Jesse Stone: Thin Ice

To a series which for a "cop series" is decidedly different in many ways. Just watched this one for the 2nd time. For me, I would not want to work for employers that Jesse Stone has to work for and in a town that turns its back on corruption but dishonestly obtains money thru its radar (blocked by a tree-so you cant see the speeding sign!). Some lovely scenery in most of the others in the series, in this one you see very little. That said, every member of the cast contributes to this one when the team deal unofficially with a missing child and a shot police chief that no one seems to care about. Watch this one: how the writers pull the two story lines together is rather good, as is the ending. This makes for a really good story worthy of watching

... on its own this one in the series is good; different of course, but good. some changes are blatant of course, molly and d'angelo. but still has that small town, big city cop feel. it moves the series along just enough, without being silly or indulgent. parallels and parables still tag teaming in the storyline. which works well. i enjoy this series very much, it will eventually standup well against the test of other cop shows that have come before it. Selleck is great, and so is the whole cast, including the antagonistic others(city council). i'll sum up this series like this... after a long day its good to be cozy in ur favorite chair and sweats, flipping on the electronic device of choice and finding some new twist or beat that seemed not there before, and relishing it anew, once again.

A fair mystery and secondary plot, but this one doesn't measure up to the previous episodes in the series. Changing Molly to Rose is inexplicable, the town council is larger than the police force and Sidney Greenstreet(!) are just a few of the irritants. Tom Selleck is terrific as usual, Cathy Baker does a fine job as Rose and William Devane is sarcastic and entertaining but the plot with the town council just doesn't seem believable or logical.With the force down to three people with one on light duty, it seems counterproductive to threaten Chief Stone over such petty matters. Oh well, what can you expect from politicians? We hope there are more movies coming. My wife and I really like the Jesse Stone movies, but this one is not as good as the rest, not really bad, just not on par with the rest.

While I do agree with this being the least of the series, I enjoyed the episode. However, my wife (who would leave me for Tom if he asked, I'm not kidding) didn't like it.

As an example of our tastes, I loved Clint Eastwoods "Unforgiven" because the distinction between bad and good wasn't clear. My wife did not like "Unforgiven" because the distinction between bad and good wasn't clear.

I think the story line was needed or the series would have fallen way to far into a formula driven format. That's why I think it would destroy the series if it was a week to week show. This episode must set up at least one or two more stories.

I look forward to them.

Watching this latest Jesse Stone film Thin Ice put me in mind of Murder She Wrote and Jessica Fletcher's little hamlet by the sea Cabot Cove. The similarities between Cabot Cove and Paradise are striking, but the attitudes are certainly different among the residents.

As usual there are two cases for the small town police force to solve in this film. It opens with Tom Selleck and his friend Stephen McHattie from the State Police on a most unofficial stakeout when both are shot. Selleck manages to get off some shots and may have wounded one of the two shooters. The second is Camryn Manheim who came in from New Mexico. Her day old infant was snatched from the hospital several years ago. Mother's intuition and a strange letter tell her that her kid is in Paradise. On that very thin evidence and on her women's intuition Kathy Baker investigates with silent approval from Selleck. By the way Manheim's one scene with Selleck and Baker is unbelievably moving.

But it was the side issue that grabbed me. The town council is having a hissy fit over Selleck doing a little moonlighting with McHattie. His chief critic on the council Jeremy Akerman who after unsuccessfully trying to get Selleck to hire his nephew makes it clear that his chief function as police is to nail those speeders at the local trap and generate some revenue. Selleck who worked homicide in the LAPD really thinks it beneath him. Not to mention that those murders from previous Jesse Stone stories are giving Paradise a bad name which could affect the tourist trade.

Contrast that with Cabot Cove and how they treat Jessica Fletcher and think of all the murders she solved in Murder She Wrote's long run. The residents there certainly never thought of firing Tom Bosley or Ron Masak and certainly weren't about to tar and feather their most famous resident. Cabot Cove in fact had to be the murder capital of the United States. Paradise has a long way to go.

I think it's the provincial attitudes of some of the people you will take away when you watch Thin Ice.