The King of Clubs

Not one of the my favorite episodes, but I did find The King of Clubs satisfactory up to a point. The set-up is great - Henry Reddburn, a studio boss (and an absolute horrid man), is found dead on his library floor with his head bashed in. Poirot is asked by a friend to help with the investigation as his fiancé was the person who discovered the body. But there are plenty of other suspects - everyone at the studio loathed the man. It's a classic start to a Poirot plot. Poirot investigations and questioning of those involved were as enjoyable as ever. I even followed his thinking on the King of Clubs clue and knew, like Poirot, what it meant. So, events in this episode were progressing nicely and just the way I like. But then we come to the end. I won't spoil things, but I felt so unfulfilled, for lack of a better word. It's not the kind of ending a Poirot episode should have. (I'd really love to be more specific, but that would be giving far too much away. Sorry.)

Anyway, there's still a lot here to enjoy. The acting is top notch. I was especially impressed with Niamh Cusack and David Swift. They easily held their own with the series' regulars. The sets were impressive. I was struck by the contrast between Reedburn's modernistic looking home and the more traditional, understated Willows next door. I also enjoyed taking a quick look at some the early filming techniques, like filming through painted glass. Interesting stuff. And, I got a kick out of Hastings attempt to explain a piece of modern art to Poirot.

Overall, a 6/10 from me.

.. When the story begins, a nasty studio head is about to get punched in the face...but his security guards arrive and escort the punchee out of the place. You soon realize this studio chief is a real piece of work...a man not above blackmail or other dirty tricks. So, when he appears to have been bludgeoned to death, the question is more like 'who DIDN'T have a reason to kill him?'.

What I love about this episode is that since Poirot is NOT a member of any police department, he doesn't have to tell anyone what he finds if he doesn't want to. In this case, after exhaustive work, he realizes that the dead man isn't worth his time...and it might have been an accident anyways. Very clever and enjoyable...and all highly dependent on one strange clue...a missing playing card.

Hercule Poirot and Captain Hastings visit the stage set of a film. Later that evening the head of that studio, Harry Readburn, is found dead in his house. A young actress was apparently seen running from the house around the time of his death, and she is the prime suspect. Chief Inspector Japp thinks it is an open-and-shut case, but Poirot knows otherwise. His biggest clue is a missing card from a game of bridge...

Reasonably interesting. The set up was engaging and the mystery was intriguing. Some of the usual amusing off-topic banter from Hastings (though I still have no idea why Poirot keeps him around - he is quite clueless).

The conclusion is a bit of a damp squib though. The reveal is quite subdued and Poirot's actions after that are quite odd.

Right from the start of this story you know the man who must die ... a movie director who seems intent on bullying, demeaning, and generally making an ass of himself to everyone on the set and in the production.

With the complication of a Prince engaged to the female lead and a leading man who can't remember his lines and is being fired, you know it can't take long.

Poirot and Hastings just happen to be visiting the set when the death occurs. There is a bit of a kerfluffle over witnesses who can't be witnesses and a card game that couldn't have been played.

And there is a dead body that wasn't killed in the traditional ways of murder. And that's about it. I enjoy most of these shows but this one just seemed to spin its wheels without ever getting anywhere.

How many times have you seen this story? We see a man at his place of business. Clearly not a pleasant man. He orders one of his employees to be fired, and we see the employee come to the man's office and launch an angry attack on the man before being escorted away. We see the employee mutter "I'll show him" before staggering away to get drunk. Later we see the man at his home. A woman comes to his home, taking care not to be seen by a visitor who is just leaving. Then we see the woman entering another house nearby, and the lady of the house is calling the police, apparently to report an incident at the house next door. The detective is called in because the unpleasant man has been found dead in his home. Who is responsible? The woman who was apparently sneaking in? The disgruntled employee? One of the gypsies making camp just down the street? This could be an episode from any detective series made in the last 50 years. The fact that it features David Suchet as Poirot makes it bearable, but it's missing all the extra touches that make this series so entertaining. The writing and acting are not particularly memorable, the clues that lead to the solution have nothing to do with the actual crime, and the solution itself can be predicted from the relationship that the characters have to each other. Nothing wrong with it. Just not very interesting, I'm afraid.