TONIGHT on Murder, She Wrote

TONIGHT ON MURDER, SHE WROTE, we enter season 5 with "J.B. AS IN JAILBIRD," wherein police take in our heroine, Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury), under suspicion of being a hired foreign agent assassin.  You know, the usual.

Vexed by frenemy Michael Hagarty (Len Carriou), Jessica sits behind bars as Michael and her nephew Grady (Michael Horton) hunt the true killer, while Jessica investigates on her own.  Her cellmate, the vivacious Veronica (Maureen Arthur), is her confidante, as no one seems to believe she's who she says she is.  Indeed, Sgt. Nash (Michael Callan) makes every effort to intimidate her into a confession; Grady denies she's the real deal. Some sort of espionage plot may explain all of this... or not.

Leslie Easterbrook, John Rhys-Davies, and Maxwell Caulfield are all caught in a tangled web of mystery that may finally put our hallowed mystery writer away for good... and that's no way to start a brand-new season.

As a treat for finishing Season 4 of Murder, She Wrote, Viktor and Petra dive into Angela Lansbury's award winning turn as Mrs. Lovett in the 1982 recording of Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Happy Halloween!!

TONIGHT ON MURDER, SHE WROTE, Viktor and Petra present their SEASON 4 POST MORTEM.  Let's talk about the last season and all that happened, from the hot guys, the vamps, the villains, and yeah, that one about the comet we never even got to see.

First, we headed to Paris for a fashion show, with intrigue and blackmail thrown in, then returned to Cabot Cove for a demand for justice from 20 years ago.  Next, a trip to Canada to determine who killed our lovely ingenue in a fire; the convent to find out what led to the scene of a murdered nun; and a Shakespearean office melodrama.

We get an interlude with Jessica Fletcher's cousin Emma (also Angela Lansbury) as she stumbles through the upper class, then return to Jessica and the sex-comedy murder mystery the beauty salon can't stop talking about, plus the meta storyline set in a TV studio.

Jessica turns madam, faces regional racism towards indigenous people, and gets to briefly rest in a swanky hotel in New York before yet another murder.  She returns to Cabot Cove to finish her novel but is intercepted by Sheriff Tupper (Tom Bosley) and his extended family squabble.  

Heading next to the observatory, a mansion with unventilated garages, The South, and Boston, where Jessica intercepts a bunch of homebound spies, Jessica is possibly in need of a visit to the winery.  Home won't bring relaxation, as a curious embroidery and a false brick tie into historical American subterfuge; travel may further exhaust her as she enters the restaurant world with Sonny Bono, the Canadian rodeo, and the splashy world of Broadway malice.  Will she still be standing by the time she hits the campaign trail for a friend?  We barely were!

Season 4 brought us delightful, devious characters played by superstars like Brenda Vaccaro, Eileen Brennan, Tricia O'Neil, Jane Leeves, Betty Garrett, René Auberjonois, Shirley Jones, John Glover, Janet Leigh, Anthony Newley, Charlotte Rae, Jeffrey Tambor, Billy Zane, and Fionnula Flanagan. We can't wait to share our highest highs and lowest lows of this bonkers season with you.

TONIGHT ON MURDER, SHE WROTE, Petra and Viktor explore the (non-Manchurian) candidate Kathleen Lane (Shirley Jones) as she combats sleaze and innuendo on the campaign trail. 

Accused of inexperience, adultery, and minimizing her doting husband's (Eddie Albert) finances, Kathleen looks to pal Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) to lean on between the slings and arrows. 

Jessica is there, of course, when the inevitable murder derails the prep for the primaries, and they face the question of who has the most to gain from the corpse. 

George Grizzard is our unscrupulous talk show host, Peter Fox is the lecherous campaign manager, Robert Fuller is the opponent, Daphne Reid is the numbers analyst, and Robin Bach is our favorite bitchy queen behind a desk. 

THE BODY POLITIC is our season 4 finale; if you're in line to vote, stay in the line!

TONIGHT ON MURDER, SHE WROTE, Viktor and Petra return to the world of theatre as Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) has her first stage adaptation of one of her books opening directly on Broadway.  Alas, the script is a mess, the actors are terrible, the staging is grade school, and the critics are vicious.  Or maybe everything's great? We'll have to check the most recent draft of the reviews.

When harsh theatre critic Danny O'Mara (Josh DiSanti) is found dead, under the gun-holding frame of even harsher theatre critic Elliot Easterbrook (Dean Stockwell), Jessica has to determine who really did it, as the timing just doesn't match up.  Her former student, and now alcohol-enthusiast playwright Walter Knapf, is suspect, as the production scrambles to use the headlines to its advantage.  

The whodunnit on stage takes a backseat to the who-wouldn't in real life, as Lt. Jarvis (Eugene Roche) and plucky assistant to the dead man (Christopher Norris) help Jessica determine not only the true villain, but how to use a floppy disk! 

Carole Cook, Lloyd Belcher, Rich Little, Penny Santon, and Marilyn Hassett (who shines briefly as a witch) round out the cast of drama queens of DEADPAN. We have notes.

Yeehaw, folks! TONIGHT ON MURDER, SHE WROTE, we're heading to the ro-DE-o! 

SHOWDOWN IN SASKATCHEWAN has our heroine Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) visiting her miserable niece Jill (Kristy McNichol) in Canada; Jill is struggling with her hot but noncommittal horse-rider boyfriend (Patrick Houser) in this unconventional workplace drama.  Indeed, everyone is having issues; the boss (Joe Dorsey) is a skeeve, his mistreated wife (Rosanna DeSot) keeps a stiff upper lip and shawl ready at all times, one rider (Larry Wilcox) is getting aged out of play, and something's awfully curious about that broken-legged manager (Paul Le Mat).  The only one who seems at all happy is the rodeo clown (Terry Kiser), but does greasepaint cover the tears?

When a trailer fire takes someone out, Jessica is nearby to suss out who had the most to gain, and Royal Canadian Mounted Police Inspector Roger McCabe (Lance LeGault) gives her a chance to solve the mystery alongside him.  Those Canadians are never giving up the gracious allegations.  We learn the dysfunction runs deep in the rodeo company, with emerging evidence of assumed identities, mismanaged medical records, and secret wives and children — all set to the memorable score of 90s meat propaganda. Viktor and Petra are here to keep things straight in this topsy-turvy episode that makes us all a bit hungry.

TONIGHT ON MURDER, SHE WROTE, you will never look at frozen seafood the same way again.  Touted as JUST ANOTHER FISH STORY, the episode features marine life as weaponry, stolen goods unaccounted for, investor subterfuge, journalistic conflict of interest, and Mr. Sonny Bono!

Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) is back in New York, learning her nephew Grady (Michael Horton) has gone the urban cowboy route, accounting for the latest in trendy country western chic dining house, Alice's Farm.  Oh, and he's engaged! We meet the sweet and nervous Donna (Debbie Zipp), who seems to have an awful lot on her mind.  The restaurant seems to have plenty going on as well, with the staff unable to keep up with the clientele; some of the caviar and lobster tails have gone missing, and Alice (Valerie Landsburg) and her brother Doug (James Carroll Jordan) aren't happy about it.  Likely responsible is the maître d' in leather (Dick Gautier), who ends up dead early enough during Jessica's visit to ensure her involvement in the case.

None too thrilled to have her poking her nose into things is detective-of-the-week Norman Fell, who makes things difficult for Jess and the happy young couple who just want to leave. The cop declares an accounting emergency, forcing them to stay and further learn about how the other handles stress (see: not well, frankly).  Also in for the ride is the divine Brenda Vaccaro, who chews the scenery up like a pro as an opportunistic columnist, Mimi Harcourt, more interested in the murder than the munchies.  A rival restaurateur (Sonny Bono) further spoils the broth as Jessica explores the cutthroat (so to speak) industry of high-end, contemporary New York City cuisine.  Might we suggest a wine?

BENEDICT ARNOLD MAY HAVE SLIPPED HERE, but you almost definitely kept looking for the light switch, sought the perfect chessboard, burnt the beans, and made up stories about whose brooch belongs to whom.  Because that's all gonna happen, TONIGHT ON MURDER, SHE WROTE!

Petra and Viktor are back in Cabot Cove for the final ride of Tom Bosley's Sheriff Tupper!  As Mr. Bosley's chapter comes to a close, he is incensed by an Englishman (Brian Bedford) coming to town to explore a house's connection to (in)famed American traitor Benedict Arnold. 

The visit coincides with the death of the elderly homeowner, for whose will Jessica (Angela Lansbury) is thrust into executing, while the opportunist local antique store owner (Dick O'Neill), the cranky housekeeper (Barbara Cason), the hippie heir (Lois Foraker), and the slutty realtor (Julie Adams) fuss and squabble.  

It becomes increasingly curious what in the house is valuable, and it might all have to do with the ugly artwork on the wall. Grab a mirror, because clues are comin' fast... and backward.

TONIGHT ON MURDER, SHE WROTE, Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) has her chance to meddle with an Italian family. 

The elderly Gambini patriarch (Eli Wallach) is worried about his legacy, as his son (John Saxon) and his wife (Bibi Besch) can't inspire their children to give much a damn about the family business: wine and lots of it! 

When a murder attempt is presumably made against one of the youths (Billy Zane!), the family further worries it’s a hostile takeover. Jessica, along for the ride, is quick to investigate alongside cop of the week (Arlen Dean Snyder) to determine who's next!

Meanwhile, the Italians Italian, the wine flows, and the sexually liberated daughter (Kristian Alfonso) further complicates matters with a stranger (Grant Goodeve) who does all but impress Jessica with his literary knowledge. 

It's A VERY GOOD YEAR FOR MURDER, and Petra and Viktor are ready to, “Saluti!” 

TONIGHT ON MURDER, SHE WROTE, Petra and Viktor head to a house of spies with Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury).

Jessica hears the confession of a dying assassin. Naturally, she makes it her business to investigate, much to the chagrin of the local authorities (Laurence Luckinbill) and the covert special agency that houses a high-risk informant.  Inundated with deception, denial, and efforts to thwart her discovery, she is soon snatched by Internal Affairs (Cliff de Young masquerading as a priest, no less) to go on assignment for them.  It all seems like a PR nightmare.

MURDER THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS gives us intrigue, fabulous belts, and lipstick that isn't actually lipstick.  Mark Shera, Robert Reed, Karen Valentine, and Gregory Sierra all commit to the bit, giving Jessica considerable headaches trying to keep up with their shenanigans, all centered around a tastefully decorated estate.