Part two of my session of posts on Diagnosis Murder.
In this post I intend to tell you about my personal favourites, the episodes I feel are the five best episodes over all 8 series, it was difficult because there are so many brilliant episodes of the show.
5. Season 8: Episode 11: Less Than Zero
Now I don't want to jump on a morality wagon, this is the first favourite your reading about in my countdown and I don't want to put you off the rest but there is a special reason I have chosen this one. Less Than Zero is an episode that deals with an issue still relevent even today, the issue of Size Zero. A Young girl turns up in the ER and dies from anorexia. Her younger sister is determined to follow in her footsteps and collapses herself, meanwhile Steve has begun dating a food critic who is a happy healthy size 16 (at a guess), lovely beautiful but she is far from being a size Zero, when one of Steves male collegues makes a jibe he immediatley puts him in his place. The show ends with Steves girlfriend explaining that she can teach the younger sister how to eat healthy and proove that she can still look fabulous and have a wonderful life. I just think the episode deals with a really important issue in a brilliant way, it doesn't force it down your throat and have one of the main characters immediatley falling in love with a 'fat girl'. Steve does get a girlfriend in this episode but Steve has had many girlfriends over the seasons of many different shapes and sizes in fact one of the first girlfriends he had on the show in the 90's was a rather buxom very well endowned, very beautiful young woman. This in itself shows the trending fashions of weight issues.
This is why LessThan Zero is my number 5. :)
4. Season 2: Episode 2: A Very Fatal Funeral
What I love about this episode is that we get a real sense of friendship from the group towards Norman. Norman Briggs is one of those sub-characters he doesn't get as much screen time as our main four, nor does he get involved in solving many murders, and so far over the first two seasons we have seen him the butt of many of Jacks and indeed most of the hospitals jokes. This episode sees Noman on a charity board at the hospital, one of the members has been embezzling money, and just as the head member is about to tell us who did it he is killed. From then on at his funeral and each thereafter one of the members is killed. This understandably means the suspicion falls (Not from Dr sloan mind you) to Norman. What I love about this episode is the tender moment we see between Jack and Norman all the way through the episode Jack winds Norman up and rather upsets him, it isn't until Jack is flicking through Normans year book and Norman resigns that jack begins to really appreciate Norman as a friend. The moment is just one of many lovely moments from the series that are so tender.
3. Season 6: Episode 18: Never Say Die
This episode is good becuase of several reason it feature not just two but six Van Dykes, our regulars Dick and Barry and then barry's four children. The episode centers around a boxing club, one of the boxers die after having his drink spiked and the suspicion falls on Steves 'project' Alex (played by Barry's real life son), what I find quite interesting is that we see father echoing son in this episode when Alex is struck blind after taking a bad blow from Steve, the reason I say this is because in an episode in season 3 Steve is made blind for a short while, and the scenes really do echo those of the previous season. Anyway it's quite nice to see all the Van dyke family together on screen and you can really feel their true realtionship through the screen and can tell they genuinely enjoy working together.
2. Season Season 2 Epsiodes: 20 and 21: Naked Babes and Death in the Daytime:
These two episodes tie in at number 2. Yes there is a reason for that. If my memory serves me well, these were two of the first episodes of the show I ever recorded on video and when the BBC stopped showing it over summer I used to watch these two on repeat I loved them. Firstly Naked Babes is about the search for a missing woman who gives birth to quadruplets before being kidnapped, the episode also features an appearance from Dwight Schlutz aka Howling Mad Murdoch!! The way the characters interact to juggle the babies is quite cute, its a rather sweet one. Death In The Daytime features the death of a Tv star, Amanda gets invited to cameo on the show and wants to take Dr Sloan with her, the other chracters want to get involved though and quickly the set of the show turns into chaos. In pre final destination-esque style, the actors are nearly killed in freak accidents. Both mysteries are solved by Doctor Sloan but it's the happiness and nostalgia for me that puts these at 2.
1.Season 1: Episode 4: Inheritence of Death
Okay the reason this gets the top spot on my list, is because this episode is genius, it's brilliantly funny and a joy to watch, the episode starts with Dr Sloan taking a phonecall from a patient a very rich patient who believes his children are trying to kill him. When Dr sloan arrives over there the man in question comes rushing down the stairs towards him. Dead. So ensues a murder investigation, theres something vaguely familar about all the suspects and the deadmen, about the deadmans family that's because, Dick Van Dyke plays not just Doctor sloan in this episode but the Murdered man his daughter and his two sons, It's an impressive stretch of the imagination but one that really works and is brilliant. It also showcases all the characters abilities, it tells you abit about Jack and his gangster upbringing, Amanda and her well to do childhood, Steve and his fathers relationship as well as each of their jobs.
Please feel free to comment if you have any favourite episodes from Diagnosis Murder.
In this post I intend to tell you about my personal favourites, the episodes I feel are the five best episodes over all 8 series, it was difficult because there are so many brilliant episodes of the show.
5. Season 8: Episode 11: Less Than Zero
Now I don't want to jump on a morality wagon, this is the first favourite your reading about in my countdown and I don't want to put you off the rest but there is a special reason I have chosen this one. Less Than Zero is an episode that deals with an issue still relevent even today, the issue of Size Zero. A Young girl turns up in the ER and dies from anorexia. Her younger sister is determined to follow in her footsteps and collapses herself, meanwhile Steve has begun dating a food critic who is a happy healthy size 16 (at a guess), lovely beautiful but she is far from being a size Zero, when one of Steves male collegues makes a jibe he immediatley puts him in his place. The show ends with Steves girlfriend explaining that she can teach the younger sister how to eat healthy and proove that she can still look fabulous and have a wonderful life. I just think the episode deals with a really important issue in a brilliant way, it doesn't force it down your throat and have one of the main characters immediatley falling in love with a 'fat girl'. Steve does get a girlfriend in this episode but Steve has had many girlfriends over the seasons of many different shapes and sizes in fact one of the first girlfriends he had on the show in the 90's was a rather buxom very well endowned, very beautiful young woman. This in itself shows the trending fashions of weight issues.
This is why LessThan Zero is my number 5. :)
4. Season 2: Episode 2: A Very Fatal Funeral
What I love about this episode is that we get a real sense of friendship from the group towards Norman. Norman Briggs is one of those sub-characters he doesn't get as much screen time as our main four, nor does he get involved in solving many murders, and so far over the first two seasons we have seen him the butt of many of Jacks and indeed most of the hospitals jokes. This episode sees Noman on a charity board at the hospital, one of the members has been embezzling money, and just as the head member is about to tell us who did it he is killed. From then on at his funeral and each thereafter one of the members is killed. This understandably means the suspicion falls (Not from Dr sloan mind you) to Norman. What I love about this episode is the tender moment we see between Jack and Norman all the way through the episode Jack winds Norman up and rather upsets him, it isn't until Jack is flicking through Normans year book and Norman resigns that jack begins to really appreciate Norman as a friend. The moment is just one of many lovely moments from the series that are so tender.
3. Season 6: Episode 18: Never Say Die
This episode is good becuase of several reason it feature not just two but six Van Dykes, our regulars Dick and Barry and then barry's four children. The episode centers around a boxing club, one of the boxers die after having his drink spiked and the suspicion falls on Steves 'project' Alex (played by Barry's real life son), what I find quite interesting is that we see father echoing son in this episode when Alex is struck blind after taking a bad blow from Steve, the reason I say this is because in an episode in season 3 Steve is made blind for a short while, and the scenes really do echo those of the previous season. Anyway it's quite nice to see all the Van dyke family together on screen and you can really feel their true realtionship through the screen and can tell they genuinely enjoy working together.
2. Season Season 2 Epsiodes: 20 and 21: Naked Babes and Death in the Daytime:
These two episodes tie in at number 2. Yes there is a reason for that. If my memory serves me well, these were two of the first episodes of the show I ever recorded on video and when the BBC stopped showing it over summer I used to watch these two on repeat I loved them. Firstly Naked Babes is about the search for a missing woman who gives birth to quadruplets before being kidnapped, the episode also features an appearance from Dwight Schlutz aka Howling Mad Murdoch!! The way the characters interact to juggle the babies is quite cute, its a rather sweet one. Death In The Daytime features the death of a Tv star, Amanda gets invited to cameo on the show and wants to take Dr Sloan with her, the other chracters want to get involved though and quickly the set of the show turns into chaos. In pre final destination-esque style, the actors are nearly killed in freak accidents. Both mysteries are solved by Doctor Sloan but it's the happiness and nostalgia for me that puts these at 2.
1.Season 1: Episode 4: Inheritence of Death
Okay the reason this gets the top spot on my list, is because this episode is genius, it's brilliantly funny and a joy to watch, the episode starts with Dr Sloan taking a phonecall from a patient a very rich patient who believes his children are trying to kill him. When Dr sloan arrives over there the man in question comes rushing down the stairs towards him. Dead. So ensues a murder investigation, theres something vaguely familar about all the suspects and the deadmen, about the deadmans family that's because, Dick Van Dyke plays not just Doctor sloan in this episode but the Murdered man his daughter and his two sons, It's an impressive stretch of the imagination but one that really works and is brilliant. It also showcases all the characters abilities, it tells you abit about Jack and his gangster upbringing, Amanda and her well to do childhood, Steve and his fathers relationship as well as each of their jobs.
Please feel free to comment if you have any favourite episodes from Diagnosis Murder.
Stumbled across your site whilst searching for "diagnosis murder". Glad to see DM get the attention it deserves! Fond memories; the only one of your five I haven't seen is number 1. DM is great comfort TV and likewise must have come across it on BBC1 or 2 when I was off sick. I love the family/friend dynamical between all of the main characters - just watching an episode where they all get blown up and Jessie and Steve decide to buy the BBQ place.
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