Jess: “Oh no!” Oh yes, this is gonna be good.
Hey everyone, PushingUpRoses here and today I am delighted to be talking
about one of the most enjoyable episodes of Murder, She Wrote:
Who Killed J.B. Fletcher from season 7. Even though this is from a later season, I give
you permission to watch this one no matter where you are in the show - this is essential Murder,
She Wrote watching. If you’ve seen all the episodes and are now looking for ones to revisit,
definitely put this at the top of the list. It’s a very silly episode, filled
with delightful characters, funny dialogue, questionable southern accents, and cults!
The premise is just wonderful - Jess’s identity is quote,
stolen, by someone, and that someone gets arrested and then murdered,
leading to a lot of public confusion and frustration for Jess, who is NOT dead.
We start out with a fairly innocent scene, it looks like a bedazzled Jess is signing an
autograph for this man with the loud tie. But wait. “Always glad to accommodate my public!”
GASP. I am shook. And I know they revealed this in the intro but I
am SHOOK. And I am not sure what I am shaken about, maybe it’s the outfit or the fact that
someone thinks this is how Jess dresses. I can’t look away now, there’s so much in
this still - earrings or EARBALLS? Is this a badge for winning the ugliest jacket contest?
And also, isn’t Jess’s picture always on the back of her books? Is this guy
just as dense as a poundcake? Oh my god, the back of the jacket… this woman is a LEGEND.
Editor's note: Actress Jane Withers actually IS a legend who did have a flare for flashy fashion.
Check THAT alliteration. Here’s a picture of her later in life wearing the same jacket.
Fake Jessica is on a case, and she uses her thief class skills to pick a lock;
look, I hate to be THAT woman, but this isn’t a lock you can do this with.
Trust me, I am an expert at lockpicking in video games. She proceeds to pilfer
some classified documents, but is caught by Moustache Cop.
She spends a night in jail under Jess’s name, though her real name is Marge.
Her friend Kitt asks her what the hell she was doing. Marge: “What Jessica would be doin.
Crackin’ the case.” Wow. You’ve heard of copycat killers, right? This is the opposite,
this is a copycat detective. I just find this so incredibly unbelievable - understand
that at this stage in the Murder, She Wrote mythos, Jess is an extremely popular writer,
a household name. Kitt: “Jessica Fletcher is one of the pre-eminent mystery writers in the
United States!” It’s like if someone was trying to impersonate Stephen King, imagine that happening.
She confronts a woman who works for McCauley Kennels, believing she is exposing a scandal
that involves cheating at dog shows; unfortunately she was barking up the
wrong tree. (Marge gasps and screams) I know this is a very serious thingie and poor Marge is about
to be axed but can we see that reaction one more time? (Marge gasps and screams)
Our lovely protagonist, Jessica Fletcher, is getting ready to travel home from a book
signing when she sees she has been arrested for breaking into a kennel.
Jessica calls the Sheriff of Bremerton where Marge was arrested. Turns out the sheriff is trash.
“Look if you got yourself one of those split personality defenses that’s between you and your
lawyer.” Yeah so I am looking at my notes here and all I wrote for this is “DICK” in all caps.
He doesn’t believe her, so Jess decides to go to Bremerton herself to prove it.
He asks for a driver’s license to prove it. Jess doesn’t drive but she shows him her ID card,
to which he says the person they arrested had the same one. She proceeds to offer even more
identification in the form of credit cards and other documents. Sheriff: “Listen this is just
paper, it doesn’t prove anything.” What do you mean it’s just paper?! It proves a lot
of things, this guy is just the worst and honestly his hair is outdated, so there.
Jess, being the smart woman she is,
grabs a book from a store across the streets to prove her identity.
Jess: “See? It’s me?” (Clever girl) I love her expression and gestures here, it cracks me up.
The sheriff agrees to change the arrest record. Jess wants to find the person who impersonated
her though. Sheriff: “Stop wasting my time.” Oh no he did not. Jess gives him a look, and he tells
her who bailed Marge out. That’s the power of JB Fletcher, she can convince with only a look.
Jess goes to the address she was given,
finds Kit, and walks into something truly horrifying… (The ladies squee gleefully)
It’s a JB Fletcher cult. Jessica
is life. Jessica is love. Jessica will lead us to freedom. The ladies
show her to the table. Now, let us hold hands and start the seance.
Jess asks what this is all about. Kit: “This is the weekly meeting of the JB
Fletcher Literary society. I thought you knew.” Oh my god the portrait..hahahaha..HAHAHAHA
Jess explains she’s not there for the meeting, but to find Marge. Kit confesses to the group
that Marge had been arrested and used the ID, then Jess asks them to get rid of all of the fake IDs.
You see, they are such big fans that they sometimes like to pretend to solve mysteries,
so one of the ladies printed out fake IDs. Yeah that’s normal.
Jess visit’s Marge's home, but she isn’t there. She checks the paper and sees something even
worse. Jess: “Oh no!” Oh yes. This is like being on the internet and coming across one of those
fake celebrity death tabloids. Jess reads that Marge lost control of her car and crashed it,
and was likely found with the fake ID. After talking to Kitt, Jess says they
should go to the McCauley house, since she was “investigating” them. Ladies: “I’ll drive you!
Oh I’d be happy to drive you Mrs. Fletcher” We’re about 2 degrees away from Misery.
Jess and Kit get to the house, only to crash a funeral. They are told that Simon McCauley,
one of the kennel owners, was killed in a hunting accident. That’s not the weird part,
the weird part is that they are blaming the dog for knocking over his gun and killing him.
They have a brief convo with the insurance agent responsible for McCauley's life insurance policy,
then Kit tries to blend in to the wall to do some totally discreet snooping.
Jess: “Mrs. McCauley.” It’s Mrs. McCurley, actually.
Jess asks the wife of the deceased and the Kennel’s co-owner if she knew about Marge’s death,
and if she had stopped by to talk to her. She tells Jess no one stopped by and implies
she doesn’t know and has never seen Marge. Jess then asks if she has any idea of why Marge would
want to break into their kennel. “No, there was nothing valuable in the office, just paperwork,
stuff like that.” And we all know how the town Sheriff feels about THAT. “It’s just paper!”
The Brawny man also makes an appearance. He talks to Kit and Jess a little outside,
and they find one of the kennel’s trained Dogs with him. Jess asks if he’s a hunter.
Willowby: “In my spare time. I’m with the highway patrol.” I hunt PEOPLE.
I am just waiting for someone at this club to say “Now let’s light the sacrificial candles.”
And I just cannot stop laughing at this portrait - every time they zoom in I just lose my damn mind.
Jess tells the group she’s certain Lisa McCauley had seen Marge because when Jess questioned her,
she said, “Probably just some old gray haired whacko.” But how would Mrs. McCauley know the
color of her hair if she hadn’t seen her. What’s interesting about this is that we, the audience,
didn’t really need to know this because we got to witness this take place early in the episode,
which is kind of rare for Murder, She Wrote. Showing incriminating scenes to
the viewer more directly like this is more of Columbo’s MO, most of the time evidence
like this happens off screen, so I thought this was an interesting change of direction.
Jess wants to find more evidence to prove Marge had been a victim of murder, and the
ladies of the club are enthusiastic to use their connections to assist. “We can help!” Greeeaaat…
I actually really enjoy this gossipy lady club, it’s like an alternate universe version
of the ladies of Loretta’s Beauty Shop back in Jess’s hometown of Cabot Cove.
Jess tries to convince the Sheriff to help her with Marge’s alleged murder,
and he’s not too receptive to the idea. Sheriff: “I know you have a reputation
for solving crimes and all, but right now you’re in my territory” and we don’t SOLVE CRIMES here.
Meanwhile… whoa what is this lamp??? ...Anyway, Jess’s credit card has been canceled because she
is still considered dead. It occurs to her that she needs to call her hometown to tell
everyone she’s alive. She tells her friend Seth to find a way to spread the word. Jess: “Make it
easy on yourself, tell the ladies at Loretta’s beauty shop.” There it is, perfect reference.
Jess borrows a dog from...someone.. To get access into the kennel. Who’s dog is this?
One of the ladies finds an important clue - using her connections to the coroner’s office
she is able to copy the police report. Kitt exclaims that Marge couldn’t have been driving
because her glasses were in her purse when she was found, and she cannot drive without them.
Brawny Man seems to get suspicious about the ladies meeting and interrupts. The
topic of Simon’s death comes back up and Jess presses him on the whole dog
thing. Jess: “Well I have to admit that it did seem mighty odd to me that a dog could
knock over a gun and cause it to fire.” Brawny man: “Oh you never know what a dog might do.
Especially if you’ve trained him right.” You know, he’s not wrong. There was actually an
episode from season one that featured a dog that was trained to “murder” someone;
I wonder if this was a little nod to that episode or if it was just a coincidence. I just can’t
help but think Jess is sitting there thinking “You’ll never believe this but I’ve this before!”
Jess is now thinking that the deaths of Simon McCauley and Marge could be linked.
She secretly reads Simon’s autopsy report and says the injury and the way he was positioned
when he was found don’t match up, and this just irritates Sheriff McDick even further.
When Jess and Kit go to the kennel to pick up the dog, they find some hanky panky goin’
on. Jess makes her presence and her terrible southern accent known. “YOOHOO Anybody home?”
The Sheriff admits that her theory about Simon’s death was right after speaking to the coroner, and
now he’s on her side. He says the current suspects for his murder are Rick, the naughty dog groomer,
and Lisa McCauley, the sexy siren of the kennel. Sheriff: “Rick and Lisa both said they were home
alone during Simon’s death. Wait, hang on. Home Alone, McCauley. Home Alone… McCauley.
Don’t mind me I am just going to sit here and extrapolate WAY TOO MUCH from this sentence.
Back at the JB Fletcher Literary Society, the women work hard to get new evidence,
including just outright stealing blood records and passwords.
Also I am getting Hocus Pocus vibes from this woman’s aesthetic.
Oh wow, this computer setup is… sad. I just want to reach out and help it out.
The ladies learn that Simon McCauley’s insurance policy was bumped up to
2 million dollars just a few months ago, so they believe wholeheartedly
that Lisa McCauley bumped him off for the money and so she can get with naughty dog
groomer. Ladies: “YAAY” - I think Jess’s expression says everything I was thinking.
Jessica informs the Sheriff and he takes it all on board. YOU GO GIRLS.
He goes to interrogate Lisa McCauley and sees bad boy rick,
naughty Daryl Hall-like dog groomer, peeling out of her driveway. Soooooooo… this woman is dead.
Oh. …..nice neglige.
Wow, this is now a triple murder, impressive. Unfortunately everything is now out of
whack - everyone was banking on Lisa being the murderer,
and now she’s dead and Rick is on the LAM. I love saying that for some reason. He’s on the LAM.
This all comes down to a light bulb moment. A literal lightbulb moment. While searching
McCauley's basement, Jess notices a spot on the lightbulb. When they turn it off,
aha! Bloooood. It confirms Simon was killed in the basement, shockingly not by a dog. Now we
also have to figure out Lisa’s death - they find Rick and press him, but he insists it wasn’t him;
he said he found her dead, got scared, and left. Someone at the kennel confirms that
he was there at Lisa’s time of death. Geezus we’re running out of suspects.
Kitt: “Oh Jessica, I am ashamed to say it but I almost forgot about Marge.”
You and me both girl, there’s so many things going on in this episode! The
ladies try to figure out how Marge was tied to these two other murders.
They speculate that she saw something, or someone, she shouldn’t have. HRMMM,
MAYBE it was this figure with blood soaked hands from earlier in the episode. (Marge’s reaction)
Jess asks for help from Jane, who works at the blood bank. She asks to see some donor records,
and BAM! It’s the Jessica Fletcher epiphany moment.
It’s this guy! The insurance agent! Remember this? Kitt: “We took out a
homeowners policy with him!” It seemed so superfluous at the time,
who just says this so randomly, but now we know we - we got some cheeky foreshadowing.
This is a simple case of fraud. Lisa signed the paperwork as her husband and agreed to
split the life insurance money with the agent if he made sure to get rid of him.
That’s the motive. But the true evidence comes down to blood
type - he posed as Mr. McCauley for the life insurance exam - he gave his blood,
which showed up as A+ on the record, but we found out earlier that Simon’s type was B-.
He killed Lisa because 1 million dollars just wasn’t enough. Wham bam, thank you mam. (YAAY!)
He also staged Marge’s death - when she went to expose Lisa for the dog cheating scandal,
she had walked in on the death of Simon, so this asshat killed her.
He didn’t even know her, he thought she knew about the murder and that’s why she was there.
He tries to then murder jessica but Sheriff GrumpyPants had already taken his gun.
Jess has outdone herself this time, she has solved three murders in a town she’s
not even familiar with, all while being dead! Jess: “Oh no!” Incredible. Jess: “Actually,
the real hero in all this…” Is me. I am the hero. Thank you.”
THE END
Okay, final thoughts! Because I pretty much gave my opinions on this episode as I was explaining
it, I don’t have too much to add, but I do want to say that I adored this episode; there’s a
reason a lot of fans and show enthusiasts list this as necessary viewing. It’s star studded,
featuring actresses like Janet Blair, Margaret O’Brien, and Betty Garrett, the plot is very fun,
especially Jess’s ongoing stolen identity problem, I love this weird little fan club even though it’s
veering into parasocial hell, and it’s dense in a good, uncomplicated way. If you’ve been
watching my show for awhile, you know there have been some very convoluted episodes of Murder,
She Wrote. Even though there’s a lot packed into this one, I could still follow it. It’s
the perfect little cozy as well, and if you are not familiar, a cozy is a type of murder mystery;
you can always identify a cozy by it’s focus on characters instead of the actual evidence
and police procedures. This one focuses on the collaborative efforts of the JB Fletcher
Literary Society and their desire to help their idol - though some evidence was shown early on,
the key clues came in at the end of the episode. Cozies also tend to have some
light hearted moments, even humor, because like I said, there’s less emphasis on the murders,
they come across as less tragic than they would in real life. I hope you will give this episode
a watch, I think any murder mystery fan would enjoy it, and until next time… happy sleuthing.
Hey everyone, thanks for watching my video on this wonderful episode of Murder,
She Wrote. If you are dying for more, I do have plenty to show you,
but first I want to give a big shoutout to all of my patrons who support this channel.
If you are interested in become a patron of Murder, She Wrote breakdown videos, do consider
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If you are looking for more love letters to this show, here’s a few more breakdowns I did.
On the left we have the very first Murder, She Wrote episode I did a couple years ago;
it’s even zanier than this episode and on the right is the latest video I did
just before this one. I do hope you enjoy them and as always, I will see you in the next one.