Commissaire Magellan

If you're a fan of Midsomer Murders, but also like your mysteries to have a decidedly Gallic twist, then Magellan is absolutely for you. The plots are convoluted, the suspects are plentiful, and the dogged Inspector is invariably going to get his man (or woman). But, what sets Magellan apart from what the French would call its British homologue is its edginess, its willingness to discover dark little corners in the psyches of even its most sympathetic characters, even Inspector Magellan himself. There's a focus on the actual crime investigation itself that sometimes gets blurred in Midsomer Murders; unlike its British cousin, Magellan's narratives are sharper, more detailed, and easier to take seriously. None of the casualness that sometimes makes Midsomer Murders seem like an excuse to meander through the sometimes incomprehensible (to a foreigner) personality quirks of the British provincial elite. There's real police business being done here, and Simon Magellan, despite his Colomboesque sartorial disarray and his exasperation with his often uncomfortable role as a 21st century divorced father desperately trying to do the right thing by his precocious teenaged daughters, really is a highly respected and insightful cop. His characteristically French aura of ironic detachment barely conceals a good and decent man who clearly understands what makes people tick and uses that understanding to tease out ingenious solutions to the tangled mysteries he encounters (references to Simenon's Maigret would be appropriate at this point). Yes, the mythical Northern town of Saignac appears to account for just about all of the murders recorded in France in any given month, but that's what we love about formulaic, locked room mysteries like this -- they tell us that the world may seem perennially out of joint, but that with local heroes like Tom Barnaby in England and Simon Magellan in France, everything will turn out more or less alright.

Magellan is simply the most formulaic mystery series I've ever seen, at least after season one. So, I've compiled a template for a budding Magellan writer.

Template for a Commissair Magellan Screenplay:

1) Open with short scene with the victim earlier the day of the murder.

2) Next scene, usually at night, the murder, tastefully done, little gore.

3) After stock footage of the town is standing in for the fictional town of Saignac, Magellan is at breakfast with his daughter and his nephew, Ludo. In the middle of the cute breakfast colloquy Megellan must get a call from his work colleague Selma telling him of the murder, to which he responds "I'll be right there" and he immediately leaves. (Note to screenwriter: The call about the murder must come at breakfast, not in the afternoon at the Police Station, or any other time.)

4) At the crime scene Magellan and Selma speak to several people who knew the victim and one gives them the name of a very likely suspect.

5) They go to interview that suspect, whom they determine is not likely to be the killer, but that suspect tells them something that leads them to another suspect, and it continues that way through several suspects.

6) One of the suspects should take a runner when he sees the two cops and Selma, being the younger of the two and in better shape, chases after him. This suspect is male and should not end up being the murderer.

8) While unraveling all sorts of family and business secrets among the suspects our two cops discover that the parentage of one of the younger characters is different than what everyone believes. (This is optional as it doesn't have to be in every episode, but the majority of them.)

9) Approximately ten minutes before the end of the episode the most likely suspect at that point must be murdered as he/she knows too much. But this second murder must quickly lead them to find the real killer.

10) During the course of the investigation there should be three scenes of Magellan at home with his daughter and live in comic relief character, the ne'er-do-well, insufferable Ludo. (Note to writer: These scenes should be cute and delightful, but so far they've been mostly ridiculous, silly and annoying.)

It should be noted that the Ludo character replaced prosecutor and Magellan's best friend Gavrillac, who was in the earlier episodes It was always unbelievable as to how the otherwise intelligent prosecutor could act so stupid. With respect to Ludo that's not a problem!

There is almost no deviation from the above formula in every episode, so if you are binge watching this night after night as I did, it becomes frustrating. Can't they do something original and break out of the mold, but they never do. Yet, despite all this I was hooked.

Indeed, it is a tribute to the writers can come up with such interesting plots and characters within these very strict guidelines.

This series was enjoyable utnil the character Ludo came on board. What a loser, irritating and annoying. Aside from that character I enjoy the show with great scenery, good mysteries and very little violence. MHz is great for foreign programming which far surpasses anything in the US excepet Yellowstone.

Season 1 of Magellan was extremely enjoyable. All the actors and plots worked out. Then the wonderful Nabil disappeared and was replaced by an ever complaining character at the end of season 1. Season 2 starts with 2 girls younger than in season 1! Since when this would make sense to anyone? And not only that, but their character is unpleasant. Is the writer different ? 10 stars for season 1, 4 stars for season 2

I love this 6,great scenery, mostly fantastic actors. Magellan is a cross between Vera and columbo. At least two murders per episode, although one only had one murder. What was stupid to me was the changing of the daughter's. Yes one was old enough to leave, but then they bring in a much younger girl than the youngest. She's always in adult conversations, she has a smart mouth and does she, attend school regularly??? Simon's friend Paul was ok in the beginning, then he wore his welcome out. But I would rather have him, than the bum nephew ludo. He's very unlikable, he's lazy and dirty looking. I hope there are more seasons of this series, just get rid of ludo and the entitled daughter.