User reviews

Diagnosis Murder is a series in which a doctor investigates murders thanks to his policeman son. Said so it doesn't seem like much and instead the series was not bad.

There was no violence apart from the murders that were always done off-screen and the actors were able to express a sense of family that made everything pass as a thing between friends rather than work colleagues.

I never watched the show when it was on. But now, catching it on MeTV.. Besides gaining a huge crush on Victoria Rowell, the rest of the cast is also fun to watch. As the show progressed through its run though, the stories became more far-fetched. Dr. Sloane is more of a Hercule Poirot than a doctor. So, the reality of the roles have to be forfeited. However, the show is very entertaining and some are quite suspenseful.

A big fat PFOOOEY for the executives that cancelled Diagnosis Murder! As you can see the show had followers all over the world. I sure do miss it. All that is left now is to watch the reruns. But as we say in Switzerland: As soon as the money-cow can't be milked anymore it is slaughtered. Which means Dick Van Dyke and his staff have served their purpose and are now dismissed. They didn't even get a fair chance to bring their ratings back on track. Just lose some points and you're OUT - no matter who or what you are. THAT's how it works nowadays, baby.

As already stated in other reviews DM had a remarkable wit and humour. It gave the classic whodunnit-tales always a nice and warm family-touch. Especially through the relationship of the main characters Dr. Mark Sloan and his son Steve (Dick and Barry Van Dyke). But it wasn't just a personality show à la "the Van Dykes meet Sherlock Holmes". Every single member of the cast was involved and had his or her big moment.

Oh, by the way: of COURSE you didn't see the doctors doing much work in the hospital, and of COURSE if you saw them in the hospital it had to do with a case they were working on. Otherwise the show would have been called "Emergency Room"... And another thing: I have been watching the series since it was first aired in Europe years ago - and I'm 32. So what's this nonsense about DM being an "old people show"? And if so, would that automatically make it bad??? Really, there are some weird people out there.

I truly hope that there will be a DVD-set sometime soon. This series really deserves a good treatment. And Dick Van Dyke is nothing less than an incredibly gifted Genius!

This show gets routinely shown on tv in Australia. It was clearly trying to cash in the on the success of Murder She Wrote and Matlock. The acting is flat but not terrible and the plots are the typical light fare that the 80s and 90s were known for. Nothing too complex and nothing too anxiety inducing. Dick Van Dyke never fails to shine in any role he's in and without him, this show would be a hard 2/10. It's okay for lazy Sunday afternoons when napping in front of the television. A gentle show with the same 'who dunnit' formula every episode.

Watching Diagnosis Murder I often wondered did Barry Van Dyke ever solve any crimes without the help of his father? Worse than that was Dr. Sloan's solvability ratio better than that of his son the homicide detective?

Despite that Diagnosis Murder was a pleasant hour spent on television during the 90s. Whatever kind of karma was in the air it put Dick Van Dyke noted surgeon at Community General Hospital in proximity of a whole lot of murders. Sometimes it took a trained medical professional to recognize them as murders. Van Dyke just gets dragged into these things sometimes just with mere curiosity.

Van Dyke is aided and abetted by fellow medical professionals Victoria Rowell and Scott Baio. Baio left after a couple of seasons and was replaced by another young doctor Charlie Schlatter. But the formula remained the same, the doctors distracted by homicide solving one case a week and showing up the cops even his own son Barry.

One guy I always liked who seemed in a permanent state of constipation was Michael Tucci, hospital administrator. He was forever on their cases about neglecting their day jobs as doctors, but was always around however uncomfortably when credit was given the staff of Community General for helping the cause of law and order. After all they were Michael Tucci's staff.

This was a fun show and Tucci provided a lot of the fun.

Thankfully as a student I have been able to watch "Diagnosis Murder" for a number of years now. It is basically about a doctor who solves murders with the help of his LAPD son, a young doctor and a pathologist. DM provided 8 seasons of exceptional entertainment. What made it different from the many other cop shows and worth watching many times over was its cast and quality of writing. The main cast gave good performances and Dick Van Dyke's entertainer roots shone through with the use of magic, dance and humor. The best aspects of DM was the fast pace, witty scripts and of course the toe tapping score. Sadly it has been unfairly compared to "Murder, She Wrote". DM is far superior boasting more difficult mysteries to solve and more variety. Now it is gone TV is a worse place. Gone are the days of feelgood, family friendly cop shows. Now there is just depressing 'gritty' ones.

This, like Murder She Wrote, is one of those shows, that after a stressful day at school, I sit down in front of the TV, and watch. Why? Because I genuinely enjoy it as it so entertaining and light-hearted, and it's a shame it's not on the air anymore. Dick Van Dyke is amazing as Dr Mark Sloan, a doctor-turned-detective, who with his son, solves murders. He is joined by a largely unknown but very competent supporting cast, namely his real-life son, Barry Van Dyke. Victoria Rowell is also good, but I noticed that every series her hairstyle changes. i also liked Scott Baio and Charlie Schlatter, but I particularly loved Michael Tucci as Norman, and was puzzled how he suddenly disappeared. This show is so entertaining,with great guest stars, it's a bit obvious at times, like Colombo, but in every episode, there is always something to chuckle about. In conclusion, a great series, with two thumbs up and a 10/10. Bethany Cox

This show features Dick Van Dyke as Dr. Mark Sloan, Chief of Medicine at a hospital, who helps the city's police station, where his son Steve works as a homicide detective, solve crimes.

The show had its fine moments during the first few seasons with some good old fashion mystery suspense and detective fare. The opening scene was great and the music theme was haunting and catchy. The acting was mostly fine - Scott Biao, Victoria Rowell and Charlie Schalatter were pretty good, but Barry Van Dyke was wooden and mediocre and Dick Van Dyke just looked like the crime-solver know-it-all. As the show progressed after three seasons or so, I couldn't help but think the episodes concentrated more on how allegedly brilliant the characters think they look in analyzing the cases to the actual crime-solving tactics. Basically, the show was mostly all-talk and less action.

This series also had a habit of throwing in famous guest stars like Robert Stack and Dixie Carter as villains, and then making Dick Van Dyke look like the better star by solving the cases against them. The producers also made the show look like a family affair when they started throwing in Dick Van Dyke's grandsons to guest-star in the series. And, I absolutely disliked when the murderer is revealed in the very beginning of certain episodes, which takes away the suspense and turns the episodes into more of a "look what Dick Van Dyke and team can do" than a murder mystery.

Overall, this is one of the more very average and weaker mystery dramas.

Grade C-

This show seems very much to be aimed at the over 60s/afternoon TV set, mostly people who are old enough to remember Dick Van Dyke from his 60s heyday. Bits of the shows premise resembles Murder, She Wrote, or a really cheap version of Quincy ME. On the plus side it moves at a brisk pace and is certainly fun, but on the other hand some of the acting is terrible, the plots are vaguely ridiculous and most of the police/legal procedures depicted are just plain wrong. Although it was made in the mid-90s it has the look and feel of a older show, and consequently is rather quaint. It ain't exactly Law and Order or House but if your looking for undemanding TV to veg out off on a rainy day this might be your thing! It's no more implausible the Murder She Wrote!

Take one part Columbo, one part E.R. and one part the Dick Van Dyke Show and you get this great show. Dick Van Dyke proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is one of the most versatile actors in the history of television. I think that this is most definitely his best role since Rob Petrie. Also, like the Dick Van Dyke Show, this show relied on a great ensemble. Victoria Rowell, Barry Van Dyke and Charlie Schlatter were great supporting characters in this great show. Too bad its not on the air anymore, I miss seeing it and its wonderful cast.

Just a stilted rip-off of the infinitely better "Murder, She Wrote", it is absolutely amazing that this poorly-written garbage lasted for a full eight years. I'm sure most of the people who watched this unentertaining crap were in their sixties and seventies and just tuned in because they had nothing better to do, or simply remembered its star from the old Dick Van Dyke Show. Van Dyke, who only had a decent career in the 1960s, never was much of an actor at all (by his own admission) and he was already far too old to play a doctor when the series began in 1993. He looks absolutely ancient as a result of years of chain smoking and heavy drinking. His talentless real life son Barry, a wooden actor who has rarely been in anything that didn't involve his father, plays his son in the series.

Why the hell is this rated less than a 6? You don't need a review from me. Fans of the show know what's up. Dick Van Dyke is the coolest dude ever. If you dislike him or Dr. Sloan, you're dead inside. *If you wanna catch the reruns, Hallmark Channel airs them daily*

The premise is that a group of emergency room doctors can take all the time they want to solve crimes and also run a barbecue joint on the side. Really.

I never watched this show in prime time. Then I started watching it on Pax TV at 10pm and I was hooked. Now I watch it in prime time rather than watching Frasier. I love the plots and the tongue in cheek dialogue. I especially love their theme shows filled with old TV stars. I like Dick Van Dyke in this better than as Rob Petrie.

This is decent TV. I've also started watching all the Murder She Wrote reruns on A&E. I'm tired of the hackneyed sex-obsessed teeny bopper shows on regular TV. No-I'm not a senior citizen!

Take all police-crime series you've ever seen, and pick one out in which you were able to laugh and be baffled at the same time. You will only find one, and it is Diagnosis Murder.

The difference between Diagnosis Murder and CSI or NCIS, is that every case is solved in a fun and friendly sphere. The tight friendships between Mark, Amanda and Jack (Or Jesse) or absolutely heart-warming. Every episode also contains a personal touch of one of the characters, as well as a different murder case every time.

Although usually I'm quite good at guessing who did it, in Diagnosis Murder it just isn't always possible.

Now you either love or hate Dick van Dyke, but personally I think every role he has ever played is highly entertaining and iconic.

My final statement is that Diagnosis Murder, unlike many other series is one of the last few family friendly- innocent TV series left.

Old People Show???? I'm 15 and have been watching the show since I was 12, recoding it onto my Sky+ box everyday from Hallmark and BBC 1. I really wish they hadn't cancelled it, they didn't even get a proper farewell. But what an adventure, all those episodes, I think I've seen them all, and not one comes to mind that I didn't like and enjoy.

Its a shame the BBC keep swapping between Diagnoses Murder and 'Murder She Wrote'- Never watched it and don't intend to. Anyways, he characters in Diagnoses Murder are so in-depth, and the chemistry between the actors is amazing. It really was a sad day when they cancelled this show........

I guess I'm one of those haters other reviewers refer to. I'm actually surprised there isn't more than a handful of bad reviews for this show here. I guess other "haters" just didn't want to bother.

For reasons I don't care to explain I had to sit through a couple of episodes. Good grief! Where is the live studio audience when you need it?

I don't know whether this was supposed to be serious or comical. For a serious show it's almost insultingly nonchalant, for a comedy it's terribly corny and lame. Overall it looks decidedly 70's as if the makers were unaware of contemporary groundbreaking series to be used as a template.

Still, it successfully ran during the 90's, there must have been an audience. Yes, probably mostly geriatrics. And the people who happen to like Dick van Dyke, whose name promises more than the guy delivers. And the people who have such a low criteria that they wouldn't mind watching static on the TV for fun. Bless them.

To others let this serve as a warning. This is the whodunit-type of crime series, featuring a jolly old laid-back doctor chap, who, instead of playing golf somewhere in Florida, solves crimes for kicks. He is played by Dick van Dyke who sports a list of traits that compete to irritate the most: fake tan, gray mustache, lame jokes, getting into people's faces with his mouth half-open. If you are spoiled with quality crime shows of the day, as I am, watching this will only drive you nuts.

Ah, another show from the 90s. one of my favs that still gets broadcast through reruns. great show and brilliant acting from DvD

Dick Van Dyke created the original DVD Show - an iconic TV show and then this drivel.

How much does this show fail, even for fiction entertainment? Let us count the ways...beyond Barry Van Dyke's terrible decision to dye his hair: 1. Somehow, residents & dept chief from a major hospital have time and flexibility on their hands to be amateur sleuths, go undercover and physically confront suspects. It's rare for them to see a patient - other than treating each other or family members (illegal & unethical).

2. Without the docs, police detective Sloan (Barry VD) would never close a case & be an incompetent failure.

3. Docs routinely trespass, b&e, once crime scenes, tamper w evidence - so almost every case would be thrown out.

4. Many cases end w geriatric non-law enforcement-trained doctor confronting murder suspects on his own.

5. Scott Baio as an action lead. Again, Scott Baio.

6. DVD frequently breaks the law with no repercussions.

The only redeeming element is the slate of guest stars - good combo of legends & up and coming future stars.

I remember seeing the pre-series TV-movie "Diagnosis of Murder" in 1992, but I didn't watch the Diagnosis Murder TV series until the fall of 1997 (as it was starting its fifth season), when Robert Stack made a guest appearance in the episode "Open and Shut." After that, I didn't watch the show again until January of 1998. That was when I finally started watching it on a regular basis.

Considering the fact that Diagnosis Murder mainly appeals to senior audiences, I joke at the idea of being one of the few twentysomethings who watches it. Nonetheless, it is entertaining. In addition, I consider it to be the most underrated 'whodunit' series, and one of the most underrated TV shows in general.

However, the show's most common error is that many murder victims are declared dead literally seconds after they collapse. In other words, there is little that is done to try and revive them. But that isn't always the case. Sometimes, our heroes make some effort to save them until it becomes impossible to do so.

One interesting piece of trivia is that Diagnosis Murder, which has been on for eight years, has outlasted Dick Van Dyke's other show (The Dick Van Dyke Show), which lasted an impressive five years.

With son Barry Van Dyke as Dr. Mark Sloan's son Steve comes a major advantage: if Barry "mistakenly" calls his father dad while playing their respective roles, then they at least know that it's not a mistake at all. Get it?