It's Criminal

Where Lewis (2006-2015) was a sequel, Endeavour was a prequel to Inspector Morse (1987-2000). Like Lewis, I tried to remain objective when watching them. However, because John Thaw has created such an impact as Morse, it wasn't easy. I like Shaun Evans, he is a good actor. However, I found it difficult to see him become the Morse of later years. It suffered principally from the same problem that most prequels do, putting your main character in peril is pointless, the audience knows they will survive. I also felt that the plots didn't give the actors much to do.  A shining light was present in the form of Roger Allam, who has spent years showing how good an actor he is. I always find him watchable. The power of Colin Dexter's writing and John Thaw's performance as Morse is so entrenched in my mind that it is hard to see anyone else coming close. 

There are spoilers below - beware! It is a close call between Things That Go Bump in the Night and Midsomer Rhapsody, as they are both episodes I enjoy watching, but for different reasons.  Things That Go Bump in the Night is a macabrely fun episode. The plot is rather outlandish, as are the murderers. That makes the episode sound awful, and if it weren't for the skill of the performers playing these two twisted individuals, it would be a terrible episode.  There are also further developments in the professional relationship between Barnaby and Scott. Scott is starting to settle down into life in the country. He's lost a lot of that abrasiveness and chip-on-the-shoulder attitude that he had at the start of his tenure. Barnaby is starting to see the good in Scott, even if some of his methods are dubious.  Midsomer Rhapsody is a much calmer and more realistic episode. We have June Whitfield and David Burke to keep our feet on the ground.  June Whitfield is best known f...

I have seen every episode of the ITV series Inspector Morse and read all of the Inspector Morse books written by Colin Dexter.  I can honestly say that, despite a few character and plot tweaks, I didn't see much of a difference between the two. I did find that a few of them worked slightly better on television than they did as novels.  There are two that spring to mind as I write this.  The first one is The Remorseful Day. John Thaw and Kevin Whately did a beautiful job of showing the emotion of this story without overdoing it. In the book, It didn't come across as well for me. However, it wasn't enough to spoil the book.  The second is The Wench is Dead. I found the book plodding but the episode was able to show most of the heavy description that was in the book.  It goes to show that sometimes TV adaptations can work just as well as the books. Sometimes, they may even be better. 

Spoiler warning – there will be some spoilers here, so read on with caution if you have not seen all the episodes. I appear to be in the minority among Midsomer Murder fans because I like Sergeant Dan Scott. I will admit that it took a little while to warm up to him as he was very different to Troy. We also see Barnaby warm towards Scott in this episode.  My favourite episode of series seven is Ghosts of Christmas Past. There are three main reasons for this: 1. John Hopkins gets to flesh Dan Scott out more here. We see that he's not as two-dimensional as he initially seemed. 2. Bruce Alexander (known primarily for playing Superintendent Norman Mullet in A Touch of Frost) is as impressive as Dominic Jones. His subtle, genial and yet unnerving in places performance stands out in an episode where most of the characters are flat and annoying. 3. The other performer who stands out from the crown is Rory Corpus, who played Howard Frears. Howard is used to bearing the brunt of the blame w...

Inspector Rebus, like so many other fictional detectives has traits that would, in the real world, have derailed his career and probably killed him.   However, like those other detectives, these traits form part of why the characters are so popular. Readers can relate to characters who have problems, they feel more like one of them. Not a single one of us is perfect.  I'll list a few here for you.  Rebus is an alcoholic. Sherlock Holmes uses cocaine.  Morse is a snob. Frost has authority issues.  Nero Wolfe has an ego the size of a planet.  Even Tom Barnaby, the most "normal" detective of them all, has a hang up or two.  However, the trick for the writer is to explore these flaws but not to make them too central or they risk getting in the way of the plot. Also, the author shouldn't rely on them too much to carry the character all of the time. A reader will soon get bored if there's no character development.  There's another potential trap fo...

Spoiler warning – there will be some spoilers here, so read on with caution if you have not seen all the episodes.  Death and Dreams is an excellent example of why I like Midsomer Murders. Just when you think you've got the measure of the series, out it pops with another surprise. The surprise is not who the killers are or their age; it is the glee and total lack of remorse that they have. The motive for the killings is not the usual fare either. It also turns out they've been killing for longer than Barnaby and Troy realise.  John Nettles and Isla Blair (playing the head psychiatrist) have good chemistry, making the two characters' fondness for each other more realistic.  Serious kudos go to the young performers playing the serial killers. The role is not easy for older, more established performers to take on without "hamming it up", yet these three get the balance spot on. Even at the end, when Hannah is revelling in telling Barnaby and Troy all about what they...