The Crime Procedural With The Highest Body Count Is Not What You Expect
Procedurals have been around for decades, from the serious police procedural Dragnet to the off-kilter fake psychic of Psych and the various acronym shows (CSI, NCIS, FBI, SWAT), but none can match the body count that follows around retired English teacher and massively popular mystery author, Jessica Fletcher in Murder She Wrote. Forget the serial killers of Criminal Minds or the disturbed and depraved criminals of Law & Order: SVU; based on its population size, you don’t want to come across the residents of Cabot Cove, Maine if you value your life.
Murder, She Wrote Helped Create An Entire Genre
Starring the legendary Angela Lansbury, Murder She Wrote aired from 1984 to 1996, and to say it was a hit would be an understatement. On average, 20 million people watched every week, and while it can’t be compared to today’s fractured media landscape, a hit broadcast show now has two million weekly viewers, if that. Before anyone had coined the term “cozy mystery,” this show was already establishing the groundwork for the entire genre, and the best part is today, you can grab a random episode and enjoy.
Everyone Around Jessica Fletcher Gets Murdered
Each week on Murder She Wrote, Jessica Fletcher would go visit an old friend, a classmate, or a distant relative and somehow find herself solving a murder mystery. These range from the Season 1 episode about a wealthy man leaving his estate to his dog and a driverless car running over penetration to the later seasons, where she works with Russian police and takes the then-network standard vacation to Hawaii for an episode.
Pick An Episode And Start Watching
The best part of any of these Murder She Wrote episodes is that no matter the premise, you know what’s going to happen: Jessica makes some observations, convinces the police she can help, she solves the crime, and the murderer is taken into custody. Very, very few mess with this rhythm, which is why this is a “cozy mystery” series. That’s also why, in our snarky modern culture, it’s especially amusing to try and rationalize the sheer number of fictional homicides with reality.
Cabot Cove Is The Deadliest Place On Earth
I absolutely love Murder She Wrote, and consider it one of the finest examples of a procedural ever made, but I also took frequent trips, while the show was airing, to York Beach, Maine, which could be a realistic stand-in for the fictional Cabot Cove. You could go with Kennebunk Port if you wanted something a bit more populous, but trust me when I say that one murder up there is enough to send the entire population into a frenzy (especially if it’s during the winter when the tourists are gone), but upwards of 30 a year?
That makes Cabot Cove the deadliest place on Earth, surpassing Darfur or Constantinople circa 1453.
The Amazing Guest Stars
Despite the shockingly high body count, and the terrifying murder rate among Jessica Feltcher’s old high school classmates, Murder She Wrote brought in a stunning array of guest stars during its run. These include Kate Mulgrew, Jerry Orbach, George Clooney, Courteney Cox, Bryan Cranston, Linda Hamilton, and even Joaquin Phoenix, among many others. Through it all, though, is Angela Lansbury, appearing in every single episode and bringing an unbelievable amount of wit and charm to every scene.
The Greatest Procedural Ever Made
REVIEW SCORE
I have fond memories of watching Murder She Wrote growing up, but today, as a jaded adult who has consumed far too many procedurals, I can appreciate the show on a whole new level for doing so much, with so little and having an unwavering sense of what it is even as the world changed around it. I dare say that, all snark aside, this is the best procedural ever made.
If it’s been a while, go enjoy the travels of Jessica Fletcher, the Angel of Death, on Amazon Prime Video and Peacock.
