The Marlow Murder Club

I haven't read the original books but decided to watch the show anyway, especially when I saw Samantha Bond as the main lead - I find her to be a wonderful actress.

At first I struggled a bit to find interest in the plot line as it was quite stagnant and there were constant dead ends that began to put me off of watching it altogether. Majority of the acting was well done though which turned me away from turning off the show! It was all very natural and most of the actors did a wonderful job bringing their characters to life. There were however certain parts where I slightly disliked both the dialogue and mannerisms of a couple of the actors but in the end, it didn't bother me too much.

By the second part of the story I became a lot more interested by the sudden plot twists and the pace that the story was now going. It definitely picked up near the end of the show, as the plot was finally coming together which made the ending very satisfying.

I don't watch modern murder mysteries often (between 2020 and present time) as I find that they can sometimes be very lost in translation from the original books that they're originally based on, so I didn't have high expectations but was pleasantly surprised with The Marlow Murder Club! It's a very good show for both casual murder mystery watchers (like myself) and crime fanatics that like a gripping, intricate storyline.

I like Jo Martin and Samantha Bond so was excited to see this.

This is not a deep story, and the murder aside, you could have substituted almost any other crime in there - who stole the cookies for the bake sale - and it could have worked. Three people end up helping the police, of course using some life experience and knowledge coming from their individual jobs.

This reminded me of Murder, She Wrote when I used to watch it with my grandmother. Everything was just a happy fun time solving a mystery. None of the deeper darkness you'd get with Vera. Even Death in Paradise, as light as it can be, feels like more is at stake.

The acting can be hit or miss from character to character, or even scene to scene, but there are some good performances, even if not always believable. There are some very archetypical characters, and there are a couple deeper stories with the vicars wife and the SIA that I would love to see fleshed out more than the main character story.

If nothing else, it does a great job of showing off a bit of the UK I would have never heard of, painting that idyllic mythical calmer, gentler English country atmosphere.

If nothing else,

I confess I haven't read the books. I am though a big fan of Death In Paradise from the same writer once it clicked with me early on that it is basically Scooby Doo for grown ups.

This drama immediately felt more Agatha Christie in its setting and set up but didn't take long to struggle with its identity. It felt the cast would be struggling with the script which lacked conviction. I can suspend belief to enjoy a storyline, but this veered into scenarios I just found irritably daft more than anything. A shame as the main characters (the 3 amateur sleuths and the contrasting police detective) looked set to make it enjoyable but it never really kicked into gear.

All in all it just felt diluted not knowing whether to go murder mystery suspense or comedic. Somehow Death In Paradise manages to stay true to its identity - there's conviction in the characters whether long term or cameo and no matter how ridiculous it gets. This however somewhat dragged its feet. I'd give a second outing a go but hope it just really goes for it more.

Whilst out swimming in the waters by her house, former archaeologist Judith Potts hears a commotion at her neighbour's house, convinced he's been murdered, she begins an investigation of her own.

I had high expectations for this, and it did not disappear, Robert Thorogood has a good pedigree, and has given us Death in Paradise and Beyond Paradise, this is similar in tone, lighter, easy viewing.

Comedic in parts, but the balance of mystery and humour is spot on, they got it just right.

Each of the trio offers something, but it's Samantha Bond's Judith who gets the greatest focus, we learn a good deal about her, the other two will hopefully be explored in the future.

Well acted by all involved, it features a really nice cast, all play their parts well. Lots of well known faces.

Wonderful locations, definitely one of those where you get an insight into how the other half live.

All I can say, I only hope they make more of them, there's definitely scope for more episodes.

9/10.

This is an interesting and greatly enjoyable effort. There are features reminiscent of other who dunnits - forcexmple the inquisitive outsider and the police officer too dense to accept their input (Father Brown) - but the writer(s) have done a great job bringing some credibility to the outsiders (more than one, hence the 'club'). The way in which the 'club' emerges is believable, and the individuals each bring something to the table to make the story work. The actors work well to make each of their characters engaging. The police do not come out well (so far) and unfortunately their negligence and incompetence is also not beyond belief. The location is wonderful (oh for a lottery win) and I liked the way in which real local celebs are used to add gravitas to rhexstory (for example. Sir Stanley Spencer, who lived and worked in nearby Cookhan). Looking forward to more from the club. Soon.