User Reviews

The taping of an infomercial by Jessica and two fellow novelists is plagued by problems including the mysterious death of an audience member.

It's quite an entertaining and amusing episode, I just have one issue, there is no way on Earth Jessica would have taken part in an infomercial, she's always been someone so hot on integrity and credibility, there's no way.....

That gripe apart, it's a really fun mystery, and there's one thing in particular that stands out.

Ian Ogilvy steaks the show as Wade Foster, he's a wonderful actor, such a unusual role for him, but he really does add something, he's brilliant, so funny. That suit is really white something.

A fews familiar faces you'll recognise, several people have indeed appeared on the show before.

7/10.

Anthony Zerbe steals this particular Murder She Wrote story with his portrayal of a Norman Mailer type author, hard drinking and hard living who appears with fellow mystery writers Angela Lansbury and Cec Verrall on an infomercial type program called Murder Of The Month Club.

The other two are cooperative, but Zerbe is his usual obstreperous self especially after visiting detective from Buffalo George DiCenzo shows up inquiring after the murder of David Elliott in Buffalo.

But then that perpetrator is murdered and it turns out a whole lot of people have a Buffalo connection including Zerbe. Of course you know Jessica Fletcher puts it all together.

A nice performance by Ian Ogilvy as a C list actor that is hosting this infomercial, but Zerbe really steals this one.

Anthony Zerbe has long been one of my favorite TV character actors of the 1960s and 70s. Though he's alive and well today, I can't recall seeing him on TV at all in recent years...and it's a shame, as he had the great capacity to play greasy, nasty villains. Oddly, in "Murder of the Month Club", Zerbe is in it...but isn't evil...just a drunk.

Jessica is at a studio taping an infomercial for her publisher. However, soon someone is found dead and the 'accident' isn't really an accident...someone poisoned him with quinine.

I was surprised to read that some folks actually CAN die from ingesting quinine...so this is not so farfetched. Overall, a decent and enjoyable episode...even if Zerbe plays a self-destructive guy instead of an evil genius!

The taping of an infomercial by Jessica and two fellow novelists is plagued by problems including the mysterious death of an audience member. Grand performance by Ian Oglivy and Anthony zerbe makes this an interesting entry. The build-up to the murder is good.

This episode begins with a pre-title Prologue, set in Buffalo, New York, in which the driver of an automobile strangles the passenger and leaves the body in a nearby parking lot.

One day later, in New York City, NYPD Lieutenant Harry Fogel (George DiCenzo) and Detective Henderson (Leonard Lightfoot), operating at the request of Buffalo Police, question staffers and guest at TeleSales Studio because the victim had a paper in pocket identifying this operation.

Publisher Ted Hartley (Bruce Gray) does not appear in this episode, in which TeleSales Marketing produces a Hartley Publishing Company "Murder of the Month Club" Informercial, starring difficult and self-indulged Hollywood actor Wade Foster (Ian Ogilvy) and three of Hartley Publishers' Mystery authors, novice Joellen Waller (Cec Verrell), alcoholic "has-been" Matt Matthews (Anthony Zerbe) and bestselling Jessica B. Fletcher (Angela Lansbury).

Larry Shields (Patrick Fabian) produces the infomercial and guides the authors and star around the set, while Tom Powell (Jeff Conaway) directs, while fooling around with Assistant Sara (Kerri Green), to the disdain of Tom's wife, Gina Powell (Gwynyth Walsh), who controls TeleSales and its stocks and Tom, telling him that it's over between them.

Arnold Wynn, AKA Jason Bayer Saxon (Gale Hansen) arrives at a restaurant as a fan to approach Matt and Jessica, saying that he hasn't read much from Joellen, but Matt welcomes Arnold to the table, when Jessica notices Arnold's Medic-Alert bracelet.

Arnold has been a writing associate of Stewart Murphy (David Elliott) back in Buffalo, they alumni of Matt Matthews' courses at East Buffalo Community College, and regard him highly, while those around the studio find difficulty in working with Matt, especially Wade Foster, who gets along with practically no one, but insists upon his $50,000 in cash from acting financial manager Gina Powell, who comes around to paying it after the second day of shooting the Infomercial.

Fran (Dena Burton) arrives on the set as part of the screened studio audience, and assumes a place beside Arnold in the stands, she asking an unscripted question of an author. Later, after an altercation with Wade, Arnold races out of the dressing room, landing on his side in the corridor.

But that evening, as the lights dim, and guests conclude exiting the building, Security Guard Ernie (W. Earl Brown) shines a flashlight upon Sara and Larry, who, descend a staircase into the darkened corridor, and stumble across another body, causing Sara to scream.

Jessica joins Lieutenant Harry Fogel and Detective Henderson in the resulting investigation. Detective Henderson, by the way, explains that his regular partner, NYPD Lieutenant Artie Gelber (Herb Edelman), is currently in the Catskill Mountains.

Jessica considers possibilities to link the two murders, one by strangulation, the other by Quinine Water poisoning, as she reflects upon items found upon the second body, and things which are missing from the body and the "Murder of the Month Club."

The cast is rounded out by Dave (Elijah Winwood, in his first television acting role).

This episode represents the third of three "MSW" appearances for David Elliott, the fourth of four for Jeff Conaway, the fifth of five for Ian Ogilvy, the fifth of five for Leonard Lightfoot in his role as NYPD Detective Henderson, and the sixth of six "MSW" guest roles for George DiCenzo.

(Extra points for Ian Ogilvy's grand-standing performance amid a slate of otherwise weak attempts at would-be role model figures against an innovative script which ought to have shown promise, but merely proves the difficulties in life for those many talented authors out there who never stand a chance, while others benefit from their labors lost.)

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 one of its best episodes in "Murder By Twos", Season 11 continues with an episode on the opposite end of the spectrum. "Murder of the Month Club" is one of the season's weakest, a lesser episode of the latter seasons and in the weaker half of all the 'Murder She Wrote' episodes in general. Not unwatchable but mediocre at best and not an easy watch.

There are plus points. Angela Lansbury is terrific and Leonard Lightfoot is a charming presence. Liked that the episode gave a reason for Artie Gelber's absence for continuity's sake. Ian Ogilvy is excellent, by far the best performance of the guest supporting cast by quite some way.

Production values are slick and stylish as ever with 'Murder She Wrote'. 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.

Of the guest supporting cast, only Ogilvy gives a good performance or one close to being of professional level. The rest of the cast consists of actors who seemed to had forgotten their acting lessons or couldn't seem to be able to act full stop. Generally "Murder of the Month Club" is one of the worst acted episodes.

Not even a good mystery can save things, where the only thing going for it is an interesting and somewhat different and cleverly done murder method for the second murder. The mystery itself is forgettable and dull, with the identity of the killer to me being obvious too early (picked up on what gave them away before Jessica did) and a motive that is pretty uninspired and prematurely foreseeable. Showing the murderer and providing the motive for the first murder straight away was a mistake, taking away from the fun and mystery of being able to solve the crimes and the ability for us to spot the connection between deaths that seem unrelated.

Writing-wise, "Murder of the Month Club" is pretty dreary and there's little thoughtful or light-hearted about it, tonally this is one of the sticking-out-like-a-sore-thumb episodes. What could have been one of the show's most original concepts ended up being wasted by the episode having nothing interesting or new to say.

In short, mediocre at best. 4/10 Bethany Cox