Midsomer Murders-Season 14-Part 1 (2010)

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General		Extras
Category	TV Series	Main Menu Audio & Animation Gallery-Photo Additional Footage Alternative Version Interviews-Cast & Crew
Rating
Year Of Production	2010
Running Time	360
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered Dual Disc Set	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Peter Smith Sarah Hellings Richard Holthouse Renny Rye
Studio Distributor	Bentley Productions Madman Entertainment	Starring	Neil Dudgeon Jason Hughes
Case	Slip Case
RPI	$39.95	Music	Jim Parker

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.78:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	Yes
Subtitles	None	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

     I have reviewed quite a few seasons of Midsomer Murders in the past and they have all followed a very familiar pattern, however, with Season 14 things have changed quite a bit. This season from 2011 has changed the main character from DCI Tom Barnaby (John Nettles) to his cousin DCI John Barnaby (Neil Dudgeon) but the name is really the only similarity between the characters. The show is based on a set of novels by Caroline Graham. They are all set in an area of England known as Midsomer, consisting of a larger town, Corston, where the main character lives and numerous small villages where people seem to get murdered at an alarming rate.

     Previously, 70+ movie length episodes (over 13 seasons) have been made in this series starring John Nettles as Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby of Corston CID, although Season 13 was his last. Season 13 introduced DCI John Barnaby. These episodes see the last Tom Barnaby offsider, Detective Sergeant Ben Jones (Jason Hughes) continue as the offsider for the new DCI. Despite being the same character he is being written as a more forthright and involved character than he was previously and the show in general is more focused on the police and their investigation of the case than previous seasons. The new DCI is quite a different character as well, he is more acerbic and facetious at times, regularly making jokes at Jones' expense. His wife is now the local school head mistress and he has a small dog, Sykes, who he talks to about his cases. The other character who comes to the fore in these episodes is the pathologist, George. He has always been there but is more up front in these episodes. Some of the folksiness of the previous stories has also been stripped away and the murders are delivered earlier in the story and can be more gruesome. It is great to see a show as long in the tooth as this one reinventing itself and trying something different.

     This set includes four movie length episodes which are episodes 1-4 of Season 14. These episodes were made and first aired in 2011. Each episode can either be watched with or without advertisement break bumpers. This adds approximately 40 seconds to the playing time of each episode if turned on. The set is packaged in two standard cases which are then housed in a cardboard slipcover.

     The four episodes, which are all of very good quality, included (on two discs) are

1. Death in the Slow Lane - A local girl’s school is having a car show but then the bodies start piling up.
2. Dark Secrets - An pair of eccentric recluses are embroiled in murder.
3. Echoes of the Dead - Wedding related serial killings shock the village of Great Worthy.
4. The Oblong Murders - Jones goes undercover in a local cult looking for a missing girl.

     Recommended for fans of English mysteries and definitely worth a re-look at Midsomer Murders if you thought it was getting stale.

Video

     The video quality is good. Each disc contains two episodes which means there is some mild evidence of MPEG compression.

     The feature is presented in a 1.78:1 aspect ratio, 16x9 enhanced which I would guess is the original aspect ratio.

     The picture was quite sharp and clear without being really crisp. Shadow detail is decent. There is some light grain at times and some mild MPEG artefacts during fast motion.

     The colour was very good.

     Other artefacts included some mild aliasing and edge enhancement.

     There are no subtitles.

     There are no noticeable layer changes.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio quality is very good.

     These DVDs contains one audio option, an English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo soundtrack encoded at 224 Kb/s . This audio transfer is perfectly suited to the material.

     Dialogue was mostly easy to understand and clear throughout. There were no sync problems.

     The music by Jim Parker is mostly variations on the theme tune which is distinctive and a little creepy.

     The surround speakers and subwoofer were not used.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

     Some stuff here which is a bit more substantial than most of these sets

Menu

     The menu is well done and allows for set-up (with or without ad bumpers) and scene selection. It includes music and dialogue.

Disc 1

Photographic Evidence

     A photo gallery including publicity stills.

Textless Title Sequences (3:34)

     The title should give away what this extra is.

Alternate Footage (2:31)

     Footage used to create less violent daytime versions of the shows.

Featurette - In Conversation (34:24)

     Interviews about the changes to the show, casting and the new characters with Neil Dudgeon, the composer Jim Parker and other cast and crew. Fans will find this interesting.

Disc 2

Photographic Evidence

     A photo gallery including publicity stills.

Textless Title Sequence (2:46)

     The title should give away what this extra is.

Alternate Footage (6:16)

     Footage used to create less violent daytime versions of the shows.

    This seems to be the first global release of this series on DVD. These episodes seem to have been released separately in Region 2. For now at least Region 4 is the way to go.

     A new lead actor and character drives quite a bit of change in this long running series.

     The video quality is good.

     The audio quality is very good.

     The extras are a bit better than usual.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall