'Xena' star Lucy Lawless is more Angela Lansbury than 'warrior princess' in 'My Life Is Murder'

In "My Life Is Murder," a delightful new detective show that premiered Monday on the streaming platform Acorn TV, Lucy Lawless plays Alexa Crowe, a former police investigator half-reluctantly drawn back to work as an unofficial consultant on deaths the department has deemed accidental but an old colleague believes are not. Breezily written, with an appealing main cast and a healthy component of armchair tourism - it's set in Melbourne, Australia - it is a perfect summer series.

Lawless, who played the lead in "Xena: Warrior Princess" and became a feminist and queer icon in the bargain, has been a model of cool capability almost since the beginning of her career. (Incredibly, "My Life Is Murder" is only her second lead role, though she had major parts in "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" and "Ash vs Evil Dead.") The new part, which stirs maturity into the mix, suits her well. "She's not beholden to police protocols anymore," the actress says of Alexa. "She's going