‘Ms. Fisher’s Modern Murder Mysteries’ Recap: ‘Blood Wedding’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Three of ‘Ms. Fisher’s Modern Murder Mysteries’.

Often times in storytelling, love is portrayed in a supremely positive and transformative light and rightfully so. Because when love finds us and works its way into our hearts, the world really does become a brighter place. Where the air tastes cleaner, the sky is brighter and we’re so happy that we believe we can achieve anything with our newfound love at our side. And focusing upon that aspect of love, definitely makes for some feel good storytelling, the kind that makes us appreciate the connection we’ve found, or it emboldens us to continue the search if we haven’t found our person just yet. But while feel-good love stories are definitely crowd pleasers through and through, they sadly provide their audience with something of a disservice, since they ignore the mistakes that we make when we are in a relationship.
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Because love also makes us foolish, to the point where we sometimes do ridiculously childish things when the hardships that come with a relationship come to fruition. Plus, we are sometimes forced to make incredibly difficult decisions in regard to our relationship, including ending it if we come to realize that there is a strong chance our love affair might cause our partner harm down the line and really, stories that take the time to explore those hardships need to be commended. Simply because they’re being honest with their audiences and exploring topics that we normally don't think about... but need to, and that’s precisely why this week’s episode of Ms. Fisher’s Modern Murder Mysteries ​on Acorn TV needs to be celebrated. Since ‘Blood Wedding’ takes the time to spotlight both of those more difficult aspects of love in a frank and earnest manner. 

A feat that this story accomplishes, by sending James and Peregrine to James’ old stomping grounds to solve a murder involving a house hand (named Eddie) at his father’s estate and well, this particular mystery is what allowed for the series to explore why a person would break off a love affair, in a supremely creative manner. By first making it appear as though Eddie perished out of jealousy revolving around a love triangle since a bride-to-be was involved with him. But instead, it was revealed that the Eddie came to learn that the woman, he loved… was his half-sister. Prompting him to end it regardless of his feelings because of the problems and pain that such a revelation might cause the both of them. Making it clear that really caring for a person sometimes involves letting them go when the circumstances call for it, and oddly enough, that discovery also led to his death. For he stood to inherit a fortune as a member of the bride’s family, adding another theme into the mix, specifically… that money also drives us to do horrible things. 

As for the other love related theme we mentioned a moment ago, well that was handled by both Peregrine and James in this particular tale. Because Detective Steed was still reeling over the fact that Peregrine suspended their engagement and that put him in quite the bitter place. One where he was so hurt and so confused that he was unable to communicate his feelings for her properly and instead reverted to childish and boyhood behavior to express himself. Which is something that stunned Peregrine, since she was trying desperately to explain that this wasn’t the end and that she simply needed time to process all of this and well, while this part of the story was indeed frustrating, since we know these two are simply mad for one another… this was quite realistic. Because when we are deeply in love with someone and eager to spend every waking moment with them, it can blind us to their needs and wants since we are only answering to the heart at that point and well… the heart can definitely make us dumb. 
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However, that being said, it most certainly doesn’t excuse James’ behavior here. Because he’s better than that and Peregrine deserves better, and clear lines of communication and he needs to take a step back and provide her with just that. But while we wait to see if James can be as progressive as his love, we can bask in one fascinating tale. One that really did offer up quite the mystery since it kept us guessing at every turn before finally offering up its phenomenal reveal and of course, it really did provide us with some incredible musings on matters of love. The kind that really do motivate the viewer to ponder upon their own love life, both past and present and question whether or not we’re being a classy Peregrine, or a fussy James and throwing that into the mix really does make this a special episode. Since murder mysteries and crime dramas rarely challenge their audience in this manner and well, that little surprise and the quality story present here, definitely leaves one eager for more. So, we can see what other storytelling surprises, season two of this magnificent series… has in store for us. Until next time.

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