Thriller & Mystery > 30 GBP and more Thriller & Mystery

Advantages: Owning the entire collection
Disadvantages: None

What can I say - David Suchet was born to play Hercules Poirot. Never has an actor brought the character so to life and I should know as I own all the books as well. There is a mixture of short one hour episodes and feature length films so you can pick what you want to watch when. Unfortunately, the last few do not include the characters of the likeable Inspector Japp, Poirot's bungling sidekick, Hastings and his secretary, Miss Lemon. I feel that ...
...my living room and the stories were acted out just as Christie would have wanted, unlike the ITV more recent interpretation of Miss Marple. You will see many familiar faces in these shows either before their careers took off or when they were household names. The DVD's are supplied in a neat and compact case and are easy to store or have them out on show as I have.The indexing is very clear for even the initiated. If you know any Christie fan and ... Read review

Advantages: Has the best portrail of Miss Marple ever
Disadvantages: No special features

...Joan Hickson will always be the best 'Miss Marple'. Possibly as she was the first one I saw playing the part. I'm surprised that it took the BBC so long to releace them on DVD From the acting to the setting to the pacing... everything seems just right. Every part of Joan Hicksons performance (which earned her two BAFTA nominations) was perfect. She plays Miss Marple as the 'rather nosey busy body' who the criminal always seems to dismiss as past ...
...brain she can always solve the crimes faster than the inspector. Marple lives in her small village and knows everything that goes on there. Through this she knows the world. She is always saying 's/he reminded me of...' Unlike Poirot who always had a good relatioship with the Inspector, the relationship between Marple and the inspector in these storys is a little more strained. He thinks she's an interfering old busy body, which she is, but she always ... Read review

Advantages: Great episodes
Disadvantages: There were not more

...Morse weekends on ITV3. Inspector Morse (played by John Thaw) is a Chief Inspector in the Thames Valley police. He loves opera, real ale, art, literature and doing the Times crossword. He is also irrascible, bad tempered, stubborn and very unlucky in love (he tends to fall for ladies who are either the culprit or who played a supporting role). He is helped by the loveable Sergeant Lewis (Kevin Whately) who supports Morse through thick and thin ...
...the nicest things about the series is watching these main characters develop and their relationship grow, first to respect, then to friendship. The third key character is Oxford, both town and gown. There are some beautiful shots of the countryside and most episodes are set in various colleges. Although mainly a "whodunnit", there is good characterisation and empahsis on why crimes were commited. The viewer is led to feel sympathy for many of the ... Read review

Advantages: The first 4 (and arguably best out of the 6) seasons in one place.
Disadvantages: Check sub-title availability. Could have done with more interviews.

Monk is a popular, funny and moving US detective series starring Tony Shalhoub (Wings, Paulie, Galaxy Quest, Men in Black) as character Adrian Monk, set in San Francisco and currently filming it's seventh season. It is based on a former detective who was released on discharge from the police force due to mental upset and is now a private investigator but hopes one day to be reinstated. Even though Adrian has always been plagued by phobias and compulsions, ...
...well worth the money. Monk is a character focused Detective series rather than a Mystery series where the focus is more on the crime and it's unravelling whereby the detective(s) is a guide for the reader/watcher rather than a super sleuth with clues and parts of the story you could never guess. Monk is a super sleuth but unlike some stories and series there is no needless twisting and further twisting of the plot so that you couldn't guess or estimate ... Read review

Advantages: Plot is great
Disadvantages: Does drag in parts

Midsomer Murders has some great who done it plot lines which will keep you glued to the screen. The murderer is always the person you least expected and so is the motive. Barnaby does not sound or look like a copper and I suppose that's what makes him a good one. He kind of creeps up on the unsuspecting murderer. It's like they knew they were going to get caught but they had not been expecting it to be that soon. When he identifies the murderer, ...
...less time investigating and more time attending, fairs and having tea with his wife. If you love who done its then this is the box set for you. The plot lines are got and the story lines okay. It will not keep you at the edge of your seat but you will feel fairly suspended. Good fun. ... Read review