Murder Mysteries for the Uninitiated
I don’t consider myself a huge murder mystery fan. I haven’t read a single word by Agatha Christie or any other famous mystery writer and that doesn’t bother me in the slightest. I am, however, a big fan of a few murder mystery tv shows. I’d recommend these series even to the murder-mystery-adverse tv fan because they delight beyond any of my expectations of the genre.
The first I’ll mention of these series is Midsomer Mysteries. It has nothing to do with the horror flick of a similar sounding name; Midsomer is just a fictional region of England where the show takes place. Midsomer’s villages have a tendency toward campy murders and odd characters. For a show about detectives investigating suspicious deaths, Midsomer Murders manages to be humorous, witty, and a generally warm show. If you enjoy this show, there’s plenty to binge your way through. The seasons may short, but there’s 21 (soon to be 22) of them and episodes tend to be about 90 minutes long. The cast of season 21 is entirely different from season 1, but both seasons, and every other in between, contain great episodes. Midsomer Murders may border on ridiculous at times, but it rarely fails to be entertaining.
Promotional photo for a circus themed episode of Midsomer Mysteries, S20E6: Send in the Clowns. Image found at https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118401/mediaindex?page=6&ref_=ttmi_mi_sm
Left to right is Lawrence Fox as DS Hathaway and Kevin Whately as DI Lewis on the set of Inspector Lewis. Image found at https://www.thedailybeast.com/inspector-lewis-on-pbss-masterpiece-mystery-tvs-smartest-sleuths.
Next on my tv-murder-mystery-favorites list is Inspector Lewis (or just Lewis if your in the UK). This is technically a sequel series to another tv mystery show called Morse, but don’t worry, you can enjoy it just fine with out that background. I’ve never seen Morse, but I still adore Lewis. This show has a heavier tone than Midsomer Murders, but makes up for that with great writing, deep and interesting characters, and complex plots. They find time between deep conversations and grave discussion of murder for witty remarks, which is my jam. I’m hoping there will eventually be another series as a sequel to Inspector Lewis because I can’t get enough of these characters even though I respect them not dragging the show out for infinite seasons. This show may not be mindless tv for a lazy night, but if you want something to really dig into, Lewis may be for you.
Promotional image from the world’s most wonderful murder mystery series, Murder, She Wrote.
Image from https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086765/mediaindex?ref_=tt_mv_close
The final murder mystery I’d recommend is my favorite: Murder, She Wrote. This show is the absolute best of all. It is the epitome of the cosy murder mystery genre, as murder mystery author, Jessica Fletcher, solves cases involving suspicious deaths that seem to follow her everywhere. Jessica is a wonderful protagonist, played by the delightful Angela Lansbury for 12 seasons. This show feels like a warm hug or a cup of tea on a cold day. It’s not as dramatic or mentally taxing, but holds a viewers interest with diverse settings, unusual deaths, and amusing characters. Jessica’s hometown of Cabot Cove is probably the murder capitol of the world and her inability to avoid crime scenes is borderline sinister, but this show is the one to watch out of the murder mystery lineup.
