Murder in Successville

I think the idea for this show is great. It's a mix of scripted and improv with the guest playing the role of the PC assisting the DI investigating a murder. The guest is on their own and tries to play the part without laughing at the numerous funny situations and dialogue, at the end they have to choose who they think the killer is. It's often funny but varies by episode, some barely are, others I laughed quite a bit. It's also fun seeing the same few character actors try to play a lot of different celebrities, often ones from the US. Overall, I enjoyed it and wish they made more episodes.

That said, a consistent flaw in the show is the murder mystery aspect. If you're hoping to be able follow along and try to figure out who it was, the guests often do not gather enough clues, getting distracted by the humorous parts and the DI, and little details in a scene are hard to notice due to the darkness (going for a classic crime noir look but went too heavy on it) and camera angles. The characters being investigated also tend to be overly eccentric and uncooperative though at least 1 thing will make it seem like it could be them. This results in the guests being wrong most of the time at the end when they have to choose the killer.

Murder in Successville is a silly mish mash of genres whose success depends on how much effort the celebrity of the week makes an effort to fit in and do some detective work.

Somehow each week a real celebrity is introduced as a new recruit at a police station where he is paired with hard boiled DI Sleet and investigate a murder of a celebrity. Last week it was Bruno Tonioli and this week it was Reese Witherspoon.

During the course of their investigations they come across celebrity crime scene investigators (Taylor Swift for example) and celebrity suspects. Last week we had the Carr twins (Alan and James Carr.) This week Gary Barlow was among the suspects.

There are shades of Stella Street here where we had celebrities living in an ordinary street and it was noticeable that Phil Cornwall was a celebrity impersonator here as well.

It is ridiculous and its more enjoyable if you know the C list celebrity of the week. There are actual clues when various suspects are questioned and it is up to the celebrity to call the suspect and we find out whether they are correct.

There is a lot of corpsing as DI Sleet put them in an absurd situation or the suspects make them do silly things. The giggles add a lot to the fun but it is also haphazard as well.

Murder in Successville is a brilliantly funny murder mystery series that i enjoyed immensely. Tom Davis plays his part superbly with an air of incompetence and vulnerability and being a very likable character to boot. The celebrities are the spark for the format to work and they deliver genuinely funny performances. The rest of the cast play their parts competently and with huge amounts of vigour and i really liked the pantomime type of delivery for the show. When unexpected moments happen it is hilarious to see the ad-lib between the celebs and Tom as it is scripted to the degree of the story being played out only, leaving plenty of room for comedy. Series 1 was good but series 2 got even better. I really hope this show runs for a long time as each and every episode is entirely different from the last, using clever use of props and locations. It really has the feel of a cityscape and is filmed and edited fantastically. Top marks........

This show is all about the concept - putting an unsuspecting TV celeb in the position of solving a murder mystery. Throw in exaggerated character impersonations, a bit of humour, a touch of awkwardness, a bit of improv (this is where it really comes to life), and great end credit songs, and you've got a gem.

Rarely do I feel the need to watch something twice when it comes out, but this programme has that affect as it is full of nuances and little bits of information that are good for a second viewing.

DI Sleet, the chief (Gordon Ramsay) and Ciarad Lloyd deserve special mention, though the celebs each play their part.

It's nice to see something different from the usual panel show/sitcom based comedy. Hopefully there's more to come.

'Murder in Successville', an interesting, original idea, to take a new "celebrity" each week and throw them into a staged murder mystery as a police detective. The show has a very quirky, odd, sense of humor, I felt being similarly to that of 'The Mighty Boosh' with both having the confusing yet intriguing jokes that leave you giggling, either because of the sheer stupidity of the situation/line or the hidden truth and intelligence behind the joke as it is and the uncomfortable cringing.

The show felt to me slow at first as the first episode seemed a little off despite having that charm I so much enjoyed later on but as episode two rolled around I thought why not give it a try and it had me genuinely laughing at the jokes and left me wanting more as the credits rolled.

One complaint I can see people having is the use of lesser known "celebrities" as the show calls them. This doesn't bother me and actually makes me more interested in the show, as it does have the pop culture references in the form of the characters being portrayed but without the overwhelming presence of some of the better known celebrities, as I can see those kinds of people taking the center stage to appeal to a wider audience and therefore killing lots of the charm in the show itself.

I have seen a lot of negativity surrounding this show and I have read what is being said, I'm not going to repeat criticisms but I will say this show really seems to appeal to a small group of people which is why it is hated on but I think this is a smart, funny show with a great deal of potential to be loved by many, I just think people need to open their mind a little to something different.