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.
"The Scent of Murder" may not be a great, or classic, episode and is somewhere in the middle when it comes to ranking Season 11 episodes, "Murder By Twos" being the best episode of the season up to this point. It is though a step up from the previous two episodes "An Egg to Die For" and particularly "Murder of the Month Club", and is in its own right an above average effort.
Do have to agree that the premature obviousness of the killer's identity brings it down a little and takes away from the mystery, if the character and their story had been introduced and written with more subtlety this could have been avoided. Some of the dialogue is a touch stale, though generally at least there is more light-hearted cosiness here than in the previous two episodes that took themselves too seriously.
Some of the story is on the silly side, with a couple of subplots treading familiar soapy ground. Am in two minds what to think regarding Seth revealed to have more relatives out of the blue and found it a missed opportunity providing the character with more depth that he was not treated as a suspect despite his motive being one of the stronger ones.
Angela Lansbury on the other hand is terrific as always, as is William Windom who brings a lot of charm and great comic timing. Although going slightly overboard at times, Sally Kirkland is very compelling as is radiant Melanie Smith. Dakin Matthews makes it easy for us to see why the suspects list is long without over-doing it.
When it comes to the mystery, it is lively in pace throughout, easy to get into and stay with, even with occasional silliness and the final solution not being a surprise as one would like.
Production values are slick and stylish and the episode is, especially at the start, one of the most visually striking episodes of the latter seasons (perhaps the most of Season 11). 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. Script is thought-provoking and amiable.
Overall, above average. 6/10 Bethany Cox
