The whole characterisation of Tom Barnaby is markedly different from normal - in the pub "fight" scene, Barnaby displays a degree of middle-middle class food snobbery which you might expect from part-time restaurateur Henry Crabbe, less so from full-time copper Tom Barnaby. Richard Griffiths (RIP) played Henry Crabbe as a "crabby" character, but with a lightness of touch and a degree of sly humour which John Nettles did not bother to bring to this re-characterisation of Tom Barnaby. Best pubs used in Midsomer Murders? Nestled in Oxfordshire, Little Milton is yet another village that makes you question whether you’re still in the 21st century or not.

There are a few positives for "Shot at Dawn". The production values are without fault, the idyllic look of it contrasting very well with the story's grimness, and quaint and atmospheric photography. The music fits perfectly, with some lush jauntiness and sometimes an ominous quality, and the theme tune one of the most memorable and instantly recognisable of the genre. The production values of "Shot at Dawn" are great as usual. The episode looks good and the music fits to the scenery. The acting's fine. Brian Capron is not bad in this episode and neither is Samantha Bond. The most intriguing performance is given by George Cole though...

Tropes:

Why You Shouldn’t Visit: You may get swept away by the scenery and forget you’re in the middle of Midsomer County—a place where the body count rivals the population. Why You Shouldn’t Visit: The Roald Dahl Museum might cast a spell on you. You’ll leave with more books than you can carry. He uses remote control vehicles several times, either by crashing a vehicle the victim is in or using a vehicle to chase someone down. Barnaby and Jones are not their usual selves and it does take too time up until anything compelling happens. The script is a shallow mess with uninteresting characters, ridicolous moments (I agree that the pub fight was childish) and vulgarity. This is one of the first times in "Midsomer Murders" where full frontal female nudity is shown and sex seems to be an endless subject. I was quite disgusted at times to be honest.

Even the leaking kitchen roof scene echoes similar scenes of leaking pipes in the restaurant kitchen in "Pie In The Sky". I could go on, but if you have read this far you are probably having trouble staying awake. The solution to the mystery (Lionel did it) was not clever in any way and is quite obvious from the start as well. Shot at Dawn" was a pretty poor start to Season 11, and is down there as one of my least favourite Tom Barnaby-era episodes (in a list that comprises of the likes of "Second Sight", "The Electric Vendetta", "the Straw Woman" and from memory "Blood on the Saddle") and perhaps one of my least favourite 'Midsomer Murders' episodes ever. It is an episode that starts off with a great opening sequence but falls rapidly downhill. If you have watched several dozen episodes as I have, from first through this one, this is probably one of the worst, if not the worst, to date. Disjointed for most of the episode, with some unintended hilarity if you think about it; in scenes like the tractor scene or the machine gun scene. Donald Sinden, George Cole and Samantha Bond do what they can with weak material, Bond for example having some very stilted and clumsy "humorous and cutting" lines, and John Nettles and Jason Hughes also try very hard to enliven proceedings. As aforementioned, the opening scene is harrowing and poignant and it was a shame that the rest felt like a completely separate episode.

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I have to agree with one of the posters here, this story is probably a retread from another series. What the reviewer said makes sense. I interviewed Peter Falk once and told him that one of his episodes had been done previously on Macmillan and Wife, and sent him the tape to prove it. It's not uncommon

Brother–Sister Incest: Subverted, as the prospect is raised with respect to the newly-engaged Sophie and Will, who are unaware that her mother and his father have been carrying on for decades; Arabella only laughs and says that she's been very careful to ensure none of her children are the result of the affair.Then of course, since there is a feud, there must also be a romance...or two... between characters from the two families. No surprise there. What IS surprising is the relatively explicit nudity, which has not been a regular part of MM in the past. Is Causton England a real place? Causton – the bustling hub of Midsomer where no one is safe from the local drama. As real as it might feel, Causton exists only in the vivid imaginations of Midsomer Murders’ creators. So, unless you’ve found a secret portal to fictional places, you won’t be booking a B&B in Causton anytime soon. How many Midsomer villages are there? McGuffin: Barnaby has proof of who the murderer is in a box, and even refers to it as a “ McGuffin” when Jones asks him what it is. As has been said by me a number of times, 'Midsomer Murders' is one of my most watched and most re-watched shows. It is nowhere near as good now and the Tom Barnaby-era wasn't alien to average or less episodes, but when it was on form or at its best boy was it good. This episode is somewhat overdone with strange gadgets, murdering hay balers, a baguette fight in a pub - it's all silly. Barnaby is out of character, I think because it's a recycle from another show, and Jones is hardly in it.