An alleged Twain manuscript begets greed, deception, arson, and murder.An alleged Twain manuscript begets greed, deception, arson, and murder.An alleged Twain manuscript begets greed, deception, arson, and murder.
Photos
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaJessica Fletcher only features briefly in this episode.
- Quotes
[last lines]
Lindsey Barlow: Have a good time.
Dennis Stanton: We plan to.
Lindsey Barlow: Oh, and Mother, don't let him get you tipsy. That wine can catch up on you. Oh, and Dennis, don't keep her out too late. I expect you both back by midnight.
Dennis Stanton: Midnight?
- ConnectionsReferences The Great Train Robbery (1978)
- SoundtracksMurder She Wrote Theme
Written by John Addison
Featured review
The less than great Twain robbery
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.
Personally like the character of Dennis Stanton, if more with Jessica than on his own and mostly because his chemistry with Jessica is so great and the episodes are much better. He is a fun and compelling lead character, love how distinguished, sophisticated and suave he is, it is easy to be as charmed by me as Jessica is in her too few collaborations. Plus it is hard to not like a character who dresses dapper, drives a cool car and loves classical music and opera, sounds shallow and couldn't resist.
Can definitely understand why fans malign his solo bookend episodes, a few of them are good, others not so good to put it lightly. "The Great Twain Robbery" fared a little better on re-watch, but it is still to me one of the lesser Dennis Stanton book-ends, if not the worst of the bookends overall ("The Szechuan Dragon", a 'Murder She Wrote' low-point, and "Good-Bye Charlie").
"The Great Twain Robbery" is not a terrible episode by all means and some distinguished is what lifts it. Keith Michell is terrific as Dennis, he oozes charm and charisma, really love his distinguished and suave air that he does better than any other bookend lead character. Ken Swofford is great fun, while David Birney relishes his smarmy character and Diane Baker and Holly Gagnier are attractive presences.
Another thing that lifts it is the opening three minutes and not just because that it has Jessica, it is such a charming and beautifully acted scene and my favourite opening scene of all the bookend episodes. A perfect reminder too of what great chemistry Michell and Angela Lansbury had. There are some neat literary references and some clever twists that make the story increasingly unpredictable.
'Murder She Wrote' has always been good in the production values and gets better with each season. Here they're slick and stylish with nostalgia-inducing fashions. The 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. Some of the writing is thoughtful and amiable.
Not everybody in the cast works, though most of the acting is distinguished. While having less to do than usual, Rhonda is still annoying and dull and Hallie Todd's smug line delivery still grates. Roy Dotrice does his best and is actually pretty good, but it is a fairly obvious role and he deserved more to do than what he had which considering his calibre is not much. Neremiah Persoff is wasted and is essentially a story-device.
Story-wise, "The Great Twain Robbery" had an intriguing premise and this intrigue came in flashes in the references and the twists. Some of the pacing is dreary however, and for a fairly complicated case once we got away from the very basic set-up (at times too complicated) the final solution was somewhat unsatisfyingly simple. Personally guessed the murderer correctly early on and the truth of the manuscript was not that hard to figure out. With the writing, it has its moments but at times comes over as over-serious.
In conclusion, less than great but still worth a viewing. 5/10 Bethany Cox
Personally like the character of Dennis Stanton, if more with Jessica than on his own and mostly because his chemistry with Jessica is so great and the episodes are much better. He is a fun and compelling lead character, love how distinguished, sophisticated and suave he is, it is easy to be as charmed by me as Jessica is in her too few collaborations. Plus it is hard to not like a character who dresses dapper, drives a cool car and loves classical music and opera, sounds shallow and couldn't resist.
Can definitely understand why fans malign his solo bookend episodes, a few of them are good, others not so good to put it lightly. "The Great Twain Robbery" fared a little better on re-watch, but it is still to me one of the lesser Dennis Stanton book-ends, if not the worst of the bookends overall ("The Szechuan Dragon", a 'Murder She Wrote' low-point, and "Good-Bye Charlie").
"The Great Twain Robbery" is not a terrible episode by all means and some distinguished is what lifts it. Keith Michell is terrific as Dennis, he oozes charm and charisma, really love his distinguished and suave air that he does better than any other bookend lead character. Ken Swofford is great fun, while David Birney relishes his smarmy character and Diane Baker and Holly Gagnier are attractive presences.
Another thing that lifts it is the opening three minutes and not just because that it has Jessica, it is such a charming and beautifully acted scene and my favourite opening scene of all the bookend episodes. A perfect reminder too of what great chemistry Michell and Angela Lansbury had. There are some neat literary references and some clever twists that make the story increasingly unpredictable.
'Murder She Wrote' has always been good in the production values and gets better with each season. Here they're slick and stylish with nostalgia-inducing fashions. The 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. Some of the writing is thoughtful and amiable.
Not everybody in the cast works, though most of the acting is distinguished. While having less to do than usual, Rhonda is still annoying and dull and Hallie Todd's smug line delivery still grates. Roy Dotrice does his best and is actually pretty good, but it is a fairly obvious role and he deserved more to do than what he had which considering his calibre is not much. Neremiah Persoff is wasted and is essentially a story-device.
Story-wise, "The Great Twain Robbery" had an intriguing premise and this intrigue came in flashes in the references and the twists. Some of the pacing is dreary however, and for a fairly complicated case once we got away from the very basic set-up (at times too complicated) the final solution was somewhat unsatisfyingly simple. Personally guessed the murderer correctly early on and the truth of the manuscript was not that hard to figure out. With the writing, it has its moments but at times comes over as over-serious.
In conclusion, less than great but still worth a viewing. 5/10 Bethany Cox
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- TheLittleSongbird
- Oct 13, 2017
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