A chance encounter with her old friend Michael Hagarty leaves Jessica standing over a dead Bulgarian diplomat and accused of murder.A chance encounter with her old friend Michael Hagarty leaves Jessica standing over a dead Bulgarian diplomat and accused of murder.A chance encounter with her old friend Michael Hagarty leaves Jessica standing over a dead Bulgarian diplomat and accused of murder.
Photos
- Lancaster
- (as John Rhys Davies)
- Officer
- (as Greg Barnett)
- Man
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaDuring one of the scenes at the British spy's hideout, the name Anthony Pullen Shaw can be seen written on a chalkboard. Anthony Shaw is Angela Lansbury's son & the man who directed this episode.
- GoofsWhen Jessica is having her final showdown with Mr. Styles alias The Cobra, she makes the deduction that the postage stamp on the card must be very rare. To which replies: "Unique. There are only two others just like it." But, this is a contradiction in terms, as the dictionary defines "unique" as, quite literally, one of a kind.
- Quotes
Michael Hagarty: My car's downstairs. You've plenty of time to catch your plane.
Jessica Fletcher: Oh, you're very sweet, but I hate to put you to all this trouble.
Michael Hagarty: Trouble? Not a bit of it. But there is one thing. I promised my chief I'd do him a favor, pick up some microfilm from one of our undercover agents in Chinatown. It won't take a minute. It's on our way.
Jessica Fletcher: Grady...
Jessica Fletcher, Grady Fletcher: Call a cab.
- ConnectionsReferences Charade (1963)
- SoundtracksMurder She Wrote Theme
Written by John Addison
"J.B. as in Jailbird" is a very good start to Season 5 if not a favourite episode of mine. Grady's compliance in the plan is not easy to swallow and Debbie Zipp (Donna is pretty pointless here too) is unsurprisingly awful in her one mistaken identity scene with her painful attempts at comic relief.
However, Grady is at his least annoying, least dead weight and actually contributes to the plot rather than distracting from it. By Grady standards this and "The Murder of Sherlock Holmes" are his best episodes by quite some distance. Michael Hagarty returns and it is a joy to see him and Len Cariou playing him so charmingly, cannot get enough of him and Angela Lansbury as Jessica together. Oh and when he gets short with Grady that felt immensely satisfying, being something that was very much deserved and long overdue.
This is also an episode that sees Jessica in genuine danger, even inside the prison, which gives the episode a lot of tension. The reveal is a surprising one.
Angela Lansbury is terrific, as is Cariou. John Rhys-Davies and Maxwell Caulfield are sturdy support and Michael Horton gives his best performance of the series. Only Zipp falls flat.
Production values are slick and stylish as ever with 'Murder She Wrote', even in the confines of a prison cell. 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.
The writing is thought-provoking and amiable and the episode does intrigue hugely.
Overall, very good Season 5 opener. 8/10 Bethany Cox
- TheLittleSongbird
- Sep 6, 2017
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Filming locations
- 766 Vallejo St, San Francisco, California, USA(Central Police Station exterior)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro