User Reviews

Love detective mystery dramas, particularly those from the UK and US ('Inspector Morse', 'A Touch of Frost', 'Foyle's War', 'Inspector George Gently', 'Midsomer Murders', 'Law and Order', 'Criminal Minds', 'Monk' and 'Murder She Wrote' for examples,, and non-English/American ones (i.e. The Swedish 'Wallander' and the Danish 'The Killing') also fascinate me.

'Inspector Montalbano' is one of the best and most entertaining examples. It is not easy breathing freshness into a well-worn genre but 'Inspector Montalbano' manages to do so with aplomb. Watching 'Inspector Montalbano' is like eating a delicious Italian meal that immensely satisfies and leaves you wanting more. There may be very familiar tropes, but in a way it's inevitable and doesn't detract from the enjoyment at all.

Regarding "The Terracotta Dog", there are other 'Inspector Montalbano' with consistently clearer plots and at times the episode is a little too exposition-heavy. "The Terracotta Dog", even though not quite as good as the previous three episodes, all excellent, is still very good.

As always with 'Inspector Montalbano', "The Terracotta Dog" is beautifully shot and the scenery is stunning, making those who've never been to Italy want to book a holiday there as soon as possible and is a treat for anybody who loves all things Italian. The music is never over-bearing or low-key with a nice atmosphere and flavour, a lot of it is very cleverly used. The sound effects are remarkably authentic.

Writing is taut and tight, there are as always humorous moments and very human drama but standing out every bit as much is the tension (particularly the shoot-out sequence). The subtitles are not hard to follow and the story is mostly compelling and atmospheric, suitably challenging the viewer with some suitably twisty elements while still being logical and mostly not being hard to swallow.

Characters may be stereotypes but well-written ones, especially one of the most fascinating foreign detective mystery dramas titular characters there is to me and the scene-stealing Catarella (hilarious comic relief but more than that). The supporting characters intrigue too.

Acting is terrific, especially from Luca Zigaretti who is a treasure in the title role. Angelo Russo's comic timing is a refreshing and always perfectly timed joy and the supporting cast are strong. Katharina Bohm is just as good here as she was in the previous episodes and Peppino Mazzotta relishes his role again.

Overall, very good if not as great as the previous episodes and there were better ones since too. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Revolving round a plot of two long-interred bodies, a terracotta dog, some obsolete money and possible Mafia links, this episode of INSPECTOR MONTALBANO comes across as slightly confusing in terms of plot- construction. For the first hour, it seems that the resolution will have a lot to do with the Mafia, or at least some secret organization that appears to have faked a robbery at a local supermarket, forcing some of the plotters involved to invent an elaborate cover-up story. Montalbano finds out the truth behind it; that it involves a good deal of arms smuggling. However the terracotta dog plot has a lot to do with star-crossed lovers, neither of whom appear to have possessed any links to a secret organization. Eventually Montalbano has to stage a ruse in order to flush out the one person who can tell him the truth about the lovers' fate. Unlike other episodes, there are too many expository scenes in which characters recall the past while talking to the Inspector. The action remains largely undramatic save for a shoot-out sequence where the Inspector is seriously wounded and has to spend some considerable tine recovering in hospital.