DVD Review: ‘Midsomer Murders Series 6’

There’s nothing like the beautiful English country side. Rolling hills, farmland and tracts of lovingly preserved forest. How idyllic to live amongst these pastoral pleasures in some quaint village filled with cottages and other old world charm. No sir, there’s nothing like the pleasures of the English country life; disembowelment, dismemberment, and all sorts of other fun associated with murder and mayhem. For behind the exterior of village greens and manor houses lurk the same passions, hatreds and greed which lead people into committing slaughter everywhere.

Probably no other television series in recent memory has managed to cash in on this premise with more success than the British TV mystery series Midsomer Murders. Since it first took to the airways in 1997, it has been captivating audiences on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Now, thanks to the people at Acorn Media, its possible for fans of the series to bring home some of the earlier seasons on DVD exactly as they were shown on British television originally. Midsomer Murders, Series 6 is one of only a few of these new packages, and the five feature length episodes contained on its three discs are perfect examples of why the show continues to be popular to this day.

First off, it’s hard not to be impressed by the bucolic settings of each episode. The producers have not only been given access to what seems like every stately manor home in and around England, they also have been given the run of almost every picturesque village in the Midlands. However, they’re also not shy about making sure we see not everyone is living the ideal country life of horse back riding and gardening. No, we see there can just as much, if not worse, squalid poverty in the country as in the city. The contrast being the well off country dwellers and those who are feeling the bite of the new economy is used to great effect in the fourth episode of this series, “A Tale Of Two Hamlets”.

Another reason for the series’s continued popularity is how well each episode is written. With each of them clocking in at slightly over 90 minutes, the show’s writers have plenty of time to both develop the plot and the characters in each episode. While each show might start off with a murder, there’s no telling in which direction the writers are going to take you after that. The show develops in the same rolling, twisting fashion as the roads winding through the scenery. There’re sudden curves, hidden stops and even the occasional switchback to be dealt with. With plenty of time to tell their stories the writers can play out sub-plots and scenarios which act as red herrings and throw up many a false trail.

Then of course there’s the characters in the series. From the regulars, Detective Chief Inspector (DCI) Tom Barnaby (John Nettles) and his side kick Detective Sergeant (DS) Gavin Troy (Daniel Casey), Barnaby’s long suffering wife and daughter, Joyce (Jane Wymark and Cully (Laura Howard and pathologist Dr. Bullard Barry Jackson to all the special guest stars who populate the various episodes. In fact part of the fun of watching the show is playing “where the hell have I seen that actor before” every time a familiar face pops up on the screen.

This set is no exception as the fun with actors begins in the first episode, “A Talent For Life”, as the amazing ageless Honor Blackman shows up as Isobel Hewitt, a senior citizen refusing to surrender meekly to the aging process murdered by someone close to her. Could it be one of her family members wishing to sell off her estate in order to regain some of the money they’ve lost over the years from her escapades? However, things aren’t quite as straightforward as they seem as a second body is discovered, the local doctor, near hers. With his reputation as a “ladies man” could it have been a jealous husband seeking revenge on him, and Hewitt was merely in the wrong place at the wrong time. Or was she the target and he was the innocent victim?

Which is when, of course, our detectives take over and the real fun of this show begins. It’s always wonderful to watch Nettles as the seemingly unflappable and stolid country police inspector play into people’s prejudices about “country bumpkin cops”. With his headstrong DS running interference, keeping the locals on their toes, Barnaby gradually pulls back the veneer of genteel respectability to reveal all the little secrets they’ve so carefully hidden. They might not be entirely germane to the investigation, but it’s still fun to watch everyone squirm and realize he’s not the stupid plod they thought he was.

Episode three of Series 6, “Painted in Blood”, has Nettles in fine form, playing up the country cop role, when he and DS Troy are told to stand aside in favour of two officers from the national crime squad when his wife discovers the body of a fellow student in her water colour class lying dead in the village green. It’s a wonderful example of how Barnaby plays on people’s expectations and uses them against them. He’s not even above using his DS for these purposes. For when the members of the national crime squad flatter Troy by including him in their investigation, in order to use him for their own purposes, Barnaby plays along while waiting patiently for his DS to realize he’s being used. This not allows him to carry on the investigation without any interference, when Troy comes to his senses it also allows him access to information the others have uncovered.

There aren’t many television shows produced on either side of the Atlantic Ocean that have played as long as Midsomer Murders. Even though it has undergone an almost complete cast change from the time “Series 6” aired, the show retains the same appeal it had back in 2003 when these were filmed. However, while many of the same elements are retained, the country setting, the secrets hidden behind genteel exteriors and the remarkable collection of actors who appear in each episode, the combination of Nettles and Casey as Barnaby and Troy and the chemistry the two actors enjoy on screen is something that can’t be replicated.

The opportunity to watch these earlier episodes again on DVD is something not to be missed. There are many police shows, but it’s safe to say there are none quite like Midsomer Murders. While these packages don’t have the special features some sets come with, don’t let that detract you from purchasing them if you’re a fan of the series. The episodes are special enough on their own merits.