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Murdoch Mysteries: The Big Chill (2016)
5/10 for story, but 1/10 for treatment of minority.
At some point during this one, I half-expected a scene where the Inuit character is singing and tap-dancing, while Murdoch and the gang roar with laughter and pride, at their tolerance and saturation in another culture. It wasn't quite this bad, but very close.
Without giving away spoilers, I will say that if you use the social justice rulebook for determining a murderer, you will include and exclude the proper suspects. For example, a portly white captain criticizes Julia Ogden's mothering skills in the first five minutes, and then Murdoch has a stick up his rear about the guy for nearly the rest of the episode. And it goes without saying that no minority can ever, EVER be the murderer when there are white suspects still possible.
The "gentle giant" of an Inuit character, being the token minority, is imbued with every possible virtue they can stuff into him, all the way to the point of absurdity. He walks into a well-dressed dinner crowd and begins eating off stranger's plates, only to have all the women in the room smile at him and let him eat their food. Later, he kisses one of these women, causing her to join him and George at their table.
This isn't just unrealistic or laughable writing, it is insulting. To both the intelligence of the viewer and to Inuit culture proper. Perhaps we should assume that people are smart enough, and Inuits typically decent enough, that no one would require a dancing dark-skinned man virtually carrying a sign saying "I'M A MINORITY AND NOT SCARY!" to have a mature view on the subject. This speaks directly to what MM writers believe about their viewers, and should be extremely concerning. If they think the viewer is an idiot that requires this stuff, then they won't put much effort into complex plot writing that - according to them - the "folks" won't even understand.
Another "rule" of the MM writers - that I have now seen used at least three times - is that unverified information from a minority character can send the investigation on a completely new direction, whereas equally unverified info from another character gets them accused of lying, or a night in jail until they "clear it up". Apparently, minority characters have an oracle to the heavens that gives them the unvarnished truth about every case. No insult to minority characters or cultures. They deserve much better than these writers are giving them.
A lesser theme is the parenting woes of William and Julia, who pass cute little Roland between them throughout the episode. I am interested to see how this sub-plot is resolved in future episodes. Do the MM writers view infants as a way to add depth to their lead characters, or simply as a stage decoration for Julia Ogden to stand aside with her thumb up, saying "Imma workin' career gal!"
Okay, that's about all. I'll see you folks in the next MM episode. Don't worry, we'll make it all the way through. Praise be to Brackenreid!
Murdoch Mysteries: Shipwreck (2015)
When agenda drowns out creativity
A church employee is mysteriously murdered at a grave site, and the parish priest has disappeared. Sound like the gem of a good mystery? It certainly does! Then how could the writers of MM turn it into a 1/10 reviewed episode? Simple. By letting their endless - that's not hyperbole, it is ENDLESS - desire to stuff social agendas into every nook and cranny of episodic plotting.
I actually remembered something while watching this episode, that indicates a troubling pattern. Throughout the entire first half, Murdoch is chasing the parish priest who is the primary suspect in the murder. There is nothing to suggest any other suspect, so Murdoch is focused. However, as soon as it is revealed that the priest is a woman, Murdoch's opinion changes entirely. He actually says these words:
"She speaks with such utter sincerity, I'm inclined to believe her."
So nothing has changed, literally nothing, except for the sex of the suspect he's been chasing, and suddenly, the "utter sincerity" of her statement absolves her of suspicion? Such is the toxic bias exhibited by the MM writing room. It is especially bad because they lack the talent to make their political statements subtle or dramatically interesting. The bias is so obvious, that it strains otherwise credible stories.
What this creates, in total, is a Murdoch world where white male wife-beaters apparently show up with such regularity, they are literally falling out of the clouds. Conversely, women characters can make willfully immoral, illegal, or unethical actions because "it felt right", and get away with it.
You can see this insidious bias creep into even the most simple events. Consider when Julia enters the Inspector's painting into a contest. Who does this?! No one I know would even think of doing so without consent of the painter. But it is typical of Julia's character - what she wants is right, and be damned with everything else.
Another reviewer commented on the religious issues in the episode, and they are there. Personally, all this whining about "my being a priest is between me and God" is nonsense. Okay, go form your own church with you and god in it. No one said being a Catholic is a social club open to all, that you get to change when you want. No, if you don't like the rules, don't join.
But as i said, these issues are dwarfed by the toxic feminism and social justice that is present in almost EVERY SINGLE EPISODE. Enough already.
Murdoch Mysteries: Barenaked Ladies (2015)
Not a dreaded Ogden-quest, but silly nevertheless...
As these episodes go on in Season 9, they integrate Julia Ogden more into the daily police operation. Now she is coroner again, in addition to being this consulting "psychiatrist" that apparently sits in all police interrogations. This can only mean an endless stream of "William, William, William, William, William", interspersed with speeches about women and occasional inappropriate giggles.
Seriously, the Julia Ogden character ruins what is otherwise a serviceable show. Her saccharine bromides and teen angst are insufferable.
Now on to the episode.. original thoughts, indeed, but as others have said, it falls apart when logic is considered. No spoilers here, but how in the heck is our killer supposed to have accomplished this outcome?
A few laughable pacing moments, both involving William and Julia (sorry). Murdoch wakes Ogden from sleep to show her his discovery, and she acts all hazy and half-asleep (like she usually does), and then suddenly, like a flash of lightning, she wakes up and recites which golden statue was which woman, and which Last Supper apostle they represented! Wow, that's a fast study.
And at the end of the episode, the writers apparently believe that the audience skulls were too thick to understand the story, so they present this strange sequence with Julia and Murdoch (I hate typing William, because I HEAR it in that voice) walking along a pond, basically summarizing the entire episode, along with the killer's motivation and future intentions. Uh, guys... we just SAW it happen. No need to tell us.
Oh boy.... this show nose dived somewhere between S7 and S9. The insipid virus of Julia Ogden has now spread everywhere, and decent plots are in short supply. Help us Obi Wan Brackenreid! You are our only hope!
Murdoch Mysteries: Double Life (2015)
Circa season 9, is this show becoming a comedy?
Mind numbingly bad writing. Seriously, they have to be trying to be this bad.
I figured by the halfway point that they would somehow have to twist the plot to redeem Lillian's character, but the way they did it was laughably inane. I won't spoil it for you.
I'm beginning to think the writing room for this show consists entirely of 14 year old girls eating pizza and drinking jello shots. If you notice, the women in the show are portrayed as having frivolous emotional reactions to everything, acting on it rashly, and then somehow justifying the resulting train wreck because well, "muh feelings".
Someone please, PLEASE tell Helene Joy to stop that little giggle she emits whenever replying or countering something said. She is constantly giggling and laughing at shockingly inappropriate times. In the VERY FIRST SCENE she is in during this episode, when Dr. Grace is in shock from Lillian's death, she has this semi-grin on her face. I half expected her to break into a wide smile, clap her hands, and exclaim "Oh William, this is SO very exciting, isn't it?"
And why is Dr. Ogden included in nearly every police interview all of a sudden? She is no longer a coroner, and is a independent psychiatrist. Yet she hangs out at the police station, babbling and giggling about everything.
In this episode, Sad Doctor Grace (TM) is denoted by giving her no makeup and painting bags under her eyes. As soon as the crime is resolved, magic! She once again wears makeup. Cheap visual device.
Also, I am in no way prejudiced against gay people, and am a live and let live kind of gal, but enough with the political preaching! The writers are literally doing a disservice to the gay community by such stilted portrayals.
I could go on forever... just awful, awful stuff.
Murdoch Mysteries: On the Waterfront: Part 1 (2014)
Political tone getting counterproductive?
Not a bad follow-up to last season's dreadful cliffhanger (the "cliffhanger" aspect of it wasn't what was terrible though), but I'm beginning to think the writers don't know the definition of moderation.
The constant inclusion of feminist and women's issues in these episodes is beginning to strain credibility. Women, women, women, women, women, women, women, women, women women.... okay, we get it already! I'm a woman and I understand these issues (trust, dearies!), but I think even the male half of the audience only needs to hear this stuff once or twice a season. Hitting the viewer over the head with it constantly only makes it look like you are doing precisely that. Let the show breathe, and let the ideas about women's equality move around on their own in people's minds.
As usual, Dr. Julia Ogden arrives on scene, smiling from ear to ear, as Dr. Grace and Murdoch are ending a conversation about a man's brutal death by bludgeoning. Do these writers and directors actually put this in the screenplay!?!? ("No, Helene, you aren't acting whimsical enough. When Murdoch tells you about the child's death by incineration followed by slicing, I wanna see that big, bright smile!")
Enjoyed the Brackenreid subplot for a change. It isn't the best of stories for the Brackster, but Thomas Craig deserves every moment he' s on camera. Best actor on the show, and no one is close.
Murdoch Mysteries: The Death of Dr. Ogden (2014)
One of the worst episodes of the entire series!
This episode was so dreadful, it is hard to decide where to begin.
Helene Joy seems like a lovely woman in real life, but simply cannot act to save her life. She portrays Julia Ogden like a flighty amnesiac for whom every moment is an amusing novelty. Her quiet giggles in otherwise dramatic scenes is horrific, and she stares wide-eyed and mouth open most of the time, right before she says....
William...William....William...William... she is CONSTANTLY saying William! I'm guessing either the producers or Miss Joy think that saying "William" sounds good, but it is so overdone, it is annoying. In one conversation standing over her father' body, she literally refers to "William" by his name with only one SENTENCE between them. No one speaks to people saying their name this often!
In fact, Joy's acting is so bad, it appears that the writers couldn't trust her to carry an emotional episode concerning the death of her father. So they decided to have the father's "ghost" show up to enter discussions with her. Distracting and pointless. Normally, a character realizes and learns things through experience, and we see their emotions or epiphanies on their face. Not so in Julia's case, because she has only one expression. "Oh my William! He's dead. (giggle) This is so exciting, William!"
Subtracting Ogden from any episode is an improvement, but this one had little else going for it. The story that Brack and Crabtree are working on is actually interesting - about a group of problem solving geniuses - but is undone by terrible writing and cudgeling in of PC nonsense. Through logical deduction, Brack concludes that the black janitor must be the murderer. The janitor, of course, is the person actually solving the puzzles - because he's black and smart, of course - and claims he couldn't murder anyone.
What does Brack do? Say "Eh I believe him, lets move on." I'm guessing the writers never want a minority member to be the murderer, and Brack shares this bias. Where is Chief Constable Giles and his dogged analyses of alibis when you need him? Would Giles be satisfied with "I couldn't murder anyone, plus Im black!"?
There's more than I've written of course, and I didn't organize it very well. Suffice to say this was a terrible episode that defies analysis.
Murdoch Mysteries: Secrets and Lies (2018)
Nice episodic adventure, with a bit too much politicizing.
This was one of the most emotional episodes of Murdoch, and well-acted by the finest player in the cast, Thomas Craig. His portrayal of Brackenreid is far and above the best in the series, and here, we get to see the spotlight shine on him for nearly the entire running time. Well earned.
The writers took the gem of a good story, and I think overdid it a bit on the political correctness. It seems entertainment writers often push progressive causes by either involving main characters in the cause, telling a story about an abused class, or making a member of a minority group an unlikely hero. And never, ever is a member of a protected class the villain (exception: Ragtime episode!)
Anyway, it was PC enough that Brackenreid had an interracial relationship and child by the union. But the writers also strongly implied that the daughter was gay. It is hinted at by a man early in the show who said he and the daughter were both "outsiders", and he most definitely was not holding a torch for her. Later, we see the daughter in a living arrangement with the Russian-speaking friend, who wrote a letter for her, and attempted to scare off the mother and Brackenreid. The implication I saw was that the two of them were in a committed relationship. And no, there isn't anything wrong with that. It just seems awfully unlikely for this combination of progressive / tolerant PC issues to line up and coincide. A lesbian daughter by a black mother? Trifecta of protected groups - race, sex, orientation! They could have made her an activist in socialism and atheism and run the full house, adding religion and politics.
As much as I'm critical of the PC stuff, what I do like is that it was never stated. It is left to the audience to decide whether to see the relationship or not. That's how everything like that should be handled.
Best parts of the episode? The intense convo between Brack and Murdoch at the end. Finally, some real meat to the writing! And second really great thing? NO DOCTOR OGDEN AT ALL! I honestly get so tired of her saccharine bromides, and inappropriate giggles and laughter. She's like a 12 year old girl playing dress up as a Victorian coroner.
Let's hope we see more heavy episodes like this in the future!
Murdoch Mysteries (2008)
Revised opinion, upon further viewing...
At first, I liked this series quite a bit, and even wrote a review here defending the show against 1/10 reviews. But sadly, having arrived at Season 9, I share many of the criticisms.
The most troubling aspect of the show is the character of Julia Ogden, portrayed by Helene Joy. She seems written by a teenage girl fantasizing about an empowered Victorian woman. There is nothing wrong with an independent woman in this era. The problem is that she lapses into odd, childish behavior. I find it hard to sum up her behavior in a word, but I'd describe it as acting like an aloof, wealthy woman that just woke from a nap. She behaves as if reality is a constant novelty to her, and her entire purpose is to say something at best, vaguely optimistic, and at worst, humorous at inappropriate moments. In one episode - where an African American band leader is murdered - she is literally cracking jokes and smiling from ear to ear when a man has just died!
I'm not sure Helene Joy can be blamed for the frustrating character she portrays, as I have seen her interviewed, and she has a lovely personality. As Dr. Ogden, she speaks in this lilting, high pitched voice, as if she is going to cover her head and exclaim "Oh William!" at any moment. The idea that Dr. Ogden is a medical professional, much less a coroner, strains all credibility.
Seriously, pretend she is a sheltered rich woman that just woke from a nap, and you will view her lines completely differently. Once you see it, you can't unsee it!