Hetty Wainthropp Investigates - Complete Fourth Series
The presence of a pre-Lost, pre-Lord of the RingsDominic Monaghan may give British mystery seriesHetty Wainthropp Investigatesan unexpected boost in sales. The show certainly benefits from Monaghan's raffish charm as former shoplifter-turned-sleuth Geoffrey Shawcross, who balances nicely with the womanly middle-class authority of Patricia Routledge (Keeping Up Appearances) as Hetty herself.  Anyone looking for thrills may be a bit disappointed;Hetty Wainthropp Investigatesis assertively domestic. Hetty refuses to take on cases involving murder, insisting they are to be handled by the police--though one episode works in a murder case anyway. A missing woman at a heritage museum, an assault in a public restroom, mysterious barking in the night--these are the simple beginnings of these modest mysteries. This fourth season of six episodes may have lost some steam; the ongoing storyline of Geoffrey and his girlfriend Janet (Suzanne Maddock) has more suspense than the crimes under investigation. But fans of the series will most certainly continue to enjoy it, precisely because of the continuing subplots--Geoffrey wrestles with the prospect of moving in with Janet while Robert (Derek Benfield,Rumpole of the Bailey), Hetty's husband, pursues a career as a cantankerous columnist. The interplay of the leads is the show's true spark, and that's as enjoyable as ever.--Bret Fetzer