiness for their sake. The speed and complexity of the stories told makes you completely focused and unable to do or think of anything else besides what is happening on the screen. Once you've seen it you won't feel the same as you did before - you will be enriched. It felt like I lost a big part of my closest friends when the series ended. I miss them a lot! It's a bit like the British series "This Life" only more Australian. It's a definite 'must see'! If you see this one (The secret life of us) and also 'This life'(which, by the way, seems absolutely impossible to get hold of on DVD) I swear you will be a happier person! See it, love it, live it!

I really used to enjoy 'The Secret Life of Us', it was realistic. and the characters, were interesting, complex and likable, ( with the exception of 'Ritchie'). I loved the first series, but it slowly went down hill. When it came back at the beginning of 2004, I was devastated to discover that some of my favourite characters had disappeared. I felt ripped off. I stopped watching the show after that first night, these new characters were boring and annoying. Especially the youngcharacter 'Brooke'. I wasn't at all surprised the show was axed, in fact I was pleased, I was irritated that they expected me to just forget and dismiss all the old characters, with no explanation of where they went, or at least whathappened to them...