Scrublands Season 2 Ending Explained & Finale Recap: Who Killed Jasper Speight?

The second season of Stan’s Australian noir, Scrublands, an adaptation of journalist/writer Chris Hammer’s second entry in the Martin Scarsden novel series, Silver, is much more personal in nature to the lead investigative journalist compared to its predecessor. Even though the theme of buried past secrets and familial connection was present in the first season of the series as well, it’s the second outing that turns Martin into an actively involved character instead of an outsider. After returning to his old place, in the coastal town of Port Silver, with his girlfriend Mandy Bond and her son to spend the holidays, Martin found himself entangled in a web of intrigue—his partner got framed for the murder of his childhood buddy, and at the same time, Martin was drawn to a past he wanted to escape from. Working with some neat plot twists and surprise reveals, the finale of the second season neatly wraps up all the plot threads, making for a satisfying conclusion.

Spoilers Ahead

Who Poisoned Attendees During Jasper’s Memorial Service?

The central mystery of the second season of Scrublands revolved around the murder of Jasper Speight, a well-known accountant of Port Silver who was also a good childhood friend of Martin and town police sergeant Scotty Wallitz. While spending time in the Hummingbird Wellness Center run by local surf queen and Jasper’s aunt, Jennifer Jay Jay Hayes, Mandy befriended Jasper, and following Jasper’s demise, Mandy was framed for his murder—as CCTV footage gathered by police saw Mandy and Jasper having an altercation just a night before Jasper was murdered. Also, the real perpetrator linked evidence in a way that the arrow of suspicion pointed towards Mandy. Martin’s sordid past in his hometown was also messing with his mind, and he was unable to think straight, which is why on one occasion, he considered the possibility that perhaps Mandy was having an affair with Jasper and killed him in fear of exposure. But that wasn’t the case at all, which became pretty apparent after it was revealed that Mandy was injected with a date-rape drug by Garth McGrath, a scoundrel who preyed on female members of the wellness center, and the effect of the drug made her act erratically, and Jasper had taken her to his home for her own safety. Mandy was present at the wrong place at the wrong time, which made it easier for the culprit to frame her. Things became more confusing when, during Jasper’s memorial service organized at the wellness center, someone spiked the kombucha with a fentanyl-ketamine mix, which resulted in the death of nearly half a dozen attendees. Fortunately Mandy survived, and so did Beth Ramachandran, Martin’s colleague at the Sydney Morning Herald, who dropped by to help him in the case. It should be mentioned that both of them were invited by Jasper’s grieving mother, Denise Speight, who ran the real estate agency that Jasper was an agent of.

A cold case of investor Amory Ashton’s disappearance, which was brought up by the shrewd, opportunistic reporter Doug Monkton, allowed Martin to look at the case from a different angle. The area known as Hummingbird Beach, where the wellness center was located, was a prime target for Denise for a long, long time, and following the death spree, Jay Jay decided to give away the land to Denise. Martin learns that right before his mysterious disappearance five years ago, Amory announced big plans for the Hummingbird Beach. Given local business tycoon Tyson St. Clair wanted Denise to acquire the land for his own redevelopment project, Martin decides to pay him a visit, as he suspects the crooked businessman had a role to play in Amory’s unknown predicament and might have poisoned the attendees to malign Jay Jay’s reputation and buy the land. However, Tyson reveals that he had nothing to do with Amory’s situation and that his associate French investors, who were interested in the Hummingbird beach land, have already decided to withdraw their bid due to the recent death spree. Tyson also mentions Denise dealt with Amory back then with the assistance of her son, Jasper. Things get dicey when Martin finds out Denise’s godson, Harry Drake, a former drug dealer who was a vital member of the wellness center, has fled from town—and as he brings this intel to Scotty, both of them learn that Denise, who survived the poisoning incident, refuses to have her blood sample tested. Martin suspected that Denise might have used Harry’s help to have attendees poisoned; Mandy’s mention about Dennis not consuming the kombucha during the memorial service increased his suspicion, and this new revelation just confirmed her involvement. 

Following the cryptic message shared by Jasper to Martin on call, mere hours before his death, Martin and Scotty return to their hangout place from teenage days, the fishing shack at Whaler’s Bay, to look for clues. The friend duo find the key to Ashton’s Mercedes and a flash drive, which allows them to access Ashton’s laptop in his car and reveals evidence of serious financial discrepancies against both Denise Speight and Amory Ashton. They also find Ashton’s body buried outside the shack, which further indicates that this was the vital revelation Jasper wanted to make to his friend Martin before his untimely demise. It is clear that Denise is linked to three separate scandals—Memorial poisoning, Amory’s murder, and Jasper’s murder—but without solid circumstantial evidence, Scotty can not build a foolproof case against her. Martin plans to have Mandy wiretapped and blackmail Denise by mentioning that Mandy has gotten her hands on the evidence in order to have her confession recorded by setting up a meeting. It was a personal mission for Mandy as well, as she needed to clear her name. 

However, as Mandy sets out to meet her, Denise decides to change the location to Amory’s factory at the last moment, making Martin anxious for the safety of his partner as a result. As Mandy confronts Denise about framing her for Jasper’s murder, in her aggrieved state Denise confesses that Jasper had killed Amory under her order to keep the financial embezzlement a secret. A guilt-ridden Jasper withdrew himself from his wife, Sue, and ultimately decided to come clean to his friend/investigative journalist, Martin Scarsden, by revealing everything in hopes of relieving himself from the emotional burden. However, upon learning that her son had suddenly been affected by a guilty conscience, Denise became furious, and in the heat of the moment, she ended up fatally stabbing her own son. Denise framed Mandy for Jasper’s murder, and later on, to acquire her sister’s land, she assigned Harry to poison the kombucha, although she didn’t have an idea that the fentanyl supplied by him would be laced with ketamine and lead to the deaths of so many people. Denise was a greedy, amoral, near-psychotic woman who didn’t let her family ties act as a hindrance to her goals and stooped to the lowest to get what she wanted.

However, fearing for Mandy’s fate, Martin arrives at the factory, and alerted by his presence, Denise knocks Mandy unconscious and tries to flee with the evidence on the flash drive. However, Martin and Mandy manage to confront her once again, mentioning that her confession has been recorded by the authorities. As police cars arrive outside the factory, Denise realizes that there is no escape from the repercussions of her actions, and she takes her own life at the end. Harry gets caught at the airport and charged with possession of narcotics and manslaughter; he will face due justice. 

Will Tyson Face Justice For His Actions?

Even though Tyson had nothing to do with Jasper/attendees’ murders, he was a shady criminal nonetheless; as an owner of the local backpackers’ homestay, he extorted female tourists for sex in exchange for visa extensions, as revealed from the predicaments of Toria, an Irish tourist who became acquainted with Martin. As the season comes to an end, Scotty mentions that Tyson has strong enough legal protection to avoid the consequences of his actions, but the immigration department is launching an investigation nevertheless. 

Did Martin Make Amends With His Family At The End?

Leaving his hometown during his teenage days, Martin didn’t return to Port Silver for twenty-five years, and there was a strong reason behind that. Losing his mother, Hilary, and sister, Emma, at a young age and being stuck with Ron—his alcoholic father—Martin grew a sense of emotional disenchantment with the town and its old-school habits. Having a sharp moral compass and a knack for journalism, Martin took it upon himself to expose the town’s ongoing corruption as fishermen used to bribe local authorities to bypass the fishing quota. Martin’s exposé brought him a cadetship in popular urban news media, clearing an opportunity for his better future, but at the same time doomed the township’s future, where the majority of fishery-dependent households ended up being broke after having their licenses revoked due to media attention. A young Martin didn’t have any idea that his actions would jeopardize the livelihoods of others, and the worst happened when a bunch of vengeful townsfolk burned down Martin’s uncle, Vern’s, fishing trawler. Vern raised Martin as his own son, and unwittingly, Martin’s actions hurt him and his family in the most unfortunate way possible. Burdened with shame and guilt, Martin left the town and didn’t even return when his old man passed away. 

After returning to Port Silver with Mandy, Martin avoids interaction with his family, and Mandy, who felt it strange for Martin to never mention his family or younger days, felt odd. As Vern’s wife, Josie, invited both Mandy and Martin to dinner, Martin didn’t show up, and Mandy learned about the entire predicament from Josie. It was Mandy’s advice and encouragement that allowed Martin to finally muster up the courage to reconcile with Vern and acknowledge his past mistakes and Vern’s role in his life. 

During Scrublands season 2’s ending, Martin and Mandy, now seen present with Vern and Josie, pay their respects at Hilary and Emma’s grave. Hopefully, now that Martin and Mandy have found a place within their family, they will stick around Port Silver for a while longer. Martin also reconciles with Scotty, who previously felt a bit betrayed that his friend had avoided their hometown for so long. Even though their friend, Jasper, turned out to be a criminal, he tried to do the right thing at the end—and the friend duo poured a drink together in his memory. As for Mandy, her relationship with Martin faced a few road bumps due to the very direction of the investigation, but things get sorted out at the end. Poor Mandy can’t seem to catch a break. In the first season, her father turned out to be a local drug kingpin, the father of her child was not the person she assumed him to be, and at present, she was framed for murder, and even Martin doubted her. With her name finally cleared, Mandy will hopefully rest easy at long last. 

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