Dated or Delightful? Inspector Morse
Thirty years ago this week, television audiences were introduced to Inspector Morse. This popular mystery series spanned 13 years, 33 episodes and earned six British Academy TV awards in the process including a pair for the show’s revered star, John Thaw.
Despite the fact that I have been a fan of the Morse spin-off, Lewis, for years and have watched quite a few installments of the prequel Endeavour, I had never seen an episode of the original series before. So with the anniversary of the program’s 1987 debut approaching, I saw it as the perfect excuse to find out for myself what had made Inspector Morse a ratings phenomenon and a fan favorite for so long. And more importantly, with no nostalgia to color my judgement, would I find this classic show dated or delightful?
After watching the first two seasons, I must say that Inspector Morse is virtually timeless, in the most relevant ways anyhow. Sure there’s some decade defining fashion and hair, particularly in the case of some of the female characters. There are some cheesy scream close-ups and questionable American accents from time to time. No series that remains popular decades later can avoid such issues.
However, if there is one word that encompasses the mood of this detective series, it’s got to be “classic”. From the ubiquitous opera music that accompanies his daily activities to Morse’s 1960 Jaguar Mk II, he defines himself as a man of time-honored tastes. The inspector is also a stickler regarding spelling and grammar and woe betide the author of such mistakes. Mocking is sure to follow.
That being said, Morse is not your traditional copper of old. He’s afraid of heights, squeamish about dead bodies and not very adept at fighting. His tendency towards melancholic self-reflection belies the conventional British stiff upper lip.
And while our DCI really likes the ladies, he isn’t the luckiest in love. I mean what can you expect when he gets involved with nearly every remotely pretty face he meets on a case? He becomes besotted very quickly and, besides being unprofessional conduct, I can’t help but wonder why Morse is repeatedly disappointed when the objects of his affection end up being murderers or victims.
