User reviews

This will always be notable for the ending, and that will cause people to like it or loathe it, but I think it's a particularly good episode. It has a dramatic start, great character play, and an outcome that most will never guess.

Troy and Cully get close, and it's also notable for being an episode where the killer tries to eliminate Tom. It's fair to say there are some very sick and twisted characters in this one, not sure they'd get away with this now.

Isla Blair is very good, but it's the young Perdita Weeks that stands out.

It was shocking at the time, I'd say it's equally as shocking nowadays. 7/10

The whole premise to this is fine. As a matter of fact, had this not been such a successful series, certain things could be overlooked. However, after the the supposed suicide of a man, hated in the community, is revealed as a murder, things go off in all directions. Barnaby has worked with a pretty psychiatrist in the past. She has skills as a profiler and runs a kind of sanitarium which services all areas of mental illness. She lives with her three children and was widowed when her husband fell during a climbing outing with the children. When Barnaby comes to review the case, Troy fears his boss has designs on her (or she on him). Soon there are murders where people are hanged, though they have been killed first. There is lots of rope used in these situations, and that becomes a central focus of the case. There is one last minute rescue that kind of overshadows the verisimilitude of this episode. It also depends on some outrageous wickedness on the parts of more than one person. It's still fun, but there are so many plot hole and motivation issues.

Despite not being anywhere near as good now, 'Midsomer Murders' is still a show visited and re-visited with great pleasure. There are episodes better than others, with a fair share of disappointments especially in the later seasons, like with any show in existence, but when 'Midsomer Murders' was good it was good to outstanding.

After a solid, if not quite great, start to Season 6 with "A Talent for Life", "Death and Dreams" is a step down. It is a long way from being one of the show's worst episodes, but it could have been much better, a case of an intriguing premise with mixed/above average execution with a lot of things that make the show great evident but the ridiculousness of some of the episode got in the way.

Starting with the good things, as always the production values are top notch, with to die for scenery, the idyllic look of it contrasting very well with the story's occasional grimness, and quaint and atmospheric photography. The music fits perfectly, and the theme tune one of the most memorable and instantly recognisable of the genre.

Meanwhile, the script is smart and thought-provoking often with the odd bit of quirky humour and some disturbing grimness, with enough to keep one intrigued without feeling irrelevant.

Vast majority of the story is compelling, and never simplistic. There is a lot going on mostly without being cluttered or rushed (remarkable for an episode that as ever is heavy in exposition), while the twists, turns and red herrings keep coming.

John Nettles as always is a joy as Barnaby, with Daniel Casey contrasting him with ease. The murderers also stood out, being chilling in their calmness often.

However, "Death and Dreams" is let down by the ridiculousness of some scenes getting in the way. This was especially true in a quite over-the-top and far-fetched denouement and an attempt on Barnaby's life that strains credibility especially the too by chance rescue.

Furthermore, the killers' identities were not that hard to figure out, in an episode with not enough suspects for my liking with not enough of the colour and eccentricity that one looks out for often in 'Midsomer Murders'. More disappointing were the flimsy motivations, especially for the first murder which was so flimsy it actually wasn't much of one.

In summary, with good things and disappointing things there was enough in "Death and Dreams" to make a just slightly above average episode. 6/10 Bethany Cox

A depressive gambler is found dead, the apparent victim of suicide. Dr Jane Moore, who once treated the man, is adamant he wouldn't have taken his own life - a theory backed up by the post-mortem. Thrilled to be working with Jane again, Barnaby investigates the case - and it isn't long before another of the doctor's patients is killed.

A rather gruesome suicide, or what is thought of as such, distracts slightly from the idyllic setting with a backdrop of intrigue, secrets and murder. It's an ok entry, and the plot is robust enough.

My wife and I have watched dozens of episodes of Midsomer Murders, and we have enjoyed all of them until this episode. While I agree with the statements made by the two previous reviewers that Midsomer Murders "looks as good as any made-for-TV drama you'll ever see" and that "the series has very high production values & top notch acting." And I also with the statement that it was "especially brilliantly acted by those playing the murderer or murderers." Yes, these statements are true, but the previous two reviewers also say that "some elements defy credibility" and are "a bit far-fetched" and "absurdly incredible." They also say that the first murder had "only the flimsiest of motives." These statements are also true, and in fact these are very charitable statements. My wife and I both think that it would be far more accurate to say that the solution to this particular murder mystery is ludicrous and completely preposterous. It is completely beyond belief, and it is an insult to the other episodes of Midsomer Murders that we have seen. It is, in fact, completely ridiculous.