Murder by Twos

Jessica searches for a link between the town bully's death and the death of the woman he was having an affair with in this rather good episode which above average in season 11. There's an air of macabre, especially when the town bully dies - even his wife and daughter happily tear up his photo and fling them into the fire. The mystery is quite good, too.

This could have been the greatest MSW story ever told, bar none: Its setting is magical Cabot Cove, beloved by viewers as the epitome of small-town Americana. The premise is believable and highly mysterious, drawn up in richly dark hues that border on horror. The casting is excellent, introducing a handful of attractive yet subtly evil characters. Unfortunately, the script - written by Angela Lansbury's brother (I checked) - won't let us get truly absorbed in all this TV greatness. It reeks of paper, often giving the actors too big a mouthful to grapple with, and it shows. It also resorts to clichés, and recycles character quirks from older MSW installments. After a while, it all starts to feel as if one were watching a secret, bonus effort put together by the show's amateur fan club. Overall, a good mystery which stops short of enthralling.

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.

"Murder By Two" is one of Season 11's best. Can't think of much wrong with it personally, other than that Andy continues to be bland and underwritten (despite Louis Herthum's best efforts) and the script could have done with less talk and let the atmosphere speak a little more. Otherwise, the mystery is a clever one with an ending that surprises and rings true and a surprisingly macabre atmosphere for a latter season episode.

The cast are also excellent. Not just the Cabot Cove regulars, with the always terrific Angela Lansbury, charmingly curmudgeon William Windom and easily likable Ron Masak.

But also the guest support that consists of Bibi Besch, Ben Browder, Chris Mulkey and Troy Evans, Thomas Callaway also convinces as a bully.

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. The writing mostly is thought-provoking though other episodes have brought out the amiability and cosiness more. Cabot Cove is a welcome sight.

Overall, very good and one of Season 11's best episodes. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Cabot Cove is supposed to have a population of about 3000 people. And, during the course of the series, about 150 or more people are murdered there! This makes the chances of any random Cabot Cover dying at about 5%...making it the most dangerous town in the world!

In this murdery episode, you have a murder that appears to be accidental. But when it's followed by a suicide that is clearly NOT a suicide, then Sheriff Metzger has two murders to solve...and naturally, Jessica is on hand to offer some minor support!

I always enjoy the Cabot Cove episodes since I like the series regulars who supposedly live there. My only quibble about this one is that a couple characters seemed almost caricatures than real people...such as the bully and the sanctimonious hyper-religious zealot. Still, it is worth your time.

This episode marks the only acting credit thus far for Kelly Flynn, as well as one of the most recent appearances to date by Thomas Callaway, who has acted since 1975, with a two-year stint on the daytime serial "Somerset," upon which Bibi Besch for four years has played the role of Eve Lawrence. Bibi Besch, acting since 1964, has, unfortunately, since passed.

When Cabot Cove native Imogene Shaughnessy (Bibi Besch) decides to relocate to her home town from New York City, she, therefore, asks dear friend Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) to assist her in locating a suitable residence.

Terry Deauville (Lise Cutter) owns a Cabot Cove residence, of acceptable space to accommodate Imogene's purposes, and ironically plans to sell in order to relocate to New York City, to distance herself from her unsuitable suitor, Sam Bryce (Thomas Callaway), who happens to have a wife and daughter, either with little nice to speak of Sam, at any rate.

While Sam's wife, Emily Bryce (Claire Malis), and daughter, Gloria Bryce (Vinessa Shaw), maintain the worse regarding Sam Bryce, Gloria's fiancé, Ollie Rudman (Ben Browder), often defends Sam's honor, which is farther than Sam's bowling league teammates would venture.

Harvey Hoffman (Troy Evans), Al Wallace (Chris Mulkey), Ron Friendly (Douglas Roberts) and Biddeford Bomber (Kelly Flynn) bowl with their league at Cabot Cove Lanes, as Waitress (Zanne Shaw) serves in the adjacent restaurant, in open view of the lanes.

Medora Finney (Jennifer Warren), on the other hand, trusts no one around Cabot Cove, as she steals around the community at night to note shady wrongdoings in her diary, to the dismay of locals, who label her as quite certifiable.

On the evening before Imogene and Jessica tour Terry's residence, Doctor Seth Hazlitt (William Windom) invites the two close friends to dinner--at the bowling alley restaurant, where they witness a physical outburst among teammates.

Sheriff Mort Metzger (Ron Masak), meanwhile, participates in a series of poker games in a garage and invites Seth to sit in when one of its regulars doesn't show. Deputy Andy Broom (Louis Herthum) smirks away the illegal gambling, he sticking to the straight and narrow.

The next evening, when someone attempts to operate a drill in a garage, the wire is short-circuited as the victim stands within a puddle of water and is electrocuted.

And the next day, when Imogene and Jessica arrive to tour a residence, they discover another body, this one suspended from the noose of a rope dangling from a rafter.

Jessica is convinced that the two murders are somehow connected, as she investigates the bowling league, the hardware store, the gutted pharmacy after a fire, and Medora Finney's missing diary, which is found at the scene of a murder, in this case of "Murder by Twos."

While shopping in downtown Cabot Cove with Seth, who mentions a figurine bearing the oddity of a cart ahead of the horse, Jessica experiences a sudden burst of logic, deciding that these murders were carefully plotted.

This episode contains a rather macabre scene, as eccentric mother and daughter, Emily and Gloria Bryce, laugh away their burning of photographs and memorabilia in their fireplace. This may mark the one event in the "MSW" series in which fireplace pokers are used to stir the embers rather than their customary usage, to be hoisted as murder weapons.