Murder, She Wrote Tops Streaming Charts 30 Years After Ending

In the 1980s, television detective dramas were dominated by male leads such as Tom Selleck on Magnum, P.I., Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas on Miami Vice, and the private-eye brothers on Simon & Simon. By contrast, Murder, She Wrote debuted in 1984 with the near-60-year-old Angela Lansbury as Jessica Fletcher.

Thirty years after the series ended in 1996, the show is again a streaming hit, topping the Apple TV store. Jessica Fletcher breaks the usual mold. She never worked in law enforcement; instead she is a famous mystery novelist and a retired English teacher. A widow who is outspoken, independent and a little eccentric, she wins sympathy through kindness and uses what she learned writing mysteries to solve real crimes.

Rather than brawling, she disarms suspects with conversation, pieces together motives and clues, then leaves arrests to the police. Most episodes are set in the fictional Cabot Cove, Maine, a small, picturesque town that—despite appearances—holds plenty of secrets and murderers.

United States, Cabot Cove, Maine

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