The tradition of older women sleuths is well established, with the footing firmly established by Miss Marple and her twin on the other side of the Atlantic, Jessica Fletcher. In both the print and film world, it's a tradition to be appreciated, giving as it does a chance for mature women to appear as strong, interesting characters, rather than just settling into grannyhood with a sigh. The British series Hetty Wainthropp Investigates, here appearing in its second season, is a likable and nicely constructed entry in that tradition. Patricia Routledge is well cast as the title character, a modern and believable twist on the "little old lady" sleuth.

Right from the start of Series 2, it's clear that Hetty Wainthropp Investigates gets one thing right: rather than setting her up as an amateur sleuth in the Marple/Fletcher tradition, with all the reliance on coincidence that would ensue (you start to wonder how these ladies ever got invited to anyone's party, given the probability that someone else on the guest list would drop dead before the night was over), Hetty runs her own private-detective agency. It's a small one, to be sure, with her husband Robert (Derek Benfield) and befriended teenage assistant Geoffrey (Dominic Monaghan) as the rest of her staff. But it's nonetheless a detective agency, so we can get the plots rolling by virtue of other characters coming to Hetty with their problems and mysteries, instead of having to set up contrived situations for Hetty to stumble upon the plot.

It's also nice to see the variety of mystery plots presented here, since a steady diet of murder mysteries can get cloying or oppressive (a problem that Midsomer Murders struggles with on a regular basis, for instance). The six episodes in the second series give us a mix of all sorts of crimes or suspected crimes. "Poison Pen" calls on Hetty to track down the author of hateful letters that have been sent out to many of the people in a small village. In "Lost Chords," Hetty's mission is to figure out what's causing a group of vocalists to lose their voices: an interesting kind of sabotage, to be sure. "Not All There" (alternate title: "Runaways") features a missing person instead of missing voices, as Hetty is hired to track down a girl, but without any publicity or police involvement. Hetty goes undercover again in "The Astral Plane," posing as a widow in order to expose the fakery and blackmail of a supposed spiritualist. "A Rose by Any Other Name" puts Hetty on the trail of a man who may, or may not, be planning on marrying just for the money. The set finishes up with the serious "Woman of the Year," in which Hetty sets out to find the informer who has given out the confidential address of a battered women's shelter.

As I noted, the mix of mystery types helps make the episodes interesting as well, though the plots of those mysteries aren't always developed in the most logical or convincing manner; don't look for Poirot-quality puzzlers here. Still, there's no doubt that Routledge does an excellent job as Hetty Wainthropp, giving us a convincing and realistic portrait of an intelligent, individualistic woman who decides to do something interesting with her life instead of sitting around getting old. There's a touch of character-based humor in the series, but it also doesn't shy away from a darker note on occasion.

The DVD

Hetty Wainthropp Investigates: The Complete Second Series is a three-DVD set, with each disc in its own plastic keepcase inside a glossy paperboard slipcover. Don't be put off by the hideous box art, which makes the show look like a refugee from the 1960s: the show is from the late 1990s.

Six 48-minute episodes are included here, comprising the show's complete second season. Two of these episodes will be new to U.S. viewers, as apparently only four out of the six were shown on Mystery!

Video

The image quality is lackluster: the transfer looks more like something from the 1970s or 1980s than 1997. While the print appears to be free of flaws or dirt, it is quite grainy, so the image looks quite soft and sometimes fuzzy, except in tight close-ups. There's also a faint brownish or grayish tint, depending on the scene, much of the time. The episodes appear in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio, which I believe is the show's original aspect ratio.

Audio

The Dolby 2.0 soundtrack is crisp and clean, offering a quite satisfactory listening experience. The dialogue is clear and easy to understand, and is well balanced with the background music.

Extras

The only special features are text production notes and cast filmographies. I did notice that the episode credits are skippable, which is a convenient feature.

Final thoughts

Fans of British mysteries, especially those who've liked shows involving the character of Miss Marple, will enjoy the modern "retired lady solves crimes" stories of Hetty Wainthropp Investigates. Patricia Routledge is excellent in the title role, though the plotting doesn't always live up to the same standard. All in all, it's an entertaining series.