The Lila Lee cosmetics company is holding its annual awards ceremony. Grady is once again out of work and hoping to land a job with them, Aunt Jessica is on hand once again to help out. Lila Lee is the figurehead of the brand, demanding and pretty rude, her brother Norman, runs the company, and is engaged to one of Jessica's ex students, Elizabeth. To get reacquainted, Norman organises a dinner for himself, Jessica and Elizabeth, but when Elizabeth doesn't turn up, they visit her apartment, discovering a body on the floor.
I loved this episode, it's so cleverly written, the neat mapping of the characters is really well done. Jessica's intimate knowledge of the victim adds a different dimension, allowing her to know fully how she would have behaved. On the surface the story is shiny and glitzy, underneath it's more complex, darker. A great job was done in masking a rather sinister murder in all that glitz.
The production team did a particularly good job with this one, they created a perfectly believable brand, with fantastic uniforms and props.
Jayne Meadows is an absolute joy as Lila Lee, so wonderfully theatrical, beautifully suited to the part. That 'Cabbage Cove' line is possibly my favourite from the show.