Reviews

Jane Wymark, who plays DCI Tom Barnaby's wife, Joyce Barnaby, gets more screen time in Painted in Blood, from season six of Midsomer Murders. I think the spouses of the Barnabys are the unsung heroes of the Midsomer world, as they have to constantly support their respective husbands who suffer much pressure of having to contend with grim murders week after week after week, and you must wonder if they would get more rest and respite in say London or some other metropolitan area. Even when engaging in leisurely activities, like Joyce does here when participating in a watercolor painting class, she finds a body on the Midsomer Florey village green init.

So here in the episode Chicago, US Rail Hub, we see Michael Portillo continuing his exciting rail journey across the midwest in Chicago, America's railway capital, the crossroads here of America. Anyway Michael wears a green jacket and maroon pants and he visits rail yards, Chicago's elevated tracks and also talks about the creation of the brownie in 1893 at Chicago's world fair.

Michael heads deep underground in reservoir tunnel being constructed.

Anyway, I always enjoy Michael's railway journeys and his enthusiasm and passion for rail travel, and also his thirst and quest for knowledge init.

The director of this episode, Homewood to Champaign, Illinois, is Dave Minchin, and all credit to him and the production crew to keep things moving for Michael Portillo's journey.

So in this episode, Michael Portillo wears a red jacket and blue pants. He visits the Flossmoor Country Club which has a $13,000 annual membership, but imagine what that would be now.

We learn that the railroad companies used to invest in country clubs. Michael rides a golf cart, experiences difficulty with his golf swing, and we see Michael singing country music on stage so bravo to him for being brave singing country music.

Here we are, the second last episode of series two where Michael travels around the country. Michael is a former English cabinet minister, so he's done well to parlay his communication skills into his passion for railways.

Michael visits Mattoon, and also Lincoln's log cabin, wearing a red jacket and blue pants. Also Michael attempts to split rails just like Lincoln did.

Michael travels in a Corvette for part of the episode and reflects on history with professor Berry Craig. I wonder how the production crew travel, like do they also board the train or are they in separate vehicles. I'd like to know the behind the scenes.

I enjoy watching Michael Portillo's railways series whether it's in England, USA, Australia, India, continental Europe, Asia, you name it. Anyway, this is the final episode of season two, where Michael wraps up his trip in Memphis wearing green trousers.

Dr Charles Crawford tells Michael about Mark Twain, and Michael goes to Elmwood cemetery and learns many died of yellow fever as no sewer systems.

Michael leads the Peabody Hotel daily duck march and meets Memphis rail spotters

Michael learns about the blues and makes the pilgrimage to Graceland of course and learns about Elvis so that's a big deal.

John Hopkins makes his penultimate appearance as Sergeant Dan Scott in Sauce for the Goose. It's not entirely clear why Hopkins was only in two seasons of Midsomer Murders, but anyway, maybe we'll know eventually. Anyway, here the scene with the victim being relished up big time, and I sometimes wonder how the writers come up with the ideas for the victims being bumped off episode after episode. Anyway, Annette Crosbie plays Amelia Plummer, which someone has suggested sounds similar to Ploughman, that is Ploughman's lunch, which I understand is very popular as a lunchtime pub meal in England init.

I don't know if Happy Days jumped the shark here, before he literally jumped the shark around a year later, with the Fonz planning to marry Pinky, but really we knew deep down it wasn't going to happen because the Fonz would no longer be the Fonz, it would be game over once the vows were exchanged init. Anyway, I didn't know that Roz Kelly wasn't invited to return to Happy Days because there was apparent discord between her, the rest of the cast and the producers. But her character, Pinky Tuscadero, was mentioned a couple of times afterwards, and her on-screen sister, Leather Tuscadero (played by rock legend Suzy Quatro) makes seven appearances later on.

Anyway, I was a big fan of Happy Days when I watched it in reruns back in the 1970s and 1980s, and I can even remember the episodes with long-lost Chuck. Anyway, here is Fonzie Loves Pinky: Part 2, which is the second episode of season four, and tragedy strikes when Pinky gets crunched in the Millachi Crunch perpetrated by the Malachi brothers, but over time why it's not called the Malachi Crunch I'll never quite know. Anyway, Fonzie avenges the tragedy (thankfully Pinky survived) and the Malachi brothers are humbled big time. Anyway, one of the Malachi brothers was played by Ken Lerner who later played Principal Flutie in Buffy.

The Axeman Cometh guest stars Suzy Quatro, who I first saw playing Leather Tuscadero in Happy Days back in the 1970s. The Axeman Cometh sees DCI Tom Barnaby (John "Bergerac" Nettles) getting all flustered and excited to see his teen idol band Hired Gun playing at Midsomer Rocks festival. I was amused when in one scene one of the Festival goers casually offers Barnaby a joint, but Barnaby didn't bother to caution him at least. Anyway, there's lots of intrigue in The Axeman Cometh, infidelities (this is a rock band after all), and what it means to be a rock star and the personalities behind the facade.

The Malachi brothers feature in Fonzie Loves Pinky: Part 1, which is the season four opener of Happy Days. I first saw Happy Days in reruns back in the 1970s and 1980s, and I remember this episode (and part 2) very well. Interestingly, there is a famous reference to the Millachi Crunch done by the Malachi brothers (Michael Pataki and Ken Lerner), so I don't know why the Malachi brothers did the Millachi Crunch. Anyway, later on Ken Lerner starred as Principal Flutie in the acclaimed TV series Buffy, and he's also an acclaimed acting coach. Anyway, soon afterwards Pinky's younger sister Leather (played by Suzy Quatro) appears for seven episodes.

I first heard about Shoestring, a series from England, after I became a fan of Midnight Caller, which debuted in 1988, as there was some internet discussion that mentioned Shoestring, so I had to eventually check it out, and I've seen some episodes from season one on the internet. I like the gritty nature of the series, being in England and all, and it really is like a travel back in time, being the late 1970s with the fashion and all. Eddie Shoestring (Trevor Eve) fights crime or he fights for justice, with his talk radio show a platform for this. It's a shame Shoestring ran for only a short time.

This is an exciting episode because this is the first Midsomer Murders episode filmed outside of England, so yes DCI Tom Barnaby (John "Bergerac" Nettles) heads off to Wales, which is part of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. In fact, I would really like for DCI John Barnaby (Neil Dudgeon) to travel to Scotland or Northern Ireland eventually. Anyway, the helicopter sequence was rather exciting by Midsomer standards. Sam Hazeldine makes another appearance as Simon Dixon, who eventually marries Cully Barnaby (Laura Howard). Definitely the Wales scenery was impressive for sure. Definitely worth watching.

I became a fan of Midsomer Murders I think back in 2015 or 2016, and I'm enjoying reflecting on the early episodes, and how DCI Tom Barnaby stamped his presence in Midsomer. Anyway, here in Picture of Innocence, Tom himself is under suspicion, so he is bound up at home. So this means that Detective Inspector Martin Spellman (played by Richard Lintern) has to sort things out, and he must wonder how Midsomer has descended to major crime levels on par with metropolitan areas init. Adrian Scarborough plays Eddie Carfax, and in fact so far Scarborough has made three guest appearances in Midsomer Murders, each time playing a different character.

Death in a Chocolate Box was quite fixated on the camera obscura big time, and it kind of reminded me of the view-master I had as a kid. Anyway, I'm fascinated by the idea of the camera obscura, and the website for the The Lee parish council talks about the behind the scenes filming of Death in a Chocolate Box in The Lee area of England. Anyway, the flashbacks of the police being really bad boys who indulged in the flesh big time was quite confronting even by Midsomer Murder standards. Anyway, Death in a Chocolate Box isn't for everyone, and it ain't about the confectionary for sure init really.

In this episode from season one, Intensive Care, James McDonnell plays Martin Greenwald (or Doc Martin) who is unjustly accused of bumping off a doctor, and it's all like Diagnosis Murder. Anyway, what was more intriguing was Lorenzo getting all excited yet anguished about meeting Tina (Denice Duff) who is married to an old friend, Howie. In fact, when Lorenzo and Tina were getting all hot and heavy in the music store, I thought Lorenzo would succumb. The ending was quite poignant with Lorenzo playing the sax in the presence of Lance, and it reminded me of when Lisa Simpson played the sax at the end of a Simpsons episode.

Daniel Casey makes a guest return as Gavin Troy, who was a regular for awhile. Troy returns for the big day, yes the wedding of Cully Barnaby (Laura Howard) to Simon Dixon (Sam Hazeldine). It's hard to believe Blood Wedding debuted quite awhile ago, and it's an episode I enjoyed very much, especially with DCI Barnaby sorting out drama and intrigue at another wedding, hence the title Blood Wedding. Anyway, I'm enjoying reflecting on Midsomer Murders after discovering it in 2015 or 2016. Interestingly, after this episode, Dixon no longer appears, although Cully does, so that's a bit unusual init.

Whilst I'm a fan (probably one of the few) of season three of Parker Lewis Can't Lose with its focus on relationships, I found Boy Meets Girl a bit too drawn out for its own good. We are introduced to Annie Sloan (Jennifer Guthrie), Parker's new girlfriend. It seems Parker has moved on following on from the previous episode, Love Handles, where he awkwardly acquainted himself with Harriet Guzman (Lesley Boone). Anyway, here I liked the opening sign being literally Parker Lewis Can't Lose, the black and white opening noir effect, the closing sign with the Executive Producer Clyde Phillips. It's almost there was much ado about something, and anyway, at least we can move on.

Lesley Boone guest stars as Harriet Guzman, whom Parker met online in the days when online chats were kind of in their early days. Here Parker has a tough choice to make between dates, and there's kind of a cruel intentions undertone here. Anyway, Nick Comstock (Paul Johansson) plays a key role again, and it's a shame his character wasn't picked up in season three. Another character who unfortunately wasn't retained for season three was Frank Lemmer (Taj Johnson), and anyway he plays a key role in this episode with noirish elements when Jerry tutors Principal Musso to pass an exam. The Doogie Howser reference at the end was hilarious.

Parker's girlfriend (i.e. Who will appear in more than one episode) is Annie Sloan, who will be introduced in the next episode.

I remember watching Ed over 20 years ago, and it was actually quite a charming and engaging series, particularly with Ed Stevens (played by Tom Cavanagh, who could easily play Norm "SNL" Macdonald in a biopic) working as a lawyer from a ten pin bowling alley, which reminded me of lawyers who work from home or from their garage because it's cheaper than renting a high rise flashy office. Anyway, the episodes about Ed standing up for the little guy up against the state really resonated for many. Ed featured Lesley Boone, who starred in an episode of Parker Lewis Can't Lose back in the early 1990s.

I've been a fan of Parker Lewis Can't Lose since it debuted over 30 years ago, and I'm enjoying watching the episodes again thanks to them being available on the internet. Anyway, Rock 'n' Roles is a superb episode on so many levels, starting with Parker Lewis trying to offload Crowded House concert tickets (Crowded House are a pop band from New Zealand), the references to The Terminator, the cameo appearance of Robert Zemeckis, who was married to Mary Ellen Trainor who played Parker Lewis's mom in this episode (she played Parker's mom in the pilot and in seasons two and three, and Anne Bloom played the mom in season one), and also the theme of never meeting your heroes, with the down to earth meeting between Shelly and her rock hero Jezebel who helps Shelly become more authentic, and also parenthood tips for Parker's parents.

Michael Symon is the effervescent, enthusiastic and ebullient host of Burgers, Brew and 'Que, and I discovered Burgers, Brew and 'Que only recently (along with Burger Land) so I'm catching up on some of the episodes. Like one of the reviewers of the series commented, Symon really looks like Telly "Kojak" Savalas, and it's no surprise given he's of Greek (along with Italian and Eastern European) descent so that explains it somewhat init. Anyway, in this episode, Michael Symonds head off to Buffalo, Cleveland and Indianapolis, and whenever I watch these type of shows, I just get hungrier and hungrier.

Michael Symon, who looks so much like Telly "Kojak" Savalas, takes us again across the country that showcases the burgers and all from dedicated eateries who want to make good food. Anyway, I discovered Burgers, Brew and 'Que only recently and I'm enjoying seeing Symon's enthusiasm. It takes a village (without taking anything away from Symon of course), so due acknowledgement to the executive producers: Nicholas Panagopulos, Nate Meyer, Lang Yee. Also due credit to the Director of Culinary Production, David Mechlowicz, and no doubt other production crew that keeps us entertained and hungry for more.

Michael Symon is the enthusiastic and ebullient and effervescent host of Burgers, Brew and 'Que, and I discovered this only recently, so I'm catching up on some of the episodes. Like one of the reviewers said, Michael Symon really looks like Telly "Kojak" Savalas, and it's no surprise given he's of Greek (along with Italian and Eastern European) descent so that explains it somewhat. Anyway, Burgers, Brew and 'Que takes us across the country to explore just burgers but also delightful cuisines. This, along with Burger Land, is essential viewing for burger gourmets so that's for sure init right.

Michael Symon, a chef, is very passionate about discovering burger joints. Anyway, here in Sausages, Franks and Dogs, from season five of Burgers, Brew and 'Que, Michael Symon takes us to Sagaponack, Columbus and Indianapolis. I'm not kidding, but Symon has a passing resemblance to Telly "Kojak" Savalas. Anyway, I like these food shows, having also recently discovered Burger Land hosted by George Motz, who like his Burgers, Brew and 'Que counterpart, travels around the country searching for perfect burgers, although in the latter show some of the episodes look beyond burgers. Anyway, worth watching.

Daniel O'Halloran entered the 1% Club by answering 5 to win the 99,000 quid, so that's a big deal. He also has a tribute band, and it's amazing how he got the answer, because really could anyone have done it, and he had Lee and the rest of contestants (who were all eliminated) in suspense because when he answered 5, he dejectedly said, I should have said 6, but he said he did that to add suspense, and he did.

Wow, as a reviewer said, this is what game shows are about, taking the risk, going for broke, the agony and ecstasy of defeat. The reason why the grand prize wasn't 100,000 quid is because one of the contestants walked away with the 1,000 pounds to breed more rabbits.