As always Midsomer Murders is an entertaining who done it charming in its rural setting with quirky characters and eccentric suspects. Nettles and the chemistry he shares with his cast mates is going to be a huge loss when he departs from the show but as sad as that day will be when it comes its reassuring to know the show will remain strong thanks to excellent writing.

Midsomer Life: After an unpopular editor of a local magazine is found dead, Barnaby stumbles upon a nest of bribery, adultery, and secrets kept too long. What makes this case so hard to figure out, and if you watch this show no doubt you try every episode, is the mass amount of tension in it. A businessman has opened an off road spot that’s being overrun with city kids who are rude and obnoxious. There is a tension between the locals and the city people that’s a perfect recipe for murder not to mention the episode begins with a possible murder that makes the victims wife a suspect, a victim whose brother works for a man suspected of the second murder. Still with me? It’s a great start to the collection putting you on your toes for the cases that follow albeit a few of the characters and their deaths are a little silly.

The Magicians Nephew: My second favorite of the set. Barnaby must determine if witchcraft is to blame when several members of a pagan cult are killed in an unusual manner. For starters the episode guest stars Stuart Wilson (Lethal Weapon 3, Hot Fuzz, The Mask of Zorro), one of the most underrated actors you may have never heard of. Stuart plays a former pagan member whose tell all book has made him an enemy of his former worshippers and whose nephew has been led to believe is in possession of a sacred and powerful book. The murders in this case are interestingly done and the characters are so off you can only give in to the notion that anyone is suspect. The ending was a bit soft but overall a  great episode.

Days of Misrule: Christmas comes early for Barnaby and Jones when a suspicious explosion frees them from a dreaded team building exercise. A buzz began about a character in this episode possibly being the actor who is going to step in for Nettles when he retires. Not likely but who knows. In any case this is my favorite episode. There is so much going on in this episode its hard to keep track of what’s what but it keeps you guessing the whole time. Joseph Millson (The Sarah Jane Adventures) stars as James Parkes, the son of Colonel Matt Parkes, a highly respected military man who runs war games in the local woods. Millson’s character is an instant dislike and after twenty minutes or so you start to believe he’s next in line to be killed, or more like wish. Probably the most powerful of the episodes on the disc dealing with loyalty in all its many forms.

Talking To The Dead: One of the more entertaining episodes as Barnaby and Jones try to uncover why two couples have suddenly disappear from their homes located next to an ominous forest that’s rumored to be haunted. Along the way their pitted against the land owner and a TV personality that speaks to the dead. While this episode begins with a lot of hilarity by ghost whisperer Cyrus LeVanu (Jeroen Krabbé; Transporter 3, Oceans 12) the episode ends on a very human note that’s both disturbing and clever.

Bonus Features in this set include The Magicians Nephew episode commentary by John Nettles and Production Notes. Guest stars appearing in the set include; Tim Piggot-Smith (Tim Burton’s Alice In Wonderland), Ronald Pickup (Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time), Pooky Quesnel (Doctors), Simon Williams (Doctors), Anton Lesser (Causality 1909), Tom Goodman-Hill (Chalet Girl), Niamh Cusack (Hereafter), and Judy Parfitt (Little Dorrit).