Have always been quite fond of 'Murder She Wrote'. It is a fun and relaxing watch that makes you think as you try to unwind in the evening. If one wants more complex, twisty mysteries with lots of tension and suspense 'Murder She Wrote' may not be for you, but if you want something light-hearted and entertaining but still provide good mysteries 'Murder She Wrote' fits the bill just fine.
After the outstanding previous two episodes "Trial By Error" and "Keep the Home Fries Burning", both season and show highlights, "Powder Keg" was a major disappointment. Not a bad episode, but a long way from great, for early 'Murder She Wrote' it's somewhat mediocre and one of the season's weakest along with (as far as previous episodes go) "Joshua Peabody Died Here...Possibly" and "Dead Heat".
Too much of the story is riddled with clichés and descends too far into ridiculousness and with a few odd turns. This is including, and actually especially, a badly out of place plot point involving Caulfield and Matthew. Other than a decent final solution, some suspenseful tension between the characters, and how the crime is investigated and solved a lot of it doesn't engage enough, and some of the dialogue is uncharacteristically (for the early seasons that is) overripe.
Some of the guest turns are seriously amateur hour too, usually the acting on 'Murder She Wrote' wasn't this amateurish early on (with a few exceptions like with Lauren Tewes, Priscilla Barnes and Michael Horton), especially Brian Lane Green and the almost the whole lynch mob (with the one exception being Jackie Earle Haley, and even he has been better since).
However, despite how all this sounds, "Powder Keg" does have a lot of merits. Production values are high in quality as to be expected, with slick photography and attractive scenery. The music has energy and has presence but also not making the mistake of over-scoring, while it is hard to forget or resist the theme tune.
Enough of the dialogue has some thought-provoking and amiable moments like the interplay between Jessica and the sheriff.
Angela Lansbury is terrific as always, and there are some good guest star performances. Dorian Harewood and Stuart Whitman do rise above the material and Cindy Fisher is appealing enough, but the best performance comes from Pat Corley who is magnificently gruff and the role is crucial enough for it to elevate the episode significantly even when so problematic in other areas.
In conclusion, some good elements, some bad. 6/10 Bethany Cox
After the outstanding previous two episodes "Trial By Error" and "Keep the Home Fries Burning", both season and show highlights, "Powder Keg" was a major disappointment. Not a bad episode, but a long way from great, for early 'Murder She Wrote' it's somewhat mediocre and one of the season's weakest along with (as far as previous episodes go) "Joshua Peabody Died Here...Possibly" and "Dead Heat".
Too much of the story is riddled with clichés and descends too far into ridiculousness and with a few odd turns. This is including, and actually especially, a badly out of place plot point involving Caulfield and Matthew. Other than a decent final solution, some suspenseful tension between the characters, and how the crime is investigated and solved a lot of it doesn't engage enough, and some of the dialogue is uncharacteristically (for the early seasons that is) overripe.
Some of the guest turns are seriously amateur hour too, usually the acting on 'Murder She Wrote' wasn't this amateurish early on (with a few exceptions like with Lauren Tewes, Priscilla Barnes and Michael Horton), especially Brian Lane Green and the almost the whole lynch mob (with the one exception being Jackie Earle Haley, and even he has been better since).
However, despite how all this sounds, "Powder Keg" does have a lot of merits. Production values are high in quality as to be expected, with slick photography and attractive scenery. The music has energy and has presence but also not making the mistake of over-scoring, while it is hard to forget or resist the theme tune.
Enough of the dialogue has some thought-provoking and amiable moments like the interplay between Jessica and the sheriff.
Angela Lansbury is terrific as always, and there are some good guest star performances. Dorian Harewood and Stuart Whitman do rise above the material and Cindy Fisher is appealing enough, but the best performance comes from Pat Corley who is magnificently gruff and the role is crucial enough for it to elevate the episode significantly even when so problematic in other areas.
In conclusion, some good elements, some bad. 6/10 Bethany Cox