"There's a deid boady in Maryhill, Jean !"

paul sloan

Taggart is total murder fantasy land.Lord knows what the body count is for all the series but it must be substantial.It is usually written to a formula of a whodunnit with one grisly murder following another before the killer is revealed(usually predictable). Mark McManus, who played the part of Jim Taggart up until his untimely death,was quite remarkable. He must have been one of the stiffest actors ever, more wooden than a Californian Redwood. Ironically though, he was perfect for the part of the gruff detective with no time for small talk. The show and its formula became such a brand that it kept the name even after McManus and the character of Taggart both passed away.Every possible angle in the twilight world of homicide seems to have been covered but still they manage to come up with different stories though these are appearing more laboured in recent years despite being superb entertainment. So Taggart continues. Who could imagine Kojak without Kojak or Columbo without Columbo ? As long as there are murders in Maryhill Taggart's old colleagues will have a place.

score /10

paul sloan 10 October 2000

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw0217707/