I love Midsomer Murders, but Barnaby needs sensitivity training....
6 out of 10 stars Time to Read: 2:30 min
BASIC PLOT: Midsomer Parver is awash in crop circles and corpses. Someone is littering the summer wheat with cadavers. They have odd punctures in their spines, and partially shaved heads. A local man, Lloyd Kirby (Kenneth Colley) is convinced these are signs of extraterrestrial visitation. Can Barnaby and Troy figure out who the culprit is, before more bodies fall from the sky?
WHAT WORKS:
*THE ACTING IS ABOVE AVERAGE Everybody in this episode does a great job, even the ancillary characters are well portrayed.
*THE CASTING IS GREAT Everyone here is just as they should be, from Sir Harry (John Woodvine), to Lloyd (Kenneth Colley), to the goer, Sally Boulter (Amanda Mealing), EVERYONE is perfectly cast. Even the older and younger versions of Sir Christian Aubrey (Alec McCowen), and Peter Rhodes (Peter Penry-Jones), look like each other (they use the real life son of Peter Penry-Jones to play his younger self). Well done, Joyce Nettles!
*IT'S A GREAT STORY The plots and sub plots work together, to weave a cohesive and engaging story. If it weren't for Barnaby's judgmental attitude, it would be one of my favorites. (The same is true about the episode, Death in Disguise (1998). Barnaby's downright disrespectful to the New Agers in that episode, and what's worse, he openly says anyone who's different, should be looked down on, and shunned. That is not just mildly prejudice, that's offensive! In the good old USA, we appreciate, and even celebrate our differences, especially when they lean towards the eccentric. To quote Neil Simon, "Never underestimate the stimulation of eccentricity.")
WHAT DOESN'T WORK:
*THE SECOND BODY IS NEVER FULLY EXPLAINED So, there is no spoiler here when I give my opinion. Barnaby intimates the second body was electrocuted, when trying to steal electricity from the national grid, to melt down stolen loot. Sally Boulter (Amanda Mealing), reinforces this in her conversation with Sir Harry, telling him he was "cooked inside like a steak and kidney pie." (Gross!) This implies Dave Ripert (Nigel Harrison) was with the local crook when he was electrocuted, and put him in the crop circle to cover the accident. Dave had the stolen goods in question, it was his defunct business they were using to melt the stuff down, therefore it was probably Dave who put the guy in the crop circle, after he accidently electrocuted himself. It is a bit confusing.
*COPS WOULDN'T GET AWAY WITH BREAKING INTO A KNIGHT'S HOUSE, especially when his wife is dying in a hospice. Barnaby waits until Sir Christian Aubrey (Alec McCowen), is at the hospice with his dying wife, Lady Isabel (Ursula Howells). He then takes Troy by the hand, and breaks in. When he's caught, he wrongfully says, nothing will happen. But if the "local heavyweight," as Troy calls him, wanted to make a stink, I think there'd be repercussions. Surely, Sir Christian's solicitor would have something to say about it, and if there were legal consequences for Sir Christian, regarding his lethal security system, Barnaby's unlawful actions, would mitigate them.
*HAVING BARNABY BE SOOOOO JUDGEMENTAL DOESN'T WORK Barnaby's attitudes about Lloyd Kirby are just plain ugly. He basically says Lloyd should be an outcast, because he has different ideas about the world. Why? Because we should all be the same? Maybe because I'm an American, I find this offensive. In the United States, we value the weirdos, they are tolerated, and even encouraged! (KEEP AUSTIN/PORTLAND WEIRD) We like to see ourselves as individuals, unique from everyone else. But Barnaby seems to think Lloyd's uniqueness is a bad thing. Having Barnaby's ideas and beliefs, be aligned with the reprobates, and the killers of the episode, DOESN'T WORK! Barnaby's judgmental attitudes and ideas, are the same as the murderer, and the town philanderer. Wow! I prefer my protagonists to be more likable (and usually Barnaby is), but in this episode, he needs a lesson from Sir Christian Aubrey (Alec McCowen), and Lady Isabel (Ursula Howells), about how to live and let live.
TO RECOMMEND, OR NOT TO RECOMMEND, THAT IS THE QUESTION:
*I would definitely recommend this episode. As I said, it would be one of my favorites, if not for Barnaby being so judgemental (it takes it down a whole 2 stars for me). But it is still quality entertainment, and that's something you rarely see today.
CLOSING NOTES: *Anyone know the song that's playing as Sally Boulter and Dave Rippert are loading up their stolen loot? Something like 'All Around the World...'
*I have no connection to this production, in ANY way. This review was NOT written in full, or in part, by a bot. I am just an honest viewer, who wishes for more straight forward reviews, and better entertainment. Hope I helped you out.
BASIC PLOT: Midsomer Parver is awash in crop circles and corpses. Someone is littering the summer wheat with cadavers. They have odd punctures in their spines, and partially shaved heads. A local man, Lloyd Kirby (Kenneth Colley) is convinced these are signs of extraterrestrial visitation. Can Barnaby and Troy figure out who the culprit is, before more bodies fall from the sky?
WHAT WORKS:
*THE ACTING IS ABOVE AVERAGE Everybody in this episode does a great job, even the ancillary characters are well portrayed.
*THE CASTING IS GREAT Everyone here is just as they should be, from Sir Harry (John Woodvine), to Lloyd (Kenneth Colley), to the goer, Sally Boulter (Amanda Mealing), EVERYONE is perfectly cast. Even the older and younger versions of Sir Christian Aubrey (Alec McCowen), and Peter Rhodes (Peter Penry-Jones), look like each other (they use the real life son of Peter Penry-Jones to play his younger self). Well done, Joyce Nettles!
*IT'S A GREAT STORY The plots and sub plots work together, to weave a cohesive and engaging story. If it weren't for Barnaby's judgmental attitude, it would be one of my favorites. (The same is true about the episode, Death in Disguise (1998). Barnaby's downright disrespectful to the New Agers in that episode, and what's worse, he openly says anyone who's different, should be looked down on, and shunned. That is not just mildly prejudice, that's offensive! In the good old USA, we appreciate, and even celebrate our differences, especially when they lean towards the eccentric. To quote Neil Simon, "Never underestimate the stimulation of eccentricity.")
WHAT DOESN'T WORK:
*THE SECOND BODY IS NEVER FULLY EXPLAINED So, there is no spoiler here when I give my opinion. Barnaby intimates the second body was electrocuted, when trying to steal electricity from the national grid, to melt down stolen loot. Sally Boulter (Amanda Mealing), reinforces this in her conversation with Sir Harry, telling him he was "cooked inside like a steak and kidney pie." (Gross!) This implies Dave Ripert (Nigel Harrison) was with the local crook when he was electrocuted, and put him in the crop circle to cover the accident. Dave had the stolen goods in question, it was his defunct business they were using to melt the stuff down, therefore it was probably Dave who put the guy in the crop circle, after he accidently electrocuted himself. It is a bit confusing.
*COPS WOULDN'T GET AWAY WITH BREAKING INTO A KNIGHT'S HOUSE, especially when his wife is dying in a hospice. Barnaby waits until Sir Christian Aubrey (Alec McCowen), is at the hospice with his dying wife, Lady Isabel (Ursula Howells). He then takes Troy by the hand, and breaks in. When he's caught, he wrongfully says, nothing will happen. But if the "local heavyweight," as Troy calls him, wanted to make a stink, I think there'd be repercussions. Surely, Sir Christian's solicitor would have something to say about it, and if there were legal consequences for Sir Christian, regarding his lethal security system, Barnaby's unlawful actions, would mitigate them.
*HAVING BARNABY BE SOOOOO JUDGEMENTAL DOESN'T WORK Barnaby's attitudes about Lloyd Kirby are just plain ugly. He basically says Lloyd should be an outcast, because he has different ideas about the world. Why? Because we should all be the same? Maybe because I'm an American, I find this offensive. In the United States, we value the weirdos, they are tolerated, and even encouraged! (KEEP AUSTIN/PORTLAND WEIRD) We like to see ourselves as individuals, unique from everyone else. But Barnaby seems to think Lloyd's uniqueness is a bad thing. Having Barnaby's ideas and beliefs, be aligned with the reprobates, and the killers of the episode, DOESN'T WORK! Barnaby's judgmental attitudes and ideas, are the same as the murderer, and the town philanderer. Wow! I prefer my protagonists to be more likable (and usually Barnaby is), but in this episode, he needs a lesson from Sir Christian Aubrey (Alec McCowen), and Lady Isabel (Ursula Howells), about how to live and let live.
TO RECOMMEND, OR NOT TO RECOMMEND, THAT IS THE QUESTION:
*I would definitely recommend this episode. As I said, it would be one of my favorites, if not for Barnaby being so judgemental (it takes it down a whole 2 stars for me). But it is still quality entertainment, and that's something you rarely see today.
CLOSING NOTES: *Anyone know the song that's playing as Sally Boulter and Dave Rippert are loading up their stolen loot? Something like 'All Around the World...'
*I have no connection to this production, in ANY way. This review was NOT written in full, or in part, by a bot. I am just an honest viewer, who wishes for more straight forward reviews, and better entertainment. Hope I helped you out.