As has been said by me a number of times, 'Midsomer Murders' is one of my most watched and most re-watched shows. It is nowhere near as good now and the Tom Barnaby-era wasn't alien to average or less episodes, but when it was on form or at its best boy was it good.
The previous season was a very mixed bag, with no disasters but no classics. The best of the episodes being only decent while showing signs of greatness. "The Sword of Guillaume" is a pretty good episode, without being among the best of 'Midsomer Murders', as far as Season 13 goes it's definitely one of the better episodes of the season which never reached classic level and one or two of the episodes were show low-points.
"Sword of Guillaume" starts off uninteresting, with a lot of padding and a subplot that just isn't that compelling at the end of the day. Despite an interesting method of murder, the first murder especially does have loose ends regarding the probability and practicalities of the murder (one of the show's most improbable perhaps for reasons highlighted in previous reviews). A couple of the overtones while intriguing grow slightly tired.
However, the production values as always are just great, the idyllic look of it contrasting very well with the story's grimness, and quaint and atmospheric photography, with a creepy look in the murder scenes, the murders being significantly less tame and fairly interesting. The music fits perfectly, with some lush jauntiness and sometimes an ominous quality, and the theme tune one of the most memorable and instantly recognisable of the genre.
Scripting has a nice balance of thought, humour and drama, while the story gradually becomes one of the show's darkest and twisted in a while and once the first murder is intriguing. The medieval theme has a real sense of mystery, as do the themes used, and one loves the interplay between Barnaby and Jones as well as the addition of Barnaby's brother John (who would not long after take over as the lead).
Characters are closer to the more colourful and eccentric characters of the classic era rather than the lifeless ones that too many of the recent episodes had, as well as the motives while slightly silly closer to the twisted ones rather than the dull and far-fetched ones recently. The identity of the murderer was not a shock, with a good deal of clues that quickly add up, but still nicely done.
John Nettles and Jason Hughes are both superb, individually and together (their chemistry, and the chemistry with Daniel Casey and John Hopkins before Hughes, being a huge part of their episodes' charm). Neil Dudgeon here brings the lightness of touch and cheeky demeanour often missing when he took over. In support, Tim McInnerny (as one of the show's most loathsome first victims), Mark Gatiss, Janet Suzman, Lucy Cohu and Saskia Reeves give great performances.
In summary, pretty good if not one of the best. 7/10 Bethany Cox
The previous season was a very mixed bag, with no disasters but no classics. The best of the episodes being only decent while showing signs of greatness. "The Sword of Guillaume" is a pretty good episode, without being among the best of 'Midsomer Murders', as far as Season 13 goes it's definitely one of the better episodes of the season which never reached classic level and one or two of the episodes were show low-points.
"Sword of Guillaume" starts off uninteresting, with a lot of padding and a subplot that just isn't that compelling at the end of the day. Despite an interesting method of murder, the first murder especially does have loose ends regarding the probability and practicalities of the murder (one of the show's most improbable perhaps for reasons highlighted in previous reviews). A couple of the overtones while intriguing grow slightly tired.
However, the production values as always are just great, the idyllic look of it contrasting very well with the story's grimness, and quaint and atmospheric photography, with a creepy look in the murder scenes, the murders being significantly less tame and fairly interesting. The music fits perfectly, with some lush jauntiness and sometimes an ominous quality, and the theme tune one of the most memorable and instantly recognisable of the genre.
Scripting has a nice balance of thought, humour and drama, while the story gradually becomes one of the show's darkest and twisted in a while and once the first murder is intriguing. The medieval theme has a real sense of mystery, as do the themes used, and one loves the interplay between Barnaby and Jones as well as the addition of Barnaby's brother John (who would not long after take over as the lead).
Characters are closer to the more colourful and eccentric characters of the classic era rather than the lifeless ones that too many of the recent episodes had, as well as the motives while slightly silly closer to the twisted ones rather than the dull and far-fetched ones recently. The identity of the murderer was not a shock, with a good deal of clues that quickly add up, but still nicely done.
John Nettles and Jason Hughes are both superb, individually and together (their chemistry, and the chemistry with Daniel Casey and John Hopkins before Hughes, being a huge part of their episodes' charm). Neil Dudgeon here brings the lightness of touch and cheeky demeanour often missing when he took over. In support, Tim McInnerny (as one of the show's most loathsome first victims), Mark Gatiss, Janet Suzman, Lucy Cohu and Saskia Reeves give great performances.
In summary, pretty good if not one of the best. 7/10 Bethany Cox