Detective and Mystery Shows

[Milburn Stone]

Thank you to everyone who's recommended Agatha Raisin! A detective show with humor that's actually charming and funny instead of just trying to be. (I'm looking at you, Brokenwood.) Watched the first one last night. The ninety minutes flew right by. I love all the characters in the village, and Agatha herself--and how the murder didn't even happen until what seemed like halfway through. Wonder if that will be a pattern. Anyway, top-notch in all departments, in front of and behind the camera.

[Minivanessa]

7 minutes ago, Milburn Stone said:

Thank you to everyone who's recommended Agatha Raisin! A detective show with humor that's actually charming and funny instead of just trying to be. (I'm looking at you, Brokenwood.) Watched the first one last night. The ninety minutes flew right by. I love all the characters in the village, and Agatha herself--and how the murder didn't even happen until what seemed like halfway through. Wonder if that will be a pattern. Anyway, top-notch in all departments, in front of and behind the camera.

Thanks for this. I've read most of the Agatha Raisin books, and have thus been a bit reluctant to view the series. But since that series isn't my favorite of M.C. Beaton's crime novels, on further reflection I realize I don't care if the series is based only loosely on the books. I much prefer Beaton's Hamish Macbeth series and found a few of the Agatha Raisin novels unreadable anyway.

No offense intended to the late Ms. Beaton aka Marion Chesney. I don't hold the occasional disappointing A. Raisin book against her. She was a terrific storyteller, and a prolific one, and I wish she were still with us. May she RIP.

[LisaM]

I have not yet watched Season 2 of The Chelsea Detective but I echo @Jeeves comments about Sonita Henry. I really liked the actress and the character. I doubt that the show will be the same without her. 

[abbyzenn]

I liked The Chelsea Detective season 2 opener - it wasn't great but I thought quite watchable.  Love the London scenery and loved seeing inside the homes of some of the suspects.  I really liked the sidekick in season one (can't remember her name), she had a calming presence.  The new sidekick didn't wow me, but I'm finding it hard adjusting to new cast members in numerous shows like this season's Van der Valk and Unforgotten.  Actually I found Nicola Walker's replacement so awful I didn't finish the season of Unforgotten.

[Minivanessa]

@abbyzenn, thanks for sharing that. I have thought that I should probably watch that episode again, when I am not so sleepy. After reading your comment I plan to do that. 

[proserpina65]

On 8/20/2023 at 8:36 PM, Writing Wrongs said:

I just finished Season 1 of Hope Street. I enjoyed it apart from some awful characters like the mother of the head cop and the two idiot bar owners. I was excited by the cliffhanger, but I see the main character Leila is not even in Season 2 so I think I'm going to pass on it. I hate when shows do that.

I got caught up on Vera. Still my favorite of all the British detective shows.

I tried watching Hope Street but found most of the characters including Leila annoying. 

Spoiler

I stopped watching after Leila and her boss kissed.  It was just so ridiculous.

 

[LisaM]

Watched Episode 1 of Season 2 of The Chelsea Detective. Last year, this was one of my favorite series. I really liked the relationship between Max and Priya and thought that the supporting cast - especially the medical examiner - was quite good.

For Season 2, it's only been one episode but I am not thrilled with the replacement DS so far. She is inoffensive but a big drop off in charisma from Priya. Not nearly as enamored with the show as I was last year. Hopefully the next few episodes will be better. 

[mledawn]

On 8/23/2023 at 8:34 AM, Milburn Stone said:

Watched the first episode of Hinterland last night. Was kind of hoping it was going to be a continuing story rather than a self-contained episode, but it was pretty good. At times had an unwelcome thought that this was Shetland in Wales--even down to a Tosh semi-lookalike sidekick--but the scenery was awesome.

I can't wait for the real Shetland's return. Even with a different lead, I have confidence in the show runners to do their magic.

Late to this but if you enjoyed Hinterland, I suggest giving Keeping Faith a shot. It's like a H!ITG for Welsh actors - although I think Richard Harrington is the only one not in it.

[Writing Wrongs]

I watched Redemption and really enjoyed it.

[Milburn Stone]

Loved the two-episode French mystery/crime drama Piégés, showing on the MHz subchannel of Prime. It stars Odile Vuillemin of Profilage/Paris Murders fame.

Edited September 9, 2023 by Milburn Stone

[sempervivum]

I watched season 2/episode 2 of Chelsea Detective, and I fell asleep halfway through. Is it just me, or are all these characters pretty dull? We only know a few things about Max: he's dyslexic, has an aunt, and doesn't want to accept the end of his marriage. His sidekicks are equally uninteresting, imo. 

Also, that plot? The suspect has a sister who looks a lot like her, and we only find out about her in the last ten minutes (OK, I woke up). In mystery-plot world, that's cheating.

Of course I'll still watch- I do like the architecture, river boats, fancy lifestyles, etc., but this isn't exactly must-see TV.

Edited September 10, 2023 by sempervivum
additional information

[Minivanessa]

18 hours ago, sempervivum said:

I watched season 2/episode 2 of Chelsea Detective, and I fell asleep halfway through. Is it just me, or are all these characters pretty dull? We only know a few things about Max: he's dyslexic, has an aunt, and doesn't want to accept the end of his marriage. His sidekicks are equally uninteresting, imo. 

Also, that plot? The suspect has a sister who looks a lot like her, and we only find out about her in the last ten minutes (OK, I woke up). In mystery-plot world, that's cheating.

Of course I'll still watch- I do like the architecture, river boats, fancy lifestyles, etc., but this isn't exactly must-see TV.

Oh, that's funny. I dozed off during the first episode of Season 2. 😴 A few days later I tried to watch it again, but though I was awake, it didn't hold my attention and I just didn't care enough about it to try to figure out what the plot was all about. 

I've watched the second episode, and TBH it was better than the first episode, but still not very engaging. Agree with your take on it.

I like Max, but I'm getting tired of his dragged-out separation from his wife. I've seen too many true crime shows where the guy who stubbornly refuses to entertain the idea of divorce from his wife, ends up committing murder. So, yeah, Max's attitude is sliding from eccentric to - creepy. 

I think this season is meh for two reasons.

• First, weak scripts so far; stupid plots and situations that aren't engaging. As to the first episode: I so do NOT care about valuable! artworks! going missing from a gallery owned by a rich! socialite!. Yawn. I was kind of disappointed when the rich precious socialite survived the murder attempt. 
• Second, it lacks the energy that Sonita Henry brought to the ensemble as Priya. There's quick reference at the start of the first episode of Season 2, that Priya has moved with her husband and child to Brighton. Sonita Henry just owned the screen in almost every scene. Priya was strong on the job, and the series did a good job of showing her struggles to adjust to motherhood at home. Priya's replacement is okay - but just a different energy. A fairly fungible team member. The only thing I remember about her is that she lives with someone who snores and goes hiking on weekends to get away from him. Or something like that.

I agree, the series is watchable for the scenery. I love London and enjoy the virtual visits. Give me more street scenes and boats on the Thames!

[LisaM]

19 hours ago, sempervivum said:

I watched season 2/episode 2 of Chelsea Detective, and I fell asleep halfway through. Is it just me, or are all these characters pretty dull? We only know a few things about Max: he's dyslexic, has an aunt, and doesn't want to accept the end of his marriage. His sidekicks are equally uninteresting, imo. 

Also, that plot? The suspect has a sister who looks a lot like her, and we only find out about her in the last ten minutes (OK, I woke up). In mystery-plot world, that's cheating.

Of course I'll still watch- I do like the architecture, river boats, fancy lifestyles, etc., but this isn't exactly must-see TV.

Exactly my thoughts regarding the sudden revelation of the sister. How is the audience supposed to figure out the mystery if a key piece of evidence is purposely withheld? 

28 minutes ago, Jeeves said:

Oh, that's funny. I dozed off during the first episode of Season 2. 😴 A few days later I tried to watch it again, but though I was awake, it didn't hold my attention and I just didn't care enough about it to try to figure out what the plot was all about. 

I've watched the second episode, and TBH it was better than the first episode, but still not very engaging. Agree with your take on it.

I like Max, but I'm getting tired of his dragged-out separation from his wife. I've seen too many true crime shows where the guy who stubbornly refuses to entertain the idea of divorce from his wife, ends up committing murder. So, yeah, Max's attitude is sliding from eccentric to - creepy. 

I think this season is meh for two reasons.

• First, weak scripts so far; stupid plots and situations that aren't engaging. As to the first episode: I so do NOT care about valuable! artworks! going missing from a gallery owned by a rich! socialite!. Yawn. I was kind of disappointed when the rich precious socialite survived the murder attempt. 
• Second, it lacks the energy that Sonita Henry brought to the ensemble as Priya. There's quick reference at the start of the first episode of Season 2, that Priya has moved with her husband and child to Brighton. Sonita Henry just owned the screen in almost every scene. Priya was strong on the job, and the series did a good job of showing her struggles to adjust to motherhood at home. Priya's replacement is okay - but just a different energy. A fairly fungible team member. The only thing I remember about her is that she lives with someone who snores and goes hiking on weekends to get away from him. Or something like that.

I agree, the series is watchable for the scenery. I love London and enjoy the virtual visits. Give me more street scenes and boats on the Thames!

I think that you are dead on point regarding the change in DS from Sonita Henry's character to the new DS. Priya was not just a DS - she had an interesting home life; I don't often see a detective program showing one of the female leads struggling with new motherhood. The actress was also much stronger than the one portraying the current DS. 

The Chelsea Detective was one of my favorite shows in Season One. It is now barely tolerable in Season Two. 

[mledawn]

Acorn has announced that Season 2 of Harry Wild will premiere on October 9th

[Milburn Stone]

The show runners of Unforgotten have been very smart in at least one regard with the new season. They knew that viewers were going to hate whoever Nicola Walker's replacement was, because she's not Nicola Walker. So they made the character unlikable, at least in the first couple episodes. There's nothing more fatal for a show than telling the audience they're supposed to like someone they just don't like.

I have no doubt the writers are headed to redemption for her, but to start out with some congruence between the audience's feelings and the writers' intention is shrewd.

[sempervivum]

Episode 3 of Chelsea Detective: fell asleep for part of it again, so I apologize if this was covered and I just missed it, but was there any foundation laid for the therapist being revealed as a rapist? This seemed to come out of nowhere, which I guess is just how the show rolls now.

Also, why is Astrid back again? I thought last time it was implied she would be in Germany indefinitely caring for her mother. Now she's refurnishing her apartment, and already (apparently) has picked up a new boyfriend.

 

[mynextmistake]

I finished the entire new series of Unforgotten (it’s available in its entirety to PBS Passport members).

I don’t mind the new DCI, who starts out pretty awful but over the course of the series develops a pretty nice dynamic with the team. I didn’t love the plot, though. It wasn’t quite as bad as the “surprise! I’m a serial killer!” mess we got in series 3, but it wasn’t great, either. No spoilers, but I’ll just say that with the exception of one rather confusing and nonsensical twist, I had figured out what was going on by the end of episode 3. 

I also found that the fact that PBS edits out 15 minutes of each episode to air them in the states was pretty distracting here. The main storyline was still easy to follow, but some of the more character-centric arcs were really confusing because they had obviously edited out many of the parts of the episodes that were devoted to those arcs. I don’t know why they can’t just air the episodes in their entirety, or at least edit them more carefully.

[LisaM]

Finished Chelsea Detective last evening. Unfortunately, episode 4 was not any better than any of the prior episodes in Season 2. The show really suffered from the replacement of DS Shamsie with the new DS Walsh. In the process, it destroyed its uniqueness. 

Looking forward to watching Mrs. Sidhu Investigates on Acorn. Am currently watching Van Der Valk on PBS. (It has its own topic here so I won't discuss in this thread.) 

[Irlandesa]

10 hours ago, LisaM said:

Looking forward to watching Mrs. Sidhu Investigates on Acorn.

I absolutely loved this.  I think it's the best new Acorn show in a long time. The mystery might have been a little confusing but I loved the characters and the little ways they surprise.

Edited September 19, 2023 by Irlandesa

[LisaM]

I liked Mrs. Sidhu Investigates as well - especially since it was the pilot, which is often not great. I thought it was a bit long and draggy but I'll reserve judgment until the next episode. I love the actress and the character of Mrs. Sidhu. Looking forward to seeing how she and the Inspector develop a working relationship. 

Watching a fun show on MHz Choice called Crime is Her Game. It is a buddy mystery show with 2 female cops set in rural France. It is in French with subtitles. I believe there are 7 episodes altogether. Recommended. 

Edited September 22, 2023 by LisaM

[Milburn Stone]

On 9/18/2023 at 1:18 AM, mynextmistake said:

PBS edits out 15 minutes of each episode...

What? This sucks. Even on Passport? (But I guess so, because that's how you're watching it too.) 

I could live with PBS doing this to fit the show into a time slot (if strictly necessary for some reason), but it's ridiculous to do this for the world of streaming where there is no such thing as a time slot.

Not that I'm volunteering, but if iTunes were charging $2.99 for uncut episodes, I might go for it.

Edited September 26, 2023 by Milburn Stone

[wanderingstar]

On 9/13/2023 at 3:04 PM, mledawn said:

Acorn has announced that Season 2 of Harry Wild will premiere on October 9th

Yay! I have missed this show so much! I can only rewatch the first series so much 😁

 

Enjoying Mrs. Sidhu Investigates. Meera Syal is delightful, and her rapport with Craig Parkinson is hilarious. And the mysteries have been solid. Hope it gets a second season.

[Enigma X]

I think I am burnt out on people who have nothing to do with crimefighting, always being near the murder scene yet having nothing to do with the murder but are the ones who solve it. Yes, I am looking at Mrs. Sidhu (and the countless other shows that work within this premise).

[krankydoodle]

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed Mrs. Sidhu Investigates. I know it's often how cozy mysteries work, but sometimes I just can't when a random chef/landscape gardener/whatever pushes their way into criminal investigations. Mrs. Sidhu got close to being annoying a few times, especially in the first episode, but Meera Syal managed to keep me on her side. And the scenes when she was remembering her father were genuinely moving. Craig Parkinson is also a big part of the appeal. Mrs. Sidhu's son, on the other hand, can leave any time ugh.

[dleighg]

7 minutes ago, krankydoodle said:

was surprised by how much I enjoyed Mrs. Sidhu Investigates

That one's on my list-- I am probably more tolerant of cozy mysteries (I've read a number of book series in that genre) so I imagine I'll enjoy it. Thanks for the review!

[Milburn Stone]

2 hours ago, krankydoodle said:

Craig Parkinson is also a big part of the appeal.

In the first episode, he was all of the appeal for me. His line readings frequently made me laugh out loud.

[wanderingstar]

I've really enjoyed the last 2 episodes of Mrs. Sidhu Investigates. The characters really gelled for me as the series went on. I hope it gets a second season.

Also LOVED the first 2 episodes of season 2 of Harry Wild. The writers haven't missed a beat with this show. It remains irreverent and heartfelt. Loving the chemistry between Harry and Fergus. And it looks like they'll be making Charlie less clueless this season, which will be good.

[Irlandesa]

I've already expressed my love of Mrs. Sidhu Investigates.  It's such a great cast. Even the son doesn't annoy me as much as I'd expect him to and I liked that another detective got to play a bit part in the last episode even though I too am a fan of Craig Parkinson.

2 hours ago, wanderingstar said:

Also LOVED the first 2 episodes of season 2 of Harry Wild. The writers haven't missed a beat with this show. It remains irreverent and heartfelt. Loving the chemistry between Harry and Fergus.

I liked both episodes too and it seems like they're going to try to make Harry a little less "not like the other girls" this season.

There is a weird glitch with Acorn on Amazon. I'm not sure if anyone else experienced it but the second episode, according to the description, is supposed to be Harry and Fergus investigating the case of a woman who vanished who had a history of devil worship.  But the actual episode I saw was about a member of a bridal party dying.  And yet, the closed captioning was for the devil worshipping episode. 

[abbyzenn]

Irlandesa - that's weird - the Harry Wild episode I saw on Acorn was about the missing girl and devil worshiping town.   I'm glad the show is back.  

I just can't really get into the Mrs. Sidhu Investigates and only watch it because there's so little mysteries to watch these days.  I will say I liked the third episode better than the first two.  I haven't watched the latest one because I watched Harry Wild instead.   

[dleighg]

7 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

And yet, the closed captioning was for the devil worshipping episode.

well that must have been interesting!

[LisaM]

Finished Candice Renoir Season 7 which was quite good and ended with a predictable cliffhanger. 

[mledawn]

Britbox has shared that the newest Shetland season starts November 29!
 

 

[LisaM]

Currently watching Annika Season 2 on PBS Masterpiece (Amazon) which I adore. 

Next up: Unforgotten Season 5 

[mledawn]

Watched the first season of The Chelsea Detective and while I liked the main characters, I can't say I walked away yearning for another season (and the reviews here of S2 are less than stellar). Even Richard Harrington in the final episode didn't help.

Britbox has announced that S2 of Irvine Welsh's CRIME premieres Nov. 19th, and S3 of Hope Street premieres Nov 22nd.

[LisaM]

Finished Season 1 of Harry Wild last night. (I had originally stopped watching after Episode 2 because I was not thrilled.) I found that the series improved episode by episode and I'm looking forward to starting Season2 tonight. The relationship between Harry and Fergus is great. 

[Irlandesa]

On 11/10/2023 at 7:21 AM, LisaM said:

Finished Season 1 of Harry Wild last night. (I had originally stopped watching after Episode 2 because I was not thrilled.) I found that the series improved episode by episode and I'm looking forward to starting Season2 tonight. The relationship between Harry and Fergus is great. 

I liked Season 1 of the show but thought Season 2 was even better.  They focused less on how Harry was flawed and more on the chemistry of partnership/cast. 

[sempervivum]

14 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I liked Season 1 of the show but thought Season 2 was even better.  They focused less on how Harry was flawed and more on the chemistry of partnership/cast

Agree. I noted that they even changed Jane's look a bit- she appeared in a couple of scenes in brighter makeup and loose hair, as well as fancier/prettier clothing. I don't think we saw her hungover or with random bed partners, either. 'Hard drinking, bed-hopping old lady' was a hard sell, for me.

[dleighg]

just saw an ad for "Payback" on Britbox. Same creators as Line of Duty and Bodyguard which caught my attention.

https://www.amazon.com/Episode-6/dp/B0CHG6Y62R/ref=sr_1_1?crid=14K7RXG49T18J&keywords=payback&qid=1699826305&s=instant-video&sprefix=payback%2Cinstant-video%2C86&sr=1-1

[LisaM]

On 11/12/2023 at 12:03 PM, sempervivum said:

Agree. I noted that they even changed Jane's look a bit- she appeared in a couple of scenes in brighter makeup and loose hair, as well as fancier/prettier clothing. I don't think we saw her hungover or with random bed partners, either. 'Hard drinking, bed-hopping old lady' was a hard sell, for me.

I agree with both of you. Finished Season 2 last night and thought it was better than Season 1. I love how the detective agency (with a teenaged partner) keeps getting lots of publicity. The chemistry between Harry and Fergus is off the charts. I did miss June, the pub keeper, because a little of Glenn goes a long way. 

[dleighg]

On 11/12/2023 at 5:00 PM, dleighg said:

just saw an ad for "Payback" on Britbox.

so I started watching this on Britbox and am quite enjoying it. It's well done-- reminds me a bit (of the book, at least, never saw the movie) of that old goodie, Grisham's The Firm-- someone who finds themself in a very very bad place, and a lot of looking at accounting data, LOL. 

It has the woman who planed Rhona from Shetland in a fairly minor role, but I recognized her right away, even remembering the character's name, which is an accomplishment for this rather face-blind person :) 

[abbyzenn]

Season 2 of Harry Wild just went too fast - which they'd do more episodes a season.  Did enjoy it.  Especially liked the episode involving Harry's daughter-in-law.  And the final scene in the last episode with Harry and Fergus was quite touching.  Hope there's a season 3.

[mledawn]

I was under the impression they filmed a third season of Harry Wild at the same time as the second. I'm not sure where I saw that though...

[krankydoodle]

The credits say it's a Paramount+ show, but The Burning Girls starring Samantha Morton and Rupert Graves is streaming on the Roku channel. It's based on a book by CJ Tudor about a vicar who moves with her teenage daughter to a rural area where mysterious/creepy things happen. I wasn't a fan of the book but tried watching the first episode anyway. It's not for me, but both the book and the show have been generally well received, so what do I know.

A series adaptation I can recommend more enthusiastically is based on the Department Q books by Jussi Adler-Olsen. Technically these were movies released theatrically in Denmark, but I think they've only been available to stream in the US. I just watched Journal 64, the 4th in the series and sadly the last starring the original ensemble. The Marco Effect is the 5th and has a new cast and I believe a new production company and is unfortunately a major downgrade in every respect. It's a real shame, but at least Journal 64 is a nice send-off for the previous team.

[dleighg]

9 hours ago, krankydoodle said:

Technically these were movies released theatrically in Denmark, but I think they've only been available to stream in the US.

where is it streaming?

[krankydoodle]

2 hours ago, dleighg said:

where is it streaming?

The first 3 movies are on IFC Films which was part of my AMC+ subscription. I watched movies 4 and 5 on Viaplay through Roku.

[Raja]

I'm in the middle of Criminal Code (DNA Do Crime) out of Brazil. on Netflix. Dubbed versions are available.  F-bombs, and simulated sex scenes

Brazilian Federal Police are tracking a high end bank robbery gang which operates over the border hitting banks in Paraguay. 

[mledawn]

Season 3 of Hope Street was released on Britbox this past week.

[LisaM]

The new season of Shetland with Agatha Raisin as the new lead is now listed on Britbox as Coming Soon. 

The next season of Slow Horses premieres on Wednesday, November 29, on Apple TV+.

Edited November 26, 2023 by LisaM

[dleighg]

Shetland is Nov 29 I believe

[Milburn Stone]

I'm being blown away by S1 of Endeavour. Just saw the one with the clever serial homicidal maniac. Wow!