Murdoch Mysteries - General Discussion

[auchic]

16.01 - Sometimes They Come Back (Part 1)

Yay! Murdoch Mondays are back! 

So Sister Michael was the one who stopped the wedding! 🤣 But how heartbreaking, as they seem to be preventing George from being happy for money? Hoping it all sorts out next week and George and Effie can finally get married. Love that William tried to cheer George up by offering a zombie case.

I can't say I'm all that interested by Mrs. Hart, her lousy husband and her father.

Yay, Watts is back 🥰🥰

[Trey]

Good Lord, I missed the season opener of Murdoch Mysteries!! And I was dying for something good to watch.

I haven't seen a single promo for it and it went right out of my head. Usually I check out the listings for the night's offerings but didn't do it last night.  Oh, well, I'll be in for the rest of the season.

Sister Michael? Don't remember her.  Yes, I am old.

[Grundoon59]

Learning that I missed the first new episode of Jeopardy last night was bad enough.  But then finding out I also missed Murdoch was almost enough to send me to bed with an attack of the vapors.  [Adding insult to injury was my phone sending me a Google alert for MM two hours after it aired 😂]

Anyway - so glad the show is back - will try to do better with watching - Happy New Season to all!

[auchic]

41 minutes ago, Trey said:

Sister Michael? Don't remember her.  Yes, I am old.

Ah, sorry @Trey, I don't know if you want spoilers or not, but the character's name isn't Sister Michael. It's actually George's Aunt Oleander who stops the wedding, but she's played by the actress that played Sister Michael in Derry Girls. So you didn't forget anyone!

[Trey]

Thanks, @auchic.

Did she give any reason for stopping the wedding?

[peacheslatour]

3 hours ago, Trey said:

Thanks, @auchic.

Did she give any reason for stopping the wedding?

She said something bad would happen but I don't remember what, specifically. She also said something bad was going to happen to some rando on the street but he was just bumped. I thought the whole thing was staged.

Edited September 13, 2022 by peacheslatour

[Pepper the Cat]

She said Effie would did if she married George.

[auchic]

11 hours ago, Trey said:

Did she give any reason for stopping the wedding?

Yes, like @Pepper the Cat said, Aunt Oleander "predicted" that the woman George married would die. And apparently Aunt Oleander has a history of making predictions that come true, so George called off the wedding right there.

I agree with @peacheslatour, something hinky is going on.

[Pepper the Cat]

7 minutes ago, auchic said:

Yes, like @Pepper the Cat said, Aunt Oleander "predicted" that the woman George married would die. And apparently Aunt Oleander has a history of making predictions that come true, so George called off the wedding right there.

I agree with @peacheslatour, something hinky is going on.

Something hinky is diff going on. When Aunt OLeander said that the man in the grey hat was in danger, I am sure it was the other Aunt driving the car that hit him. The Aunts are up to something. Poor George

[Prevailing Wind]

I saw Jonny Harris' reminder about the season opener (on Facebook) only this morning. It really doesn't matter for me, since I live in Georgia...WAY too far to pick up CBC and have to wait until Acorn starts dropping the episodes, usually in Dec or Jan.

[Trey]

I was looking at the on-screen satellite listings and they showed Sometimes They Come Back Part 1 instead of Part 2.  I don't know if that is an error or if they are replaying it for all of those who missed it last week😉

[Shelbie]

It was listed as part 1 but also showing as new. My dvr wasn’t picking it up to record so I manually recorded it. It was actually part 2 so I’m glad I did.

[The Crazed Spruce]

Weird. Mine recorded it just fine. Granted, it's cable, not satellite....

Maybe they figured it wouldn't air 'cause of the Queen's funeral.

[Trey]

16.01 - Sometimes They Come Back (Part 2)

1 hour ago, The Crazed Spruce said:

Weird. Mine recorded it just fine. Granted, it's cable, not satellite....

Maybe they figured it wouldn't air 'cause of the Queen's funeral.

Maybe.  That was one long day of funeral but it did end in time to show Murdoch.

Anyhow, just a listing mistake on Bell's part; they did show Part 2.

I am so glad George and Effie finally got married.  I knew his aunts had been prostitutes, but I didn't know they were minor criminals too. At least Aunt Chrysanthemum got her comeuppance, even though George will probably give her some of the money.

Since I missed last week's episode I didn't know Brackenreid was in NY.  Glad he could help out Watts and Jack.  I wonder if Watts will be back.  I certainly hope so. Brackenreid seems to have a very checkered past for an "honest copper". I thought Watts was also something of a rogue cop but apparently not.

At first I thought the side story with Julia was a bit too much storyline but at least it was resolved quickly and happily for everyone except the perp (whatever his name was).  Julia got a win, Mrs. Hart doesn't have to pay bribes anymore and the wife got rid of an abusive husband.

I don't know what the storyline is with Mrs. Hart and her father.  She seems to be really afraid of him.  Did she and Arthur really try to kill her father?

[Grundoon59]

16.1 - Sometimes They Come Back (Part 2)

@Trey - Like you, I missed Part 1.  So, while it was very nice to be back with such wonderful characters, I may stay a little confused until I get to watch Part 1 when Acorn finally gets access. 

Things I was happy about - a) Brackenreid helping Watts/Jack - my memory of how things were left between them at the end of last season made me wonder about that relationship; b) George and Effie - glad for the outcome and for what I saw of the journey - particularly glad that Miss Cherry was helping out since I grew quite fond of her character over the past couple of seasons (also good to see Henry); c) Murdoch continuing to be a goof ball about the baby.

Things I was not so happy about - 1) the Watts/Jack ending (at least for now) - I want Watts back in Toronto but also want him happy in his own skin which he clearly is not; 2) I understand that George has a lot of "aunts" who can be good, bad or somewhere in between but keeping track of them all is getting a bit difficult for me; 3) I wish I could believe that things will work out okay for Julia's patient but my understanding of upper middle class women's experiences at the time makes me doubtful.

Things I will reserve judgment about - a) Mrs. Hart's family issues - her relationships with both her husband and father seem a bit too much for me.  I thought the dinner table scene was well done by all involved but not sure how much I am supposed to care about any of it.  Maybe more will be revealed in future episodes; b) Mrs. Hart's business ventures - I am still not sure how I feel about the salon or her partner but again I am willing to be persuaded.  Especially since a season or two ago, I couldn't really like Mrs. Hart but now I worry about her. 

[peacheslatour]

They showed part one again here.

[The Crazed Spruce]

19 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

They showed part one again here.

Pretty sure you can find Part 2 on CBC Gem.

[auchic]

On 9/20/2022 at 12:10 PM, Grundoon59 said:

the Watts/Jack ending (at least for now) - I want Watts back in Toronto but also want him happy in his own skin which he clearly is not

Same. I was actually quite worried that they were going to have Watts leave and stay in NYC with Jack and Samuel, so I was really happy when he left, but dang it, let Watts be happy!

On 9/20/2022 at 12:10 PM, Grundoon59 said:

Murdoch continuing to be a goof ball about the baby

He and Julia are both adorkable.  

[dargosmydaddy]

16.01 & 16.02 - Sometimes They Come Back 

Watts and the baby together were peak adorableness.

So a whole bunch of gay guys have a party in an era when homosexuality is illegal, and no one thinks to close the curtains/ blinds? Very convenient stupidity...

I'm wondering how/why Watts will end up back in Toronto, and how many episodes it will take. (I'm assuming he'll be back... if not, it would be a huge dick move by TPTB not to let him have a happy ending with Jack and Samuel.)

I like competent, good friend Higgins. We need more of him.

I thought it was interesting that they didn't mention how old George was supposed to be turning... and I was surprised to discover that Jonny Harris is 47!

Julia's crack at the end about how William was going to get drunk and it would be an interesting evening (or however she put it) was hilarious.

[Trey]

The Write Stuff, Season 16 Episode 3 Aired 2022-09-26

Quote

When a writer is murdered at a literary event, Rudyard Kipling and Lucy Maud Montgomery come under Murdoch's scrutiny.

I enjoyed this episode. I always like when they do one of these episodes, with world famous people, experts in their field, gathered together and a murder is committed. Of course, they can never murder one of the famous people, and a famous person is never the murderer.

They didn't show Rudyard Kipling in a particularly good light.  I wonder why.  The actor who played Kipling looked just like the pictures of Kipling on Wikipedia.

And I knew LMM really did remember George.  I thought she was just having him on for a joke but it was because of her fiance's jealousy.

I kind of figured it was the wife but wasn't certain. But there was still so much time left after they decided it was suicide that something wasn't quite right with that decision.

On 9/24/2022 at 11:00 PM, dargosmydaddy said:

I like competent, good friend Higgins. We need more of him.

Totally agree.

[Grundoon59]

The Write Stuff, Season 16 Episode 3

I enjoyed it but not sure how much I will rewatch it in future.  Always enjoy seeing more of Brackenreid and Crabtree & I liked the call back to Lucy Maud Montgomery from the earlier season. 

The actual murder left me a little cold - not sure why I should care about the victim given the variety of descriptions of his character/actions.  I was glad to see them using the Murdoch pictures the scene technique - hadn't realized how much I had missed that until this episode.  I even liked that it took him down the wrong path for awhile.

Also to me Julia felt a little shoehorned into this episode if only to give Edith Wharton someone to drink with (and is it just me or is Julia with a drinking companion becoming more of a regular thing?).  I was pleased that she was the one who got William on the correct path to figuring out the clues. 

Lots of historical characters - I knew George's helper would turn out to be "someone" but I didn't pay enough attention to any clues of who he was - I figured it out just before the reveal thanks to George's remarks on changing the character name.  The portrayals of all the authors were interesting but I wonder how much of their characterizations were formed by modern views of their respective works. 

[auchic]

9 hours ago, Grundoon59 said:

Lots of historical characters - I knew George's helper would turn out to be "someone" but I didn't pay enough attention to any clues of who he was - I figured it out just before the reveal thanks to George's remarks on changing the character name. 

I was thinking it might be Stephen Leacock, but the actor was too young, and Leacock was extremely well known, if the current season is set in 1910.

[peacheslatour]

17 hours ago, auchic said:

I was thinking it might be Stephen Leacock, but the actor was too young, and Leacock was extremely well known, if the current season is set in 1910.

I love Leacock! His stuff is hilarious.

Edited September 28, 2022 by peacheslatour

[auchic]

Ep. 16.04 - Promising Young Ladies

Dang, a nudity warning on MM, for 2 seconds of naked butt? 

Not a bad case. Knew it wasn't the wife, since they did that last week, and I knew it wouldn't be one of the burlesque dancers, and then as soon as Higgins found that article about the guy stripped naked in New York, I knew it would be the moral outrage guy and that they had pulled the same stunt on him.

Two weeks without Watts is enough. He better be in the next episode.

[Grundoon59]

Ep. 16.04 - Promising Young Ladies

@auchic - I agree with you about the nudity warning (which repeated every commercial break as far as I saw) being a whole lot of warning for very little nudity.  Based on the warning I was expecting some sort of wardrobe malfunction at the burlesque show.

I was never a big Nina Bloom fan (no slight to the actress but I could never care too much about the character) but I did like that the episode was written so that her relationship with George was acknowledged and that Effie was utterly fine with it all. 

I figured out the who did it quite early but not how the body got to its location.  Enjoyed the Crabtrees, Higgins, Brackenreid and Julia portions of the episodes.  Also the salon partner (I really need to remember her name since I am liking her more) - not much Ms. Hart but enough to show she is still seemingly preoccupied by her father issues.  Absolutely agree that we need Watts back sooner rather than later. 

Oddly William seemed to be hardly in the episode - I mean I know he was but it felt like he was on the edges somehow. 

[auchic]

13 hours ago, Grundoon59 said:

Oddly William seemed to be hardly in the episode - I mean I know he was but it felt like he was on the edges somehow. 

Yannick directed this one (and maybe the last one?), and I agree with you, he seemed very peripheral. I wonder if he's getting a little tired of Murdoch?

[dargosmydaddy]

16 hours ago, auchic said:

Yannick directed this one (and maybe the last one?), and I agree with you, he seemed very peripheral. I wonder if he's getting a little tired of Murdoch?

He did direct the last two episodes. It's not uncommon for an actor to be in an episode less if they're directing, so they can focus more on the latter.

[Trey]

Episode 05, Season 16 MURDOCH RIDES EASY October 10 2022

Quote

After a motorbike enthusiast dies, Murdoch’s investigation is aided by mechanics William Harley and Arthur Davidson.

I enjoyed this episode. It's always nice when Murdoch's scientific side helps solve a case.  And Higgins was competent and even helpful.

It's just like Julia to want to get a motorcycle - I'll bet Murdoch gets one too and they have lots of adventures on the "hogs".

It struck me as strange that Murdoch would allow competitors of Drummond to have acccess to his drawings and data - even though it turned out Drummond was a fake and had stolen from Harley-Davidson, Murdoch didn't know that at the time.

[peacheslatour]

Quote

It struck me as strange that Murdoch would allow competitors of Drummond to have acccess to his drawings and data - even though it turned out Drummond was a fake and had stolen from Harley-Davidson, Murdoch didn't know that at the time.

That really stuck out to me. Brakenreid had just promised that no one but the police would have access to those plans and Murdoch had already given them to those guys.

[Pepper the Cat]

This was a fun episode! I loved Julia wanting a motorcycle. And her leather outfit at the end was amazing!

[Grundoon59]

Episode 05, Season 16 MURDOCH RIDES EASY

I too enjoyed the episode - good to see the family portions, including Baby's first dead body. 

I agree with the oddness of Murdoch allowing Harley & Davidson access but too be fair when he did it, he was just trying to figure out what had gone wrong mechanically, knew he was in over his head and had two experts showing up unexpectedly. 

Plus he didn't know about any of the investor/stolen ideas intrigue at that point.  In the past, I think he has gotten experts/historical figures involved when he probably shouldn't have.  This time it quickly became an issue because of the "investor" raising a ruckus. 

Good to see Higgins being helpful and Mrs. Hart providing a major piece of information.  Julia and her interest in motorcycles was fun and it was interesting to watch William's reactions going back and forth while he was realizing he probably couldn't stop her even if he wanted to. 

[peacheslatour]

21 hours ago, Pepper the Cat said:

This was a fun episode! I loved Julia wanting a motorcycle. And her leather outfit at the end was amazing!

I don't know. I'm getting a little tired of the whole "Oh look, Julia is so quirky and unconventional!"  trope.

[Trey]

52 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

I don't know. I'm getting a little tired of the whole "Oh look, Julia is so quirky and unconventional!"  trope.

That's okay.  There's a lot of little things I'm getting tired of.  I guess that's the curse of a long running show.

[marina to]

On 10/12/2022 at 7:19 PM, Trey said:

That's okay.  There's a lot of little things I'm getting tired of.  I guess that's the curse of a long running show.

I'm so tired of putting our cast in peril, creating angst for them, and bringing back former enemies from the dead.

[Trey]

2 hours ago, marina to said:

I'm so tired of putting our cast in peril, creating angst for them, and bringing back former enemies from the dead.

I agree with your list.

[peacheslatour]

6 hours ago, marina to said:

I'm so tired of putting our cast in peril, creating angst for them, and bringing back former enemies from the dead.

Right? I thought these guys were all about solving murders, not being part of the victim pool.

[Prevailing Wind]

I started watching the new Quantum Leap and imagine my surprise to see Dr. Grace! imdb says she's only in 3 episodes (so far) but considering she's Al Calavicci's daughter (the Dean Stockwell character in the original) I can't imagine they wouldn't continue her character. It's so good to see her again!

[peacheslatour]

16 minutes ago, Prevailing Wind said:

I started watching the new Quantum Leap and imagine my surprise to see Dr. Grace! imdb says she's only in 3 episodes (so far) but considering she's Al Calavicci's daughter (the Dean Stockwell character in the original) I can't imagine they wouldn't continue her character. It's so good to see her again!

I was very sad when she left our show.

[marina to]

On 9/24/2022 at 11:00 PM, dargosmydaddy said:

I like competent, good friend Higgins. We need more of him.

I've said for ages that when George isn't in an episode, Higgins becomes competent. Because someone has to be.

[auchic]

Episode 16.06 - Clean Hands

It was like Mennonite Last Name Bingo this episode. 😂 

Oh Watts. His scene with William was just heartbreaking. I want to give him a hug. Please bring him back soon, with some happiness in his life!!

As for next week

Spoiler

Are you F*CKING KIDDING ME??? What were we JUST complaining about?

[Grundoon59]

Episode 16.06 - Clean Hands

I enjoyed this episode - have missed seeing Sharron Matthews on my screen since Frankie Drake ended and was happy to see her as the wife/mother in family they stayed with.

Always good to see Margaret and Higgins delivered his one line well (by the way, I can't remember did he and his wife lose all their money?  I do remember she was working in the clinic at one time but I can't remember if it was for needed money or due to boredom.  I was somewhat confused about Henry's line about money for a vacation)

The star of the episode for me was of course Watts.  Daniel Maslany is so good at showing the underlying pain of Watts.  I look forward to when he finds his way back to Toronto (I am counting on a Frankie Drake web episode as being an accurate future prediction). 

I don't know what to make of Bobby (Robert) Brackenreid.  The actor did a good job of presenting his transformation but knowing the likely outcome will break Margaret & Thomas' hearts makes me sad. 

The preview for next week lessened my pain at knowing I will not be able to watch it live.  I think I can wait until Acorn to see those characters again but will be interested in how all of you watchers react next week. 

[marina to]

18 hours ago, Grundoon59 said:

have missed seeing Sharron Matthews on my screen since Frankie Drake ended

She's been really busy. You can see her in Ruby and the Well and Five Days at Memorial. Flo continues on in animated form in Mary and Flo on the Go. She's currently shooting a webseries that she also wrote, Hello Charlie. Here's the trailer.

[Grundoon59]

@marina to - thanks for the information.  I will have to check things out.  I have enjoyed everything I have seen her in so far.  She just seems to bring a good energy to her work.

[Trey]

Good episode.

I, too, was happy to see Sharron Matthews again.

I was taken aback to see Watts at the Mennonite farm.  It just seemed so far-fetched and like they were jamming him into the episode.  I like Watts but this just seemed too strange an appearance.

Did Murdoch ever tell the Mennonites that he was a detective?  They seemed quite willing to answer his questions instead of just kicking him and Julia out.

A couple of historical points: it was mentioned or noted onscreen that they were in Berlin.  This town was renamed to Kitchener after the start of WWI.

Also, in Brackenreid's list of other acceptable religions Bobby might have joined, he mentioned the United Church, which did not exist at that time.  It wasn't established as a church until 1925.

Edited October 19, 2022 by Trey
To remove a bit I wasn't sure was accurate.

[Grundoon59]

@Trey - thanks for the information - I sort of know Kitchener (many long weekend trips to Stratford in the Grundoon family lead to exploring the area quite a bit back in the day when we weren't seeing two plays per day). 

I was so happy to see Watts that I just accepted that he was there but I understand what you mean.  I do think that he was looking so lost as he was leaving Jack in NYC that it is not impossible that he would have drifted to the community but a little more explanation might have helped. 

I don't specifically remember Murdoch telling anyone he was a detective but he may have told the first family who told him the second would not help outsiders. 

[statsgirl]

Christopher Heyerdahl (in a non-villain role), Sharon Matthews and the return of Watts -- a good episode. I also appreciated a non-quirky Julia although I wondered who was looking after Susannah for so long.

An interesting theme, that there is no paradise on earth. Watts thought that he had found it among the Mennonites, Jebediah thought that  it was in following the strict rules of his faith, Robert thought that he had found it in Roman Catholicism.  The first two found that they were wrong, maybe Robert will too.

I thought that it was interesting that Abby's cousin was the father of her baby. That would not be unusual in a close-knit community.

1 hour ago, Trey said:

A couple of historical points: it was mentioned or noted onscreen that they were in Berlin.  This town was renamed to Kitchener after the start of WWI.

I liked that continuity.  There are still Mennonites there today.

[Pepper the Cat]

Watts looked so young and vulnerable. I think he and the guy that was killed were lovers

[The Crazed Spruce]

I got the impression that the victim was gay, but I don't think he and Watts were lovers. He just empathized with him.

[dargosmydaddy]

16.6 "Clean Hands"

I was amused that the basic plot of the episode (a missing girl who turns out to be pregnant; an older married woman pretending to be pregnant in order to pass off the baby as hers; the eventual identity of the murder) were the same as a certain mystery show that aired on PBS last Sunday. (And I'm not sure if said show has aired in Canada yet so I don't want to inadvertently spoil anyone...)

I thought Murdoch and (especially) Julia made unconvincing Mennonites, and I was surprised that no one called them out on it (other than the older woman in the baking scene, who was ignored). Julia was told women didn't speak directly to men other than their husbands, and then immediately starts asking questions of Jebediah! And no one said anything about Murdoch's lack of beard.

Speaking of beards, this was the first time Watts has lost the five o'clock shadow... I was confused for a moment, then realized (and Google confirmed) that only married Mennonite men grow beards, so Watts was really committing to his new community. And being completely clean shaven makes him look younger, which also makes him look more vulnerable. I don't think I've ever wanted to give a fictional character a hug quite so much as in this episode. Meanwhile, Murdoch didn't even give him so much as a handshake as he was leaving. I really don't like the way Murdoch treats Watts. Watts always has his back (even when he doesn't want to, like this episode), and Murdoch tends to be really dismissive and cold towards him.

[Trey]

Murdoch and the Sonic Boom 16:07 Oct. 24 2022

Quote

Hours before a clandestine visit by President Taft, Murdoch is entangled by Terrence Meyers in an experiment gone wrong.

Another episode I really enjoyed even if it did bring back a villain from the past.  Allan Clegg is finally, really dead.  I thought Julia looked like she could hardly wait to get a scalpel into his body to make darn good and sure that he was dead.

And Meyers was not as annoying as usual.

It's a good thing Bell was there to help them out or things would have ended really badly.

I did not catch that Taft's man - I've forgotten his name - was a bad guy but my son did.  He was very pleased that he is a better detective than I am.

And it's always good to see Margaret.  I'm glad she is still working at the clinic with Julia.