Writer:Various
Director:Lou Antonio, Richard Compton, Terrence O’Hara, Farhad Mann, Michael Lang
Cast:Dick Van Dyke, Victoria Rowell, Barry Van Dyke, Michael Tucci, Delores Hall, Charlie Schlatter
Rating:Not Rated
Studio:CBS and Paramount Studios
Release Date:December 4, 2007

When I picked up Diagnosis Murder - The Third Season and put it into the player, I honestly wasn’t expecting much. Don’t get me wrong, Dick Van Dyke is an impressive actor and has done many great things. Diagnosis Murder just didn’t seem like my kind of show. I never watched it when it was on television. It’s just one of those things that I would pass by on my way to something else. I had no problem watching the show, as I try to be open-minded, but I just wasn’t expecting to be enthralled by anything I saw.

Come to find out, I wasn’t all that enthralled. It was decent. I have certainly seen worse things on television. When I was younger, I probably even liked those worse things. Diagnosis Murder works on a limited basis for a set niche of people, but it’s not an every person kind of show. For those that like this type of show, they will love it. The others might be able to sit through it, but it won’t be the type of thing they are clamoring to make part of their collection.

Release Information:
The first episode of Diagnosis Murder aired on October 29, 1993. The show, which was about a doctor that was also a consultant for the police department, was quite successful. This allowed it to remain on the air for eight seasons. Now, the show is being released on DVD so that fans can make this part of their collections. Diagnosis Murder - The Third Season was released today, December 4, 2007. This set includes all of the season three episodes. This set can be purchased on Amazon for $44.99 with free shipping.

The Diagnosis Murder - The Third Season Plot
Diagnosis Murder is a series that stars Dick Van Dyke as a physician who also helps to solve crimes. In its simplest form, the show resembles a B-movie. You can watch it with ease, but when it’s over you are really no better or worse for watching. It’s important to note, before we go any further, that Diagnosis Murder was as watchable as I mentioned, because of the presence of Van Dyke. Dr. Sloan was originally a character on Jake and the Fatman so you could consider this a spinoff if you wanted to get technical.

Diagnosis Murder is set in LA, where Dr. Mark Sloan attempts to solve crimes committed by LA’s worst criminals. Sloan, in addition to being a crime fighter, is also the chief of Internal Medicine at Community General. Sloan got involved with crime fighting thanks to his son Steve (Barry Van Dyke). Steve is a homicide detective, who lives with his father and often brings him into to help with the medical information that comes up in his investigations. As you can guess by the name, Barry and Dick are a real life father and son team, so this portion of the show was likely pretty easy for them.

Other essential characters include pathologist Amanda Bentley (Victoria Rowell), fellow Doctor and eager resident, Jesse Travis (Charlie Schlatter), and hospital administrator Norman Briggs (Michael Tucci). Many of the characters have no true purpose and are just there without excitement or reason.

My main problem with the show is that it’s a mystery show. Unfortunately, things are easy to figure out. I had no problem figuring things out when it came to the plots and mysteries for Diagnosis Murder. Granted, some of the mysteries are more interesting than others, still most are too easy to figure out and do not include any type of strong acting ability to pull off what little plot is there.

I have always been a fan of Van Dyke, so in many ways it was depressing to see him pulling this dead weight of a show. He has a way of being charming and lighting up the screen though those moments are few and far between. There are some guest stars that you won’t remember and some storylines that are not worth mentioning. The guest stars that do come to mind include Dixie Carter, Jeri Ryan, George Hamilton, and Christina Pickles.

Diagnosis Murder will fill a limited need for audiences looking for Nancy Drew type mysteries. If you’re not that guy/gal, you might be able to watch it, but it will never be something that you love.

Storyline/Plot:
Replayability:
Acting:
Directing:

Audio/Visual:
The season three box set of Diagnosis Murder comes in a full frame format with an aspect ratio of 1.33:1. The video seems on the soft side. The sharpness that comes with newer sets just isn’t there. The video is watchable with little problems, but is hardly worth writing home about. The same can be said for the audio. The Dolby Digital stereo works, but is otherwise like the rest of this set - bland.

Visual:
Audio:

Bonus Features:
There is not a single special feature in this box set.

Bonus Features:

Bottom Line:
Diagnosis Murder is not good television, though for some it may be feel good television. It’s fluff that was only saved by the fact that Dick Van Dyke was a principle player. Even then, the results weren’t as good as they could have been. If you’ve never seen this show you will definitely want to rent it before buying. You might just find that it’s not worth wasting the money on a purchase.

Overall Rating:

Technorati Tags: Diagnosis Murder, The Third Season, DVD Box Set, Television Show, Dick Van Dyke, Drama, TV Box Set Review

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!