Seriously the best entertainment to come around in a long time, really

Foyle’s War.

The premise of this series is that detective Christopher Foyle is fighting home front battles against crime while younger men are out fighting the larger war. He is helped by war veteran Paul Milner and his driver, Samantha Stewart. It is set during World War II in Hastings on the south coast of England, and all of the mysteries incorporate World War II events and their influence on daily life.

My mom sold me on the series when she said that both Dean and I would enjoy it — I would enjoy it for the good writing and acting and period costuming and romance, and Dean would enjoy the mysteries and World War II history. She was right — we have both thoroughly enjoyed it, and I can hardly recommend it highly enough. In particular, Michael Kitchen as DCS Foyle is spectacular; there is always so much implied in even his smallest gestures. The research and attention to historical accuracy in every detail is also meticulous and amazing. Many fine actors make appearances (James McAvoy even has a bit role in the first episode.) If you like period dramas like “Pride and Prejudice,” or if you or your spouse enjoy crime dramas like “Law and Order,” or if you have a husband who’s always watching the History Channel, you’ll like this series.

How to find it: Currently the first five seasons are available in four DVD sets of sixteen episodes total. Three more final episodes have been made and aired in England, so I assume they will also be available on DVD soon. I don’t know if you can get them on Netflix (because I don’t have Netflix,) but if you live in Utah County they’re available at the Orem Library. (If you go this route, here’s a warning: They’re cataloged a little bit weirdly — the first and fourth seasons are listed by the episode title, with each episode checked out separately and nothing on the boxes or DVDs to indicate the episode sequence, whereas the second and third seasons are checked out as sets. The easiest way to find them is to search by “Series Title Alphabetical” and then for the 1st and 4th seasons, copy down the episode sequence from the catalog.)

I don’t know what else I can say about this except: get it and watch it! I don’t think you’ll regret it.

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