Customer Reviews

Midsomer Murders: Barnaby's Casebook

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Imagine Saint Mary Mead. Squared. Then add some extra blood and mayhem.

That about describes the setting of "Midsomer Murders," a morbidly witty British mystery series based on Caroline Graham's novels. And "Midsomer Murders: Barnaby's Casebook" brings together the the next round of seventeen cases in this cozy, dark little county, drawing from the fourth, sixth, seventh and eighth seasons of the series. It's a great half'n'half combo of police procedural and cozy mystery.

Snotty society beauty Melissa Townsend is receiving some threatening letters, apparently because of the death of a tenant that stemmed from her neglect. Then she's found stabbed with a syringe filled with animal tranquilizers. Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby (John Nettles) starts investigating the murder, especially the possible involvement of Melissa's best friend (and a bit more), a drunk driving case, and secret blackmail. And more murders, of course.

From there on, Barnaby and his assistant, Detective Sergeant Gavin Troy (Daniel Casey), are forced to investigate all sorts of crimes -- a group of bell-ringers that are being bumped off, a prestigious boarding school with a deadly secret, a farmer's wife's apparent suicide, a vibrant but obnoxious widow's murder, a bizarrely complex murder tied to a mental hospital, a dead body found during an art class, an investor found dead in a river, and an old-as-dirt feud between two halves of a Midsomer town, which may hold the key to a series of deaths on the set of new movie "The House Of Satan."

Then Troy receives a promotion, and does one last case with Barnaby: a gentle recluse in the woods is implicated in the murder of his late tormentor. Enter DS Scott (John Hopkins), a rather cocky new guy who arrives just in time for a deadly class reunion, a Celtic solstice ritual that turns deadly, the death of a barman, a pagan ritual involving a dead curate, and a literary festival disrupted by some seedy goings-on... including murder. Then there's the Christmas special, "Ghosts of Christmas Past" -- Barnaby's holidays are interrupted by a string of deaths in the Villiers family, nine years after aspiring magician Ferdy Villers killed himself.

Honestly, I think Miss Marple would feel right at home in Midsomer County -- such a pretty, homey, sunshiney place, full of kindly spinsters, farmers and aristocrats of varying stripes, from skanky to down-to-earth. The whole thing is set in the various villages in this county, which is picturesque, lush, and full of farms, cute little English villages, opulent manorhouses, and little brick cottages.

So of course, there are gruesome murders, plotting and tawdry secrets hidden in every corner; several spill out in every episode, and only some of them have to do with the main murder (some are red herrings, and some are side crimes). Every now and then they have a dud episode (such as the horrendously preachy "Straw Woman"). But the writers keep a funny edge in the stories, such as Barnaby being confronted by an impending vacation ("Joyce, it looks as if these people are sitting on top of an elephant"), or and some clever dialogue ("Well, gettin' blown up's got to be a bit tragic").

And these cops are pretty believable detectives. John Nettles is absolutely wonderful as the kindly, middle-aged cop with a brain like stainless steel, whose nice sedate family is a relief from all the Midsomer weirdos. And Daniel Casey is solid as his younger, brasher assistant -- and his departure from the show is handled in a believable but touching manner. Hopkins isn't quite as likable as Scott, mainly because Scott is kind of a jerk at first, but he starts fitting in a bit better soon.

Most of the villagers are played by excellent actors as well, no matter how weird their characters are. Slightly loopy historians, crazy old ladies and nasty little schoolboys are only a few, with actors such as Lucy Punch, Hugh Bonneville, Angela Thorne, Amanda Root, and "Lost's" Henry Ian Cusick as a slimy rich boy. And Jane Wymark and Laura Howard round off the cast as Barnaby's very understanding wife and daughter.

"Midsomer Murders: Barnaby's Casebook" is a big, solidly-written chunk of British coziness, with murder and scandal in every episode, and some new transitions for the homicide division.

Midsomer Murders - Set Six Market for Murder was one of my favorite of the Midsomer Murders Set 6. I have all 13 sets of the series and am waitng for 14 and 15. As a Yank across the ocean I first saw this series on A&E years ago and never dreamed of owning any sets. I love the cast and characters they portray. The best part about the series is the characters come as they are; bad hair, bad teeth, bad cloths etc, no makeup, shoot outs, wild car chases, or mayhem. So classy and oh so British and I especially thank you for the respect that characters show in the series. I am dazzled by the English countryside and the old estates. Market for Murder was more up to date in its story especially the reading/investment club but wow, who would have thought it would lead to so many murders. And how about the sexy pool guy who was more than a pool guy. It is always exciting to see how all the characters will interact and what secrets they are hiding. Every actor and part they played fit together so well and I didn't want the story to end. My husband and I have watched all 13 sets at least 5 times and have converted a good friend into a fanatical fan of DCI Barnaby.

Kudo's to the producers, directors and music director. What a fabulous job they do in creating all the stories and putting them together. I love the Midsomer theme song.

Murder is rampant, and as mystifyingly delicious making it comparable to Poirot and Foyle's War. DCI Barnaby (John Nettles) has taken on the fictional Midsomer County murder abundance, some call it massacre, since 1997 and this set offers 17 feature-length murder stories. Multiple killing chaos is the norm in Midsomer. But you'll be booking a flight to London (filming done in rural hamlets just outside London) to have tea with scones in the green of some village, excitedly waiting for the next bludgeoning murder (always solved).

Regulars, like loving wife Joyce (Jane Wymark), great cook, companion, and in charge of lightening the story with homespun gentleness, is offset with another, Barnaby's dialogue/murder solving companion, Troy (Daniel Casey), who adds comedy--YES I said comedy--to each episode with his expressions, statements, and unusual additions to crime scene clues. He is eventually replaced during this box set's episodes by Sgt. Scott (John Hopkins) without detriment.

Show guest stars make this a fresh dynamic series each time. One of my favorite was Gemma Jones whom I come to love as "The Duchess of Duke Street" (highly recommended sets) who was cast in "Ring Out Your Dead", a bell tower murder, well actually 5 murders and one additional attempt, high volume even for Midsomer County. With every episode, predicting Who Dun It? is impossible. Just try!

Multiple murders in every episode are a trademark, intended from the very beginning, by the writers/producers to make Midsomer Murders unique. That it is! And no swearing, but plenty of good family murder mystery--the murder almost never seen, just the moments up to the kill, and then of course the body. How many ways can a person be murdered? Midsomer keeps finding new ones. Part of the humor, actually, is the excessive number of murders in a lovely rural/village setting that could count dastardly deaths per sq. ft. But the delightful setting, sets, scenic environment is enticing, drawing you into enjoyment of yet another murder. The set is comparable to "Foyles War: Series 1-5 Dunkirk to VE-Day" (see my review) with comedy, scenery, and murder spoof replacing the home-front history famous in Foyle's murder mysteries.

"Ghosts of Christmas Past" (originally aired Christmas Day '04) is no Dickens' story, but murder episode in a Christmas setting, well actually 2 deaths, with a delightful Christmas holiday theme complete with carols. Tiny Tim lived, but that was London, not Midsomer County. Big difference...fa ,la, la, la, la!

A Midsomer Murder is like a travelogue, but better. You'll want to set yourself down in a town green, at a location like Badger's Wood, and sip tea in quality china, just waiting on a few body parts to drop from the sky. No the writers are much to cleaver for such a simple murder as that. This series was based on books by novelist Caroline Graham (bonus biography included in this set), but have gone beyond those book without loosing the flavor in the continuing filming of this series. How will it ever end, if it will? Barnaby discovering his own murder, killed twice?

The Bonus material (two separate discs--nothing, same as the murders, is single in Midsomer) provides much interesting documentary about the show's origin, intentions, stars, locations (this segment is as fantastic as any travel documentary), filmographies of dozens of stars, and the fun compilation of many of the imaginative, unique, murder forms used in the series. No subtitles but that does not KILL the enjoyment.

Get this "Midsomer Murder: Barnaby's Casebook" set. Then, like me, you'll want the earlier set, "Midsomer Murders - The Early Cases Collection." Murder mayhem with a bang, jar, poke, slice, stab, pop, sip, choke, etc.

Midsomer Murders is so much better than other cop shows which go out of their way to be as gory or porn like as possible. While there is some nudity and some foul language it does not go overboard with either. Even though I've seen all these shows - at least through season 16 - I enjoy watching them again & again.

What could be better than snuggling in for a night of British mysteries? Snuggling in for a night of Midsomer Murders!! We both adore this series and were so pleased to be able to buy all the three of the Collections. When it comes to murder mysteries, no one does it as well as the Brits - and Midsome Murders is definitely at the acme in our books. We highly recommend this series to anyone who likes well plotted mysteries. We had fun saying "Nope, those houses look lovely, but it is obviously dangerous to live in one of them. Then, "Ooops, I guess the churches are too dangerous to visit, too!!" Truly superb series!!!

I love this series. The Brits have a way with their mysteries that don't require car chases or guns to keep your interests. Barnaby is my man. Sorry to hear that he is leaving the series. It wont be the same without him.

The content of Midsomer Murders is superb - thoroughly enjoyable. They are well written and well acted. The only problem is the packaging. In putting together 18 CDs, they have put them back-to-back, making them very difficult to release and remove from the storage container. It tempts me to consider purchasing Midsomer Murders either individually or in sets of four, in spite of being more expensive, to eliminate this type of packaging.

An altogether excellent DVD set and well worth owning. Picture quality is fine, as is the audio. The only problem is that it feels like you are going to damage or break the DVDs when removing them from the cases - bad design.

The music is inimitable, another character in this humorous danse macabre. "The Straw Woman" is a wonderful Halloween episode, adding yet another level of complexity and delightful darkness to the series. Sharp dialogue and humor make this collection a real treat. Don't assume this is lace doily stuff, no indeed! The Brits have knack for mixing classic stories with ghoulish humor and sharp observations of the flawed human character. Historically, penny-dreadfuls were published at Christmastime, as in Robert Louis Stevenson and Charles Dickens. Note that in the Christmas Special, campy horror flicks are being broadcast on Detective Scott's television, all part of the tradition. This is a delicious series, far more complex than I expected, a virtual escape to the dangerous environs of Midsomer county. The only drawback is that John Hopkins is given a fairly thankless role as Detective Scott (no wonder he left), short on dialogue. The writers later remedy this with the advent of his plucky successor, Jason Hughs as Detective Sergeant Ben Jones, who develops a wry and great relationship with Barnaby. John Nettles is perfection (as is the rest of the cast), depicting an irascible and deeply particular personality, aging with character, like a fine Ardbeg whisky. Note the badger emblem on the police cars. Enjoy!

great set of videos. supplier was also great. item came so quickly I was shocked at the great service.