MIDSOMER MURDERS : A Tale of Two Hamlets, S6E4

Cully is again a no show in this episode (I prefer the plot lines including her and Joyce). Troy doesn't seem to miss her much as he carries on dealing with daft and dodgy characters, drinking his pints in efforts to solve the mystery. Joyce does make a few appearances in this, even present at yet another deadly scene, poor thing. Ha!

The plot revolves around a century's old feud and family, the HAMLET reference apparently made along those themes. There's also a reference made to the classic, "The Wind in The Willows."

The characters were rather dull, except maybe for Darren, the eager and nerdy amateur film maker. A few shady folks to suspect, and a pair of villains to discover. One thing I missed is why and / or for what the two were asking money from the rich folks (?). And left unanswered was why did Danny happen to have his mum's diary in his pocket when he was cooking in the kitchen?

Anyhow, the ending unveiled a couple of twists as to who really is the heir apparent to this tragic bloodline, so desperate to survive it earns its money by a cheap and crude horror film with its own cheap and crude large poster strewn across the grand old house called, "The House of Satan." The main man here is called Ellis Bell, which was the pen name for Emily Bronte.

There are 3 murders here, none with any gore (although a large vat of bright red gazpacho can be mistaken for blood). And to die by stationary bike does indeed seem unpleasant, hmm, well yes, as does the aforementioned drowned in cold tomato soup. And being blown to bits isn't nice either, but there are no bloody wounds on screen so that's a good thing! There's also nothing overtly sexual on screen or implied other than a pathetic confession to an affair.

The "big house" manor is quite grand and gorgeous here with its rolling green estate being the focal exterior of this episode. Also lovely was the windmill atop a hill. Included here a couple of shots of the not-so-charming parts of Midsomer, a run down trashy town called Lower Warden.