Murder, She Wrote: Murder in the Electric Cathedral

December 27, 2014 11:06 AM - Season 2, Episode 16

Jessica Fletcher is traveling through Oklahoma and stops to see her old friend, Carrie McKittrick, who is now an oil barrenness. The aging widow has drawn up a new will, leaving nothing to her son Harvey and grandson Sam and everything to a televangelist, Rev. Willie John Fargo's Electric Cathedral. Just after Jess arrives, Carrie's relatives confront her about the new will, which leads to her having a heart attack that hospitalizes her. While in the Electric Cathedral's hospital, Carrie dies, but it looks unnatural. Signs point a little too conveniently to Willie John, with additional suspicion on Sam, putting District Atty. Fred Whittaker in a tight spot between two powerful local forces. Can Jessica figure out the facts from the fakes?
posted by filthy light thief (2 comments total)

I love how in the freeze frame at the end, Jessica's expression is this benevolent half smile that fully conveys how very much she is telepathing: "You are so full of crap! You are referring to entire populated continents as SIMPLE PEOPLE? Really? Oh, good luck out there, you fool. You're going to need it."

Also notable: There's a wake, and she's wearing royal blue when everyone else is in wall-to-wall black. She didn't pack for a funeral. I liked that, for continuity.

The lady showing up with the crazy pink and blue hair and party dress threw me until Jessical unraveled the solution.
posted by mochapickle at 8:17 PM on January 4, 2015 [1 favorite]

You know, as someone who watches Murder She Wrote on both the "God, I honestly love this show" level and the "Remember the 80s as a really different time" level, you'd think I'd get more pleasure out of an episode that involves hypocritical televangelists, a solution that involves spray-on hair dye, and Barbi Benton as sexpot nurse. And I did. But I can never get past the innocent old lady gets murdered beginning to really enjoy it.

When I saw the credits for this one, I was sure that Richard Herd would play the televangelist since he has the biggest Jerry Falwell vibe this side of Richard Paul.

Speaking of 80s fun, Herb Tarlek!
posted by MCMikeNamara at 1:48 AM on January 5, 2015