Mystery 101: Playing Dead

This film all starts out with an off duty detective spotting an open pharmacy door while she's off duty and getting knocked on the noggin from behind. Little does she or anyone else suspect that this is connected with the death of film star Rebka Sharmas who is killed with poison after suffering an injury during a play rehearsal.

Sharmas was in town as a guest speaker and to support the small town theater group she was going to do a play sponsored by professor Jill Wagner. The whole thing revolves around her complicated love and a pair of murderers who have a long standing score to settle.

I do like Jill Wagner in the lead for this Hallmark series. She's smart and not all that pushy and knows when to let her detective boyfriend Kristoffer Polaha take the lead. It is his job and case after all.

This show is always teaching me something new, this time Dramaturge.

In this, the second entry in Hallmark's Mystery 101 series Amy,our professor turned crime solving consultant, is the dramaturge for a local theater's mystery play production. While consulting the main actress has several attempts taken on her life. Meanwhile there are break ins occurring in downtown Garrison, Washington, the latest of which is the local pharmacy where the thief used a toy monkey to distract a police officer that was the first on the scene.

Travis and Amy join forces to put together the clues to figure out who done it, when our actress turns up dead. Travis does give Amy a little lecture about taking unnecessary risks.

Kudos to the casts' performance but specially to the writers! The plot was so unpredictable in a way that it's hard to guess what will come next. Like the first episode, I couldn't guess the bad guy until the very end. Jill and Kris did it again. The back and forth bantering between them was so much fun to watch. But I'm glad that this episode has a little bit more rom-com between Amy/Travis and Claire/Bud as well. I hope such rom-com continue to all future episodes. It makes mysteries fun! Way to go Hallmark!!!

6/10 - definitely a step-down from its predecessor

Pathetic writing. Filled with interfering with an investigation, trespassing, illegal searches and inadmissible evidence. Perpetrators would walk in real life.