Sleuthing the Winter Away

This winter, a lot of my viewing time has been spent watching British detective shows, and I’ve concluded that when murder is afoot, no one does it better than the Brits. After all, the granddaddy of all detectives, Sherlock Holmes, was English. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s creation set the pattern of a detective who solves mysteries with a cunning mind rather than barreling in with brute force.

As originally broadcast, most British mysteries are two hours long. Removing the commercial breaks leaves about 100 minutes per show (as opposed to about 40 minutes for a one-hour US show). This gives the clues and red herrings plenty of time to simmer. In fact, one of the joys of watching any of these shows on DVD is the complete absence of commercials. I am a fan of old-time radio and have been reminded recently that commercials in the 1940s and ’50s were integrated into the shows, but now they are shrill, high-powered intrusions. The main purpose they serve is to allow either a bathroom or refrigerator break.

Koch Vision and Acorn Media have provided most of the material for my winter mystery escapes. Through Koch I’ve discovered one of the very best shows, Wire in the Blood. This edgy series, based on the popular books by Val McDermid, stars Robson Green as criminal psychologist Dr. Tony Hill, who is called in by Detective Inspector Carol Jordan (Hermione Norris) to aid in solving murder cases. The cases are somewhat bizarre, the chemistry between the two stars volatile, and the terror and suspense sometimes palpable. It’s like winding a rubber band to the point where you know it must either break or be released to avoid snapping. Three seasons of Wire in the Blood are now available on Koch Vision DVD. Unfortunately, Green has since left the series; a planned fourth season might lack the same snap, crackle, and pop.

Also on Koch, and based on somewhat more traditional detective stories by P.D. James, is a series starring Roy Marsden as Scotland Yard Commander Adam Dalgliesh. More suave and polished than Tony Hill, Dalgliesh is usually dressed in a coat and tie, and we are not surprised to find that he writes poetry on the side. The cases that fall his way are a bit bizarre -- in one, a man is found drowned, his hands severed -- but his solutions always seem logical and calm. Yet there is no absence of overall suspense. The most recent titles are A Taste for Death, A Mind to Murder, and Unnatural Causes, but there are many others already in the catalog, available separately or in sets.

Also on Koch is a newer series, Rebus, in which John Hannah plays Detective Inspector John Rebus in dramatizations of novels by Ian Rankin. Rebus is the opposite of Dalgliesh: younger, casually dressed, and reckless, he often involves himself in scrapes that leave him battered. His accent is sometimes a bit hard to understand, but if you like a Mean Streets sort of case, that won’t bother you a bit, and most American viewers will find the Edinburgh settings new and fresh. So far, just one season has been released, in a three-disc set.

Acorn Media also has a large catalog of TV mysteries, and has just added a third season to its best, Foyle’s War. Whereas Wire in the Blood, the Dalgliesh stories, and Rebus have contemporary settings and are based on novels, Foyle’s War is written originally for television by Anthony Horowitz and is set in England during World War II. The scripts have a unique way of tying seemingly conventional murder cases into the war effort and events. In one episode, two German soldiers survive the crash landing of their plane during a bombing run and are captured, and a local man is found murdered. Are these events linked? Maybe, maybe not. Michael Kitchen is ideally cast as DCS Foyle, the dapper yet down-to-earth detective, and the supporting cast could not be better. Unlike the other shows, which are shot in good to very good 4:3, Foyle’s War is presented in resplendent 1.78:1 widescreen with excellent stereo sound. To my mind, it is the very best mystery show there is.

All of these series have given me great pleasure on cold winter nights when I am tired of movies and need something that will pique my curiosity and get me to thinking, and there are lots more to discover. Candidates for my February fare are Rosemary and Thyme, Inspector Allen, and Midsomer Murders on Acorn, the latest two seasons of Touch of Frost on MPI Home Video, and Inspector Morse on BFS Video.

Let that winter wind howl and the ice and snow fall. I’ll be warm inside with a crackling fire and a good British mystery. It’s said we all love a good mystery, and these are the best -- and no commercials. Isn’t DVD wonderful? See you in the spring.

 ...Rad Bennett
radb@hometheatersound.com

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