Longish: The Detectives

Part 2 - M-Z
See this link for A-L

Index at the bottom of page.

Maigret

Jules Maigret is a French detective, a burly, slightly stupid-looking man with an active mind. Irascible and pensive, always accompanied by his trademark pipe, Maigret himself is almost as laconic as Dalgliesh.

The author of the Maigret novels and short story books (all 103 of them), George Simenon, is a master of atmosphere, using all the senses to give you a glimpse into the feelings and location of the characters. Like P.D. James, his books are beautifully written, though grappling with less serious themes.

Many have acted as Maigret on the small screen, but my favorite is Michael Gambon's 1992-93 series. Gambon is charming in the role, perhaps a little too much so, but manages to convey Maigret's essential empathy and vague, eccentric intelligence. He has easy chemistry with nearly everyone that walks onto the screen, and fits perfectly into the gorgeous, atmospheric French noir setting.

Two seasons, twelve episodes.

Rowan Atkinson took up the fedora and pipe in 2016, in a pair of somewhat lackluster TV movies.

Agatha Christie's Miss Marple

Miss Jane Marple is shrewdness incarnate. The first of the little-old-lady sleuths, Miss Marple is quick to connect pieces of gossip to solve a murder and take self-important police inspectors down a notch. Her wandering hints remind me of Father Brown’s sudden revelations, always comparing criminals with inhabitants of her fictional village, St. Mary Mead. “Oh, he’s just like Basil Twisk, my dear,” she’ll mumble absentmindedly, gazing into the distance and mentally tying a brutal murder to a scandalous secret from decades before.

Joan Hickson is the standard. Even Agatha Christie herself told her (forty years in advance) "I hope someday you play my Miss Marple." Hickson is certainly as old as Miss Marple, but her eyes are keen and her mind as sharp as ever. She conveys a great aura of mental vigor just underneath her calm, slightly dithering surface. She's never shocked by anything, and unlike most old ladies, she can easily pull off the avenging-goddess-of-justice in episodes like Nemesis.

There are several long-suffering inspectors who accompany Miss Marple on her adventures, along with an assortment of nephews. It's always hilarious to see them either a) admit Marple's genius, or b) go nuts because they're consistently left in the dust by an old lady. There's the eternally irritated D.I. (later Super.) Slack, who appears in five episodes. Slack has a grudging admiration for Miss Marple, though she demolishes his tenuous self-esteem. His sidekick is Sergeant Lake, who tends to stand, smirking, in the background while Miss Marple shows up his boss.

Appearing in two episodes is Miss Marple's nephew, the very smooth D.I. Dermot Craddock. In one episode, Kevin Whately plays sidekick as D.S. Fletcher, before moving on to Morse and the role that would define his career. The only other worth mentioning is memorably eccentric and lovable D.I. Campbell in At Bertram's Hotel.

Highly recommend this series, though if you're not a fan of slow pacing, it's not for you. Even for it's time, it's very slow, but Hickson is a magnificent under-actor, the female answer to Michael Kitchen.

Three seasons, twelve episodes.

Favorite Episode: Nemesis

Midsomer Murders

Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby of Causton CID lives in the county of Midsomer, a collection of small villages with an enormous number of murders per capita. If one judges by body-strewn shows like Midsomer Murders, the Brits don’t have anything better to do than bump off each other at dinner parties. We only watched a few seasons before we got bored, but I've been meaning to revisit Midsomer, in part because I mistrust my initial impressions (I was but a young detective fan) and also because of the sheer number of times people have recommended it to me. So consider this a hesitant judgment on my part.

This is one of the most popular shows in Britain, a reliable potboiler mystery staple, and has exchanged protagonists several times, which will probably ensure that, à la Doctor Who, it will continue for many season to come.

Twenty-one seasons, 121 episodes. Ongoing.

Inspector Morse

John Thaw's Morse may not be the greatest detective of all time, but he certainly casts a very long shadow over the British detective world. In fact, it was so long that it spawned two spin-offs, a still-running prequel, Endeavour, and a sequel: Lewis. All three shows rely on a similar formula: the main detective’s wonderfully irascible personality, the complex plots, the chemistry between detective and sidekick, and the glorious scenery of Oxford.

Morse is prone to jump to conclusions, and relies heavily on imagination and intuition. In his own way, he’s quite brilliant. Many times over the series he surprises skeptical suspects by catching their allusions to classical literature and quoting Shakespeare right back at 'em. In Oxford, land of intellectuals, he's often underestimated as a "mere policeman."

All the same, he’s not Sherlock Holmes. He gets it wrong, even to the point of arresting the wrong person on gut-feeling, or just because he doesn’t like them. He’s Poirot with a sizable portion of Japp, Holmes who is sometimes Lestrade, which makes him more realistic and pleasurably unpredictable.

As for his personality, imagine that Ebenezer Scrooge was a detective who had a sidekick named Sergeant Cratchit, and that'd about cover it. An old-fashioned Oxford alumnus, he’s a misanthrope and a bit of a romantic. The two qualities tend to balance one another out, making him a thoroughly likable (if somewhat grumpy) guy to watch.

He prefers everything classic, taking refuge from his romantic troubles in classical music (Wagner in particular), challenging crosswords, real ale, and his red Jaguar. He’s always finding some new girlfriend, though inevitably the relationship ends within two or three episodes (if that). His past is a mystery, one that is only hinted at—he almost never mentions family, and no one knows what his first name is until very late in the series.

Morse's sergeant, played by Kevin Whately, was popular enough that he now has a show of his own: Inspector Lewis. Lewis is a fresh-faced, optimistic young policeman, a welcome contrast to the grizzled and morose Morse. While simpler and in some ways naive, Lewis is often more level-headed, sticking to the straight and narrow while Morse cuts straight to the chase, sometimes through illegal territory. They have a love-hate relationship—one of the best parts of the show is watching Morse and Lewis correct one another’s grammar, Morse quoting high literature at a baffled Lewis, or, occasionally, Lewis solving the case before Morse.

Along with Lewis, there's the longsuffering Chief Superintendent Strange (as masterfully portrayed by James Grout), who has to deal with the fallout from Morse's rather unorthodox methods. But while they have a stormy relationship, they work very well together, and Strange can be tremendously funny. The only other sidekick figures could be the pathologists who come and go...some are love interests, others are just annoying. Max DeBryn, played by the great Peter Woodthorpe, is lots of fun, and is resurrected in Endeavour. Clare Holman, as the smart-aleck pathologist Laura Hobson, deserves a mention, though she only turns up in the later episodes (she's a regular on Lewis.) But overall, Morse and Lewis are one of the best mystery double-acts I've come across.

Twelve seasons, thirty-three episodes.

An article I wrote on the series.

Favorite Episode: Dead on Time/Promised Land

Murder on the Home Front

Based on the memoirs of Molly Lefebure and starring Patrick Kennedy (Bleak House), this one-off TV movie is about the most stylish treatment of the 1940s that I've ever seen. Glossier and sexier than Foyle's War, it doesn't quite match the latter for character development. Kennedy plays Lenox, a socially awkward, innovative pathologist who is constantly at odds with the powers that be. Sound familiar? Well, it is.

He's accompanied by Molly Cooper, an aspiring crime writer. They investigate a series of gruesome killings during the blitz. This provides the chance to sneak around in many dark alleys, investigate seedy night-clubs, and have many other such adventures.

As I said, the story's a cliche, and you can see the ending coming a mile away, but it looks simply marvelous. It's worth watching just for that.

One TV movie.

New Tricks

The main appeal of New Tricks (as in "you can't teach old dogs") is the trio of gruff, seasoned British actors who form UCOS - Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad. Headed up by a cool, professional, rather dull female superintendent (supposedly the protagonist) named Sandra Pullman, they have larks in the pursuit of age-old injustices.

Alun Armstrong has long had a reputation for playing eccentrics, (see Thenardier, Inspector Bucket, Jeremiah Flintwinch) and he turns it up for the obsessive compulsive semi-genius Brian Lane. Dennis Waterman, of Sweeney fame, is an appealing curmudgeon as Gerry Standing. James Bolam provides a moral center for the show as Jack Halford. It's fun show, a little like a watered-down version of Life on Mars, though instead of a modern cop in a 70's world, it's vice versa.

Twelve seasons, 107 episodes.

All episodes available on Hulu.

Agatha Christie's Poirot

My all-time favorite is Agatha Christie's Belgian private detective, Hercule Poirot. His method of detection is distinctive, interesting, and enigmatic. The audience is drawn into the investigation, always wondering why Poirot is asking about stockings, elephants, or other miscellanea. But one is ever aware that Poirot is not being weird for weirdness' sake. The aura of eternal wheel-turning in his little grey cells is perfect for a main detective. Nothing kills a detective story quicker than having an overly fallible or mentally lazy sleuth.

As all Christie’s sleuths, Poirot focuses mostly on psychology, motive, and so forth. My favorite Poirot book, Card on the Table, features a murder in a room in which all the occupants had the motive, opportunity, and access to a weapon. The only way to determine the true killer is through an examination of their psychology.

His side-kicks manage to soften Poirot's more extreme personality quirks. Arthur Hastings, the adorable puppy of the trio, is always ready to provide the Old Chap perspective. Working class copper James Japp is Poirot's Lestrade, but grudgingly respects the great detective. Miss Lemon is Poirot's classy secretary

New Series

All the episodes after 2004 lack Poirot's comic trio backup. They're so different from the old ones that I feel it's necessary to have a separate section. They're much darker, and deal with themes that would never have been touched with a ten-foot-pole in the old series, including capital punishment, justice and law, vigilante vengeance, and Catholicism.

In a way, this is a good thing, as it allows the marvelous David Suchet to take the character much farther than he could in the light-hearted older mysteries. But on the other hand, they've lost the theme music, the art deco sets, and some of the fun. They're still enjoyable, but they can sometimes be depressing.

Thirteen seasons - seventy episodes.

Favorite Episodes:
Old Series: ABC Murders
New Series: Murder on the Orient Express

Episode 1 (chronologically - this wasn't the first filmed): The Mysterious Affair at Styles
Literal Episode 1: The Adventure of the Clapham Cook

My reviews:
Season 13 -
  The Big Four
  Dead Man's Folly
  Elephants Can Remember
  The Labours of Hercules
  Curtain: Poirot's Last Case

S.
Stanhope, Vera (see Vera).

Shetland

The Shetland islands offer an unusual mixture of Nordic and Celtic influences, existing as they do at the utmost Northern edge of the British isles. They also offer plenty in the way of interesting murders. D.I. Jimmy Perez and his team investigate crimes on the barren beaches and willy hills of Shetland.

Perez makes for a compelling lead, with a quiet authority that makes him seem like a credible police officer. His partner is the somewhat lackadaisical Alison "Tosh" McIntosh and the enigmatic Sandy Wilson. The shows are intelligently written, and one of the best things about Shetland is how it highlights the gorgeous island land- and seascape.

Five seasons, ongoing.

Life on Mars
I've seen many original premises for detective shows, but this may be the craziest, cleverest yet.

It's 2006. Detective Sam Tyler, while tracking down a killer who has kidnapped his girlfriend, is hit by a car. He wakes up in 1973, tracking the same killer, but in a completely different world. Here are leather jackets, cool cars, real talk, and not a whisper of political correctness. It's a goofily exaggerated stereotype of the 70's, and it's absolutely wonderful.

Sam's new boss is burly, vulgar D.C.I. Gene Hunt, whose way of getting the job done usually means breaking a dozen laws to uphold one. Chris and Ray are the Horace and Jasper of the show. There's no-nonsense Phyllis, and sweet-tempered Annie. The show can make fun of 70's police shows while being one itself, which makes it an affectionate parody (the best kind). It also takes a semi-serious and quite fair look at the advantages and disadvantages of political correctness. The sequel is entitled Ashes to Ashes.

Two seasons, sixteen episodes.

U.

Unforgotten
To come.

V.

Harriet Vane

(SPOILERS if you haven't seen much of Lord Peter Wimsey)

Though originally created as a way to marry off her sleuth, Lord Peter Wimsey, Dorothy Sayers soon found that Harriet Vane simply wouldn't be cast off that easily. Over the four novels in which she appears, Harriet becomes quite an accomplished detective on her own. On the side, of course, Peter plays a major part, and their complex relationship finally comes to a satisfactory climax in Gaudy Night. Harriet, unlike Peter, is a bit more inclined to look for motive, which is doubtless due to the fact that she's also a mystery novelist.

Vera

Like George Gently, this series moves away from both the deadly spires of Oxford and the lethal hedgerows of cozy Southern villages. Instead, we are treated to the panoramic, storm-tossed vistas, rugged hills, and frigid oceans of the North of England.

Vera Stanhope follows in the tradition of the deceptively-simple-old-lady-detective genre. Unlike Miss Marple or Jessica Fletcher, Vera is an actual police officer, and not even an underdog maverick like many of her male equivalents (Morse, Frost, Foyle, to some extent Gently), but a hard-drinking, short-tempered D.C.I. with no apparent boss.

Since we still need a prickly authority figure to spice things up, Vera provides her own. She offers a sympathetic ear to witnesses (unless she suspects them of lying, in which case it's war), but her colleagues must deal with her acerbic perfectionism and emotional awkwardness.

Many of her flaws originated in a troubled childhood dominated by her neglectful father. She denies it, of course - but nevertheless, his influence is still strong over her life. Fiercely independent, Vera refuses to acknowledge her own weakness until circumstances force her to do so.

Series 1-4
Thankfully, for the first four seasons, her incredibly cute sidekick, Joe Ashworth (David Leon), provides a shoulder to lean on. A family man and a Catholic, he's patient, gracious, and courageous, acting both as son and ally to Vera. He insists on helping her, even though she really doesn't want help, and his persistence means she can't ignore him. The chemistry and intelligent interaction between the two actors really make the show, and they're probably my favorite detective pair of all time.

Series 5-
After David Leon left the show, Kenny Doughty replaced him as a new sidekick: D.S. Aiden Healy. He's more cocky than Joe - less mature, and more hotheaded. That said, he's not terrible - the rapport between Doughty and Blethyn is passable. Joe's absence, however, means the show relies more heavily on its ensemble cast - grumpy D.S. Kenny Lockhart, Marcus the Pathologist, Helen in Intelligence, and a revolving door of supporting female characters (Holly, Bethany, Shep, Bethany again...)

My reviews:
Series 1
Series 2
Series 3
Series 4
Episode 1 - On Harbour Street
Episode 2 - Protected
Episode 3 - The Deer Hunters
Episode 4 - Death of a Family Man
Series 5
Episode 1 - Changing Tides
Episode 2 - Old Wounds
Episode 3 - Muddy Waters
Episode 4 - Shadows of the Sky (didn't review)
Series 6
Episode 1 - Dark Road
Episode 2 - Tuesday's Child
Episode 3 - The Moth Catcher
Episode 4 - The Sea Glass
Series 7
Episode 1 - Natural Selection
Episode 2 - Dark Angel
Episode 3 - Broken Promise
Episode 4 - The Blanket Mire
Series 8
Episode 1 - Blood and Bone
Episode 2 - Black Ice
Episode 3 - Home
Episode 4 - Darkwater

Favorite episode: Young Gods.

Ten seasons, 36 episodes - ongoing. Watch the first three seasons on Hulu for free.

Sam Vimes

Samuel Vimes isn't technically a detective - he's a copper, a man of the law. Terry Pratchett's fantasy satire Discworld series has several threads with various heroes, from Rincewind the cowardly wizard to Moist von Lipwig (conman cum postmaster), but my favorite is the many adventures of The Ankh-Morpork City Watch, featuring Vimes. Vimes is a mix of Clint Eastwood, Lord Peter Wimsey, and Bertie Wooster, not necessarily in that order. He's tough, he smokes a cigar, he dispenses justice. He's British, has a wry sense of humor, and solves mysteries. He's a bit of an idiot, but it's still fun getting inside his head.

Accompanied by portly Sergeant Colon, the six foot dwarf Captain Carrot, (probably) human Nobby Nobs, and a variety of other motley characters, Vimes solves crimes in the murky streets of that den of crime: Ankh-Morpork. He's an accidental hero that changes enormously through the first few books of the series. He'd say his boss was the Law, but it's really Lord Vetinari, the fascist ruler with whom he has a love-hate relationship. Also: don't forget his marvelously posh love interest, Lady Sybil. She raises dragons. Like you do.

Vimes is featured in one short story (Theater of Cruelty), and eight novels:
Guards! Guards!
Men at Arms
Feet of Clay
Jingo
The Fifth Elephant
Night Watch
Thud!
Snuff

He will headline the upcoming Discworld TV series: The Watch.

W.

Hetty Wainthropp Investigates

Sexagenarian Hetty Wainthropp is bored. “I’m wasted at the post office, Robert,” she tells her mild-mannered husband. Hetty (played by Patricia Routledge) rides along mostly on common sense, hunches, and mother-wit. Like Miss Marple, she is a classic little-old-lady sleuth, complete with knitting, berets, and a lot of eyebrow-raising. But since she’s a parody, she’s tougher, funnier, more ridiculous, and always solves the case.

Her sidekick, teenaged Geoffrey, is played by Dominic Monaghan (yes, of Meriadoc Brandybuck fame). Apprehended by Hetty in the first episode for petty theft, she takes it upon herself to reform him, and he becomes a sort of son to her and Robert.

These are lightweight mysteries, but an enjoyable way to pass the time.

Four seasons, twenty-seven episodes.

Wallander

While Kenneth Branagh's Wallander series is rich in visual flourish, its political story-lines are so heavyhanded, and its protagonist's misery so pronounced that it's a chore to complete each episode. Kurt Wallander is a Swedish detective who juggles a lonely family life with melodramatic investigations. There's some decent acting and a fair amount of suspense, but again, it's so overbearing that it's difficult to enjoy it.

Four seasons, 12 episodes.

There are a couple seasons of the original Swedish series available on Hulu.

Lord Peter Wimsey

Lord Peter D.B. Wimsey. Dorothy L. Sayers described her sleuth as a mix between “Bertie Wooster and Fred Astaire.” Peter is the ultimate British gentleman detective, but throughout the books, he manages to transcend the stereotype and become a more human character. Peter’s sense of humor sets him apart from nearly all other detectives (except perhaps Father Brown). He doesn’t take himself, or anything for that matter, very seriously. He’s much more practical than other detectives, and acts pretty much like a real policemen, though with a bit more freedom.

His motto is that "the How will lead to the Who," and thus concentrates much more on means to the end rather than motive. His personality develops throughout the novels, morphing from a classic silly British gentleman into a complex and deep man, plagued by PTSD and insecurity.

But always, throughout, Petermaintains his teasing sense of humor and wit. He’s an avid reader and collector of rare books—when he finally meets his love interest, they amuse themselves by bantering with obscure quotations from John Donne or Milton.

Dorothy Sayers gave her hero an intelligent and interesting Watson in Bunter, Peter’s manservant. Bunter assists with his knowledge of forensics and photography, often going undercover to interview those Downstairs. Having served under Peter as a sergeant during the Great War, Bunter knows him better than nearly anyone else, and saves his master’s life several times throughout the series.

Another good friend of Peter’s is Chief Inspector Parker of the Yard. But Parker’s far from the bumbling Lestrade, possessing a stolid, if somewhat plodding, logic. And then there's Harriet (see V., above). Unfortunately, my favorite adaptation only made three episodes, and began rather late in the series. Another, with Ian Carmichael, adapted five novels. Unlike many of the above series, I much prefer the books to the adaptations.

Zen

I never expected Rufus Sewell could play anything other than sleazy playboys and sadistic villains, but boy does he prove me wrong in this short-lived series set in Rome. Sewell is Aurelio Zen, a strait-laced cop in a corrupt city, seeking to do the most good for the most people in a world where he can trust no one.

Something like a cross between James Bond and Christopher Foyle, Aurelio is modest and unpretentious, but he's also got tailored suits which are suspiciously out of the price range of a policeman. And all the ladies (with sexy Italian accents) fall all over him.

The plots become a bit formulaic, but Sewell is a great lead - he has an easy, unmannered style and wry sense of humor that keep the intrigue from becoming too self-serious.

One season, three episodes.

Index

A.
Agatha Christie's Miss Marple
Agatha Christie's Poirot
And Then There Were None
Arthur and George (2015)
Alleyn, Roderick (Alleyn Mysteries)
Amiss, Robert (Amiss Mysteries)
B.
Barnaby, Tom
Bennet, Elizabeth
Beresford, Tommy and Tuppence
  Partners in Crime (1983)
  Partners in Crime (2015)
The Bletchley Circle
Broadchurch
Brokenwood Mysteries
Brown, Father
  Books
  Father Brown (1970)
  Father Brown (2013 - )
Bleak House
Bordey, Camille
Bucket, Inspector
C.
Cadfael
Campion

Carver, Emmett
Chambers, Sidney
Christie, Agatha
  Agatha Christie's Miss Marple
  Agatha Christie's Poirot
  And Then There Were None
  Partners in Crime (1983)
  Partners in Crime (2015)
Conan Doyle, Arthur
  Arthur and George
  Sherlock Holmes stories
Crabbe, Henry
Cracker (upcoming)

Crawford, Bess
D.

Dalgliesh, Adam

The Dante Club

Davies, Dangerous

Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
Death Comes to Pemberley
Death in Paradise

Dobbs, Maisie
A Dorothy L. Sayers Mystery
E.

Edwards, Ruth Dudley
Endeavour
F.
Father Brown (1970)

Father Brown (2013 - )
Fisher, Phryne
Foyle, Christopher (Foyle's War)

Frost, William “Jack”

Gracepoint
Grantchester

Gently, Dirk

Gently, George (Inspector George Gently)