All in good time… It’s in my TBR somewhere, and U’ll definitely get to it in the next few months; will be interesting to compare notes when done. Since it’s on my mind now, maybe I’ll get something posted this weekend. To help fill out the time we are introduced to Warwick Davis’ Reverend Wilkie, Jonathan Creek’s self-proclaimed biggest fan. Does every episode feature an impossible crime? For this especially, anything else I have to add will require a little more…framing than that. I hated Carla and the whole thing became rather tedious. The signs are there from the outset that this is going to be a more exciting affair: a big spooky house, a mystery involving several deaths and a Satanic ritual, and of course a delicious sizzle reel for the Hammer-esque films of Ken Bones’ schlocky director Nathan Clore. There was just a horrible sense of cynicism about the whole thing once she came on the scene and I can’t help but feel that it was purely Renwick’s voice on how he felt about having to do more Creek. Suspect X is worth a go too, read it last month and can see why its so popular. Polly is one of the worst characters ever created, has zero personality and single handidly sucks the show of any of its original motive. Yeah, get the feeling that’s been done somewhat. The world of magic was his passion, his life, why does he look back on it with such regret, especially as he draws on his experiences in the past to solve future mystery’s? All in all Daemons Roost was an improvement on the appalling Clue of the Savant Thumb, and the even worse series 5, but it was certainly spoiled by the burning to death of a man for no reason. Alas, we got this instead. All of the elements are in place for a slice of classic Creek, though it takes the titular detective nearly half of the special’s running time to get properly involved. What it did reinforce is what the show has always been about for me, Jonathan and the companion first and their interaction with each other through an “impossible” situation second. Instead, whilst Tyree is slowly recovering, Jonathan and Polly stand hugging each other right on the edge of the trapdoor/pit, like you do, its just so pointless. Why on earth would anyone marry someone who hates everything about you and what you are? This may be an age thing JJ (I was in my late 20s when it started, middle-aged now) but to me this was almost wholly about the tension in the Creek marriage and about how they compromise to make it work – she joined in with solving but her life is put at risk, so he destroys the threat because she and the marriage is so important and he sadly says goodbye to his magic past to get rid of possible future jeopardy. Read about our approach to external linking. "Jonathan Creek" Daemons' Roost (TV Episode 2016) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. I mean, that one with the inverted impossibility when they’re doing the musical version of The Mystery of the Yellow Room…like, what the hell was that? Caroline Quentin took maternity leave and was replaced, though she had since said she would go back if asked. After that I started to lose interest rapidly. In my view, David Renwick is a genius, and either Jonathan Creek or One Foot In the Grave would be an incredible legacy – and he gets to have both. There is no chemistry between Davis and Alexander, when they are in bed for instance, they just give each other a peck on the cheek, Davis doesn’t look like he believes in the relationship, so why should we? We found subtitles for the program Daemons' Roost. Also, I may be here some time now I’ve discovered the amount of Jonathan Creek posts you have on this site. ), but that’s a separate issue altogether, and I feel I’ve already bled that vein of complain pretty dry. Of course, in that episode, we had the dynamic of Maddie and Jonathan, in The Grinning Man, Joey Ross(brilliantly played by Sheridan Smith), is like a breath of fresh air. As for Rik Mayall, he was obviously asked to reprise his character who appeared in The Black Canary for no other reason than the assumption that a popular character will be a winner with fans of the show. The difficulty with so many of the core changes to Jonathan Creek is that they seem to’ve come about through purely external factors: budget. It’s all on netflix right up seires 4 if you have that? And as much as I’d love to see Creek return and be wonderful, I think we’ll be left with this sorry mush and just have to accept it. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. Her stepfather was going to reveal the secret to her, but suffered a stroke and is unable to communicate. For instance, when the daughter of the sister who has assumed the identity of her twin turns up, she realises in an instant, but the husband and daughter of the twin who had died don’t suspect a thing, for years. I think the first series is possibly the best one, the plotting and clueing are impeccable. I can understand him wanting to move on from the magic career angle and his relationship with Adam Klaus, but why do it in such a baffling way. Such a shame if such a great show slowly goes downhill. Thorogood is a very good TV writer, but needs a good editor to help him plot and characterise on the page. You can always rely on the BBC to ruin things. JJ – I’d be interested to see your thoughts on a top 5 episodes list. Why was this necessary? Then, in The Clue of the Savants Thumb, we are introduced to Polly. But then again the question I guess would be why didn’t Creek see that in the first place? On a side note, I really should give Death in Paradise a shot. In this podcast Gerry and Iain wonder how you would casually burn some guy to death with no repercussions. Frankly, I can’t see why they borhered, unless there’s quick money to be screwed out of it from overseas sales and DVDs…. It really feels like the ship has course corrected after the last series, and Daemons’ Roost reminds us how compelling the show can be. One of the less obvious joys of the show was seeing Jonathan make a success of doing something he loved to do. Was Stuart Milligan unwilling or unable to continue with that role? Why introduce a character who only makes a token appearance, and why make her so hostile to everything that Jonathan was and is? Kelli Sae). Jonathan Creek Christmas Special review: Daemons’ Roost Reviews This year's Jonathan Creek Christmas Special proves that there's life in the old duffel coat yet. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. And until they produce more, which I both do and don’t hope happens, I don’t know if I’ve got anything more to write about it…. Yeah, Gideon Pryke at least gave us that “other detective tackles the case” thing in ‘Black Canary’ — and did so magnificently, circumventing almost all the pitfalls and cliches of that gambit — but in ‘Savant’s Thumb’ it’s pure stunt casting. That’s the issue, I guess, with visual media, as it becomes constricted by factors that aren’t so problematic on the page — actors age or die or decide they don’t want to come back, locations are knocked down or change hands and cease to be available, etc, and then this has to be factored into a universe that hasn’t needed to contend with it before. Even worse, when confronted with the sight of your father who has just been decapitated in a terrible accident with a chainsaw, what kind of individual stuffs his head in a plastic bag, and in an instant comes up with a plan to torture her mother with a seemingly unsolvable mystery, and for what reason exactly? Well, that was a bit complicated. "Daemons' Roost" 89 minutes: Sandy Johnson: 28 December 2016 () 7.28: The stepdaughter of horror film director Nathan Clore contacts Jonathan to help her find the answer to the mysterious deaths of her mother and two sisters years earlier. ( Log Out /  Most, if not all of the episodes and specials have centered around mysteries involving murderous plots and a certain amount of premeditation, the lethal floor in Mother Redcap, the descending ceiling in Satan’s Chimney and the nightmare room in The Grinning Man. With his health now failing he has summoned home his stepdaughter Alison, to share with her, finally, the chilling truth of what happened to her family there when she was just a child. The mystery is solved, and Tyree is about to be locked up again, foiled yet again. Why wouldn’t he want to be involved in the show after that? I agree that Death In Paradise is well worth a watch particularly series 1+2 penned by Thorogood, which have some great impossible set ups. I too, regret, that Jonathan switched jobs, as though being a creative consultant to a magician is something a person should grow out of doing. Not only do we find that Jonathan is married, but he has ditched the windmill and is no longer a creative consultant to a magician and is now working in an office. I’m just sayin’, that is a lot of books to choose from…. It just feels like too many compromises and too little time to make it any good. Would really be interested to see your top 5. and the no consequences death of the House of Monkeys murderer where definite head scratchers – at least just lock him in there without burning him alive! However, I would not be surprised if the series limbed on for one or two further specials. There’s a pretty good Top 5 Jonathan Creek list over at The Reader is Warned. Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window), #186: On Daemons’ Roost (2016) and the Sad Decline of Jonathan Creek, Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators, #187: Policeman in Armour (1937) by Rupert Penny, https://thereaderiswarned.wordpress.com/2016/12/23/my-top-5-jonathan-creek-episodes/, #191: Five to Try – My Favourite Jonathan Creek Episodes | The Invisible Event, Follow The Invisible Event on WordPress.com, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. A young woman is haunted by a tragic past in which demonic forces appear to have killed her mother and two sisters. Jonathan Creek series 5 episode 1 review: The Letters Of Septimus Noone, Jonathan Creek review: The Clue Of The Savant's Thumb. Polly did start to warm to the role in Daemons Roost, if she had been more likeable in the first place, perhaps we would not be so critical. ( Log Out /  Even before then…was it The Savant’s Thumb (with Rik Mayall in the motorised wheelchair)? Yup, feels like 20 years down the pan when this is all they can be bothered to produce — and I’m far from convinced that it’s the best they can do, which makes it worse. When Jonathan pulls the lever that opens the trapdoor,Tyree falls into the pit. Haha, yes one can but hope. I enjoyed Salvation, and the trick was just close enough to the bounds of possibility to accept (and bloody clever when you come to pick it apart), but the second half of that book had so little plot in it as to be almost interminable. How did the character behind it, design and build it in the first place, and aren’t there easier ways of getting rid of some on you don’t like? Change ). You have remembered far more of this than I managed. Would be interested to see what you thought of the plotting there! Oh, I don’t think anyone is letting the weaknesses in how poorly Creek finished blind them to the joys of earlier seasons: the first two are solid gold, the third is excellent, and the fourth contains some of my favourite explanations for the seemingly impossible (I know it gets a kicking, but the “message from beyond the grave” in ‘The Seer of the Sands’ delights me to this day).