There are twists and turns to the plot that will keep mystery fans entertained, and the atmosphere of the Oxford college world seems well done; however, there are a number of problems: 1) The main character is quirky but two-dimensional and unconvincing (he drinks and obsesses over classical music and crossword puzzles; that's about it); 2) John Thaw is not enough of an actor to breath life into this shallow character and give him some kind of substance, center or believability; 3) The writing, direction and editing combine to produce a choppy, disjointed effect that gets in the way of the story and is very distracting (starting with the opening credits). But Morse is also a time, place and culture capsule, and it's amusing to see the inspector going to great lengths and enduring considerable discomfort to avoid soap and water: he is shown kneeling on his hard bathroom floor, bent over the bathtub, attempting to wash his hair without getting wet, rather than simply taking a shower!
With a better script and better directing and acting, Morse could have been a truly fine British TV mystery. As it is, it's barely average.