Upcoming Detective Shows in 2018 - Vera, Endeavour, Luther...

Coming soon (Vera, Endeavour):

It's been a while, but I've finally found the time to write up another of these updates. I've managed to miss a few series (Brokenwood 4 has come and gone, and Father Brown 6 is airing now), so the list is a bit more spare than usual, but here goes.

Vera Series 5 - Muddy Waters - Episode Review

My review of the previous episode, Old Wounds.

My review of the first season of Vera.
My review of the second season of Vera.
My review of the third season of Vera.
My reviews of the fourth season of Vera.

And it's back to the country - now Vera and Aiden investigate a death on a farm. We have a chilling body discovery in a slurry pit - the workers are trying to remove a blockage when up he bobs from the black goo. Whoever he was, his body was weighted down, which means this was no accident (or else a very creative suicide).

Vera Series 5 - Old Wounds - Episode Review

My review of the previous episode: Changing Tides.

My review of the first season of Vera.
My review of the second season of Vera.
My review of the third season of Vera.
My reviews of the fourth season of Vera.

"Don't blame the times; blame yourself."

This is Vera’s second shot at a historical murder (first was Crow’s Trap). Carrie Telling was dumped in the woods in the 80s, when Vera was a young W.P.C. At the time, miners and coppers were at odds, resulting in several violent confrontations. The dead girl’s father, Bill, still carries a lot of bitterness from the period: not only did the police fail to find his daughter, but he was a miner. He’s quick to expect the worst of Vera and Aiden, and his temper is strong enough that Vera thinks a bout of rage may have resulted in his daughter’s death.

Vera Series 5 - Changing Tides - Episode Review

My review of the previous season finale.

My review of the first season of Vera.
My review of the second season of Vera.
My review of the third season of Vera.
My reviews of the fourth season of Vera.

The beginning of series 5 finds Vera returning from holiday. Because it's Vera, our workaholic, obsessive heroine - the holiday was occasioned by the death of a distant relative in Galway. Back at home, some things have changed. Shep has disappeared, replaced by Bethany Whelan - a returning supporting cast member from season 2. Kenny and Marcus remain, and as in series 4, have expanded roles. Most significantly, David Leon's Joe Ashworth has departed.

Vera Series 4 - Death of a Family Man - Episode Review

My review of the previous episode: The Deer Hunters.

My review of the first season of Vera.
My review of the second season of Vera.
My review of the third season of Vera.

Despite the frightening title, Joe’s final episode doesn’t really focus on him. The most interesting change in dynamic comes from Robert Glenister’s Owen Preece, who is guesting as a rival and possible love interest for Vera. The latter half of that sentence doesn’t quite work. It’s certainly interesting to see the sparks fly when Vera encounters another authority figure (unlike Morse or comparable detective heroes, Vera has never embraced the underdog, anti-authoritarian hero storyline), but any romantic chemistry is firmly in Joe’s (and Celine’s) imagination.

Vera Series 4 - The Deer Hunters - Episode Review

My review of the previous episode: Protected.

My review of the first season of Vera.
My review of the second season of Vera.
My review of the third season of Vera.

British detectives - as a class - tend to be aristocratic and city-based (from Wimsey to Holmes). True, there’s the occasional working class plodder - Lewis and Frost, for example - but Vera’s the first detective I’ve encountered with her feet firmly in the country earth (photographed incredibly, in what, I think, is the first use of drones filming Vera). Poor citified Joe looks pained as she scoops up a handful of animal droppings and smells them deeply. They’ve just discovered a body - and the droppings tell Vera they should be looking for poachers.

Vera Series 4 - Protected - Episode Review

My review of the previous episode: On Harbour Street.

My review of the first season of Vera.
My review of the second season of Vera.
My review of the third season of Vera.

This episode begins with somewhat of a repeat of the season 3 finale’s trick opening - a gaggle of glamorous girls are dancing on the beach, observed by a sleazy looking guy. One of the girls is separated from the others. Walking alone in the darkness, she stumbles. It’s the body of the watcher - he’s been bludgeoned to death. The man, not the woman, was the prey.

What's Up With Me - 2015/2016

I've been so busy that the only time I update this blog is usually for whatever British detective show I'm reviewing at the moment. I'm hoping to change that with a few non-detection-related posts coming down the pipe. These last four or five months have been absolutely crazy. Among the things that have happened:

• I had an article on Twin Peaks and The X-Files published in The Weekly Standard. You know, published. Like, in an actual magazine. A magazine I read when I was a kid. I still can't quite believe that it happened.

• Since November, I've been writing on a semi-weekly basis for Summit Ministries. Among the things I've written about: China's two-child policy, Henry V and Agincourt, the terror attacks in Paris, Advent, Pearl Harbor, prayer, civil disobedience, and The X-Files. 

• On the first of the year, I was, through no virtue of my own, in an award-winning photograph, taken by my incredible sister, Sarah.

• I wrote an article on The Lord of the Rings for the good folks over at Torrey Gazette. It's probably the closest thing I have to a spiritual testimony.

• We've been keeping up with the podcast, and have added a new guest star to a vlog series, Mamaw Reviews: June Long. We've covered The Return of the King and Star Wars: A New Hope, so far, and as soon as sickness and snow abate, we'll be moving on to the rest of a galaxy far, far away.

• I've been watching a lot of The X-Files (and contemplating a Best Of list, though this would probably be of interest only to myself) as my various social media timelines will attest, but an even better show (if, like me, you love British TV, Brenda Blethyn, and murder mysteries) that I've kept quiet about: Vera. I've been reviewing it, and you can watch the first three seasons here for free.

• As usual, my reviews of Endeavour are my top-performing posts, shooting this blog's usual three or four thousand pageviews per month up to around sixteen thousand. The season was a bit uneven, but still very entertaining. Read my reviews here, but first, watch Inspector Morse.

• Bonus: we've been discovering the wonderfulness of silent movies. Here's one to watch. And you should. Because it's great, and funny, and there are awesome stunts.

Longish

Vera Series 4 - On Harbour Street - Episode Review

My review of the first season of Vera.
My review of the second season of Vera.
My review of the third season of Vera.

So: the first episode of series 4 finds Joe and his suddenly older daughter, (played by a different actress, Olivia Armstrong) Jessie, boarding the train after church. Among the crowd is Margaret Kraszewski, a do-gooder that the camera’s lingering gaze implies is not long for this world. Sure enough, when the crowd vacates the car, Jessie finds the old woman dead - stabbed in her lower back.

Vera - Series 3 - Review

My review of the first season of Vera.
My review of the second season of Vera.

Vera - Series 2 - Review

 My review of the first season of Vera.

Vera - Series 1 - Review

Vera starts out slow. She's a hard sell is Vera Stanhope - tough, insecure, fearfully intelligent, and afraid of placing confidence in others. Joe Ashworth, the dishy sergeant to end all dishy sergeants (sorry, Hathaway), is, however, a patient man. He's prepared to wait, to chip away at her walls, to take her moods and temper. I think they're my favorite detective duo of all time.

What I offer here are the impressions I jotted down after each episode - minireviews, if you like, and more of a rough diary than anything, but here they are. You can watch the first three seasons free here.

British Detective News - Autumn/Winter 2015/16

This is older news - check out this link for the latest.

Coming soon (Inspector Lewis, Luther, Sherlock, Endeavour, Father Brown):

The start of the year saw the finale of two major series: Foyle’s War and Agatha Christie’s Poirot (and effectively confirmed that Broadchurch might as well be over.)

Inspector Lewis has been lumbering along his merry way for eight series, and many are beginning to suspect the end is nigh. The first episode airs in the U.K. on October 6th, at 9:00 PM, with the subsequent five (there are three episodes, split into two parts) airing each Tuesday thereafter, presumably. No trailer yet, but in my opinion, this is far more fun:

What a privilege and treat to work with each and everyone of the fantastic Lewis crew. With HUGE apologies to John Denver. Thankyou for supporting us. See you on the other side. X
Posted by Laurence Fox on Tuesday, August 25, 2015

My reviews: Season 8 -     
Episode 1 - Entry Wounds     
Episode 2 - Lions of Nemea
Episode 3 - Beyond Good and Evil