Every character on this show is hilarious, and almost all of them make an appearance in this zanier-than-usual episode. The townspeople believe that Bob has murdered his wife and decide to re-enact the crime that they think happened. Among the best lines -and there are many - "you could hear a pig drop" and "blow out the match - your hair looks like hell!" Twenty-two minutes of pure comic perfection. I've watched this entire series multiple times but this episode can still make me laugh out loud. I love the much-celebrated series finale - sheer brilliance- but it didn't have anywhere near as many laughs as "Murder at the Stratley." Check it out.
4 Reviews
One of the very best
chadwick-8695528 June 2023
I happen to be a fan of Bob Newhart: his stand-up; his early TV shows in the 60s; The Bob Newhart Show with that beautiful/talented Suzanne Pleshette, Bill Daily, Peter Bonerz, and Marcia Wallace; and Newhart, with the beautiful/talented Mary Frann, and Tom Poston (another legend).
The entire series was written very well, great/intelligent humor with the style of Bob Newhart, which I never get tired of.
This episode is hysterical: Dick writes a book, "Murder at the Stratley", with "unintentional" similarities to his real life. This gets the inn/town in an uproar when Joanna goes missing. Everyone plays their part expertly.
The humor doesn't stop, almost every line has an intelligent joke in it. The writing and acting were superb. The best episode. I have now watched it several times in the same day, it is that funny.
The entire series was written very well, great/intelligent humor with the style of Bob Newhart, which I never get tired of.
This episode is hysterical: Dick writes a book, "Murder at the Stratley", with "unintentional" similarities to his real life. This gets the inn/town in an uproar when Joanna goes missing. Everyone plays their part expertly.
The humor doesn't stop, almost every line has an intelligent joke in it. The writing and acting were superb. The best episode. I have now watched it several times in the same day, it is that funny.
You Could Hear a Pig Drop
Hitchcoc3 April 2023
It has been established that despite being successful as a how-to author, Dick is really a very poor writer. The murder mystery he has written has a terrible plot and he makes no effort to disguise those upon whom he is basing his characters. When Dick returns late after getting a flat tire in the rain, people ask where Joanna is. She's visiting a sick relative but now the wheels start to turn. I won't go into the details other than in the book the victim (on page six) is dismembered and put in three suitcases. The murder suspect has an affair with the librarian. George's alter ego is about as bizarre as possible. Larry and the boys weigh in as well. And, of course, officer Shifflet shows up to add more stupidity. Oh, by the way, it's pin, not pig, which is an ongoing joke. I will not ruin this for anyone. Don't miss it.
Did I miss something??
spectrx25 February 2024
Ok, so this was a great episode with a fun plot. In short, Dick writes a mystery novel, and is accused of killing his wife, the same way the main character does in his novel. So why did I only rate it a 6? Because of the way the episode ends, or doesn't end. At the end of the episode, major plot elements haven't been resolved, and it just literally ends out of nowhere. So I thought, ok no big deal, it's a two part episode. The next one will pick up where this leaves off, right? WRONG. It just ends with the plot unresolved and that's that. So what there was of the episode, I'd rate like 8/10, but because of the unresolved ending, I'm rating it a 6.
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