Quincy M.E. (TV Series) Murder on Ice (1983) User Reviews

Dramatic Yes, but where is the emotion

[vosgesmountains · 7/10 · 17 February 2011]

The locale and set-up are indeed Quincy originals in this thriller and the fact that there is the distant possibility that the writers might off everyone in the cast before an hour is over is enough to keep a Quincy fan glued to the scree.

One problem I have is the lack of emotion the characters have in the murder of their friends. I mean Quincy knows these guys well and their deaths result in little in the way of emotion from Quince or any of the others. Of course Quincy has a crime to solve and he can't be distracted by the feelings that would affect the rest of us. However the normally overly-emotive Emily Hanover should be wringing her hands over these murders to at least the same degree she did when Quincy missed their wedding rehearsal in the previous episode.

Having had a honeymoon of mine own, I certainly would not have been as amenable as Quincy was to all of my old cronies showing up to ruin one of the most memorable weeks a couple has. The fact he clearly does not get any - even getting kicked out of the bridal suite at one point - could only have raised his already borderline hypertension to dangerous levels.

More like an Agatha Christie novel than an episode of "Quincy"...

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 1 July 2013]

Episode 8.19 ("Murder on Ice") is yet another example why Quincy should never go on vacation or to a convention, as whenever this occurs SOMEONE MUST DIE!!! Here, he and his new bride (Dr. Hanover--Anita Gillette) arrive at their honeymoon destination--a ski resort that is supposed to be deserted so they can have peace and quiet. Instead, they soon learn that several people Quincy has worked with on an old case all have been invited there on some pretext. Soon it becomes apparent (sooner to the viewers than the characters in the show) that they have been brought here for some nefarious purpose--and some of them start to die. Could it be that the common thread involving an escaped embezzler is behind all this?

The show isn't bad but loses a point for overusing the Quincy on vacation plot. By now, it's utterly ridiculous that death follows Quincy--unless he is actually doing all the killings!! As for the plot, it's much like an Agatha Christie novel--and instead of Poirot or Miss Marple solving the crime, it's Mr. and Mrs. Quincy. My only major complaint is that the Quincys solve the crime way too quickly and easily--no one is THAT good. Still, at least the show was different--and this is important, as most of season eight was pretty bad.

Quincy channels Jessica Fletcher

[rayoflite24 · 7/10 · 14 July 2015]

Murder on Ice begins with Quincy (Jack Klugman) and Hanover, now Mrs. Quincy (Anita Gillette), traveling to a remote mountain location for their honeymoon only to find that several of their acquaintances have also been lured there under false pretenses by the host who eventually turns up dead. After an avalanche causes blockage of the road out, the guests are forced to stay and try to figure out who is the killer among them while also attempting to avoid the same fate as the victim. Quincy examines the body and crime scene and performs the best analysis that he can manage without all of the usual tools available to him in the coroner lab.

From the moment this episode began, it had a "Murder She Wrote" feel to it and this continues throughout. Between the remote and creepy location where the group is stuck, to the various suspects being identified and confronted one-by-one, and then of course the big reveal at the end with everyone in the same room where Quincy puts all of the pieces together, I truly felt like I was watching Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) in action. In all fairness, this Quincy episode aired in 1983 and Murder She Wrote did not premiere until 1984, so while I can't say that it is a copycat, the similarities are quite remarkable.

One other element of this episode I found particularly annoying was all of the names being thrown around in the beginning as everyone arrives. It was difficult to keep track of and follow who each person was talking about as there are suddenly all these unknowns thrown in at the same time and then they begin discussing even more character names of people that aren't even present! How about some name tags and a flow chart, please?

On a positive note, this episode does embrace the classic murder mystery formula which makes it one of the better ones of Season 8 in my opinion.

"We should have gone to Hawaii..." Excellent Quincy episode.

[poolandrews · 8/10 · 3 January 2008]

Quincy M.E.: Murder on Ice starts mere hours after Los Angeles coroner Quincy (Jack Klugman) & psychiatrist Dr. Emily Hanover (Anita Gillette) tied the knot & got married. After a send off in Danny's with some Baked Alaska & Champangne the happy couple set off on their honeymoon, originally meant to be Hawaii one of Quincy's friends Judge Julian Blake has offered Quincy & Emily the exclusive use of his winter lodge where they intend to spend a romantic week skiing & relaxing in the front of open log fires. However once there the couple find out they are not alone, Deputy D.A. Liz McKenna (Lola Albright), LADP Lieutenant Ken Spool (Robert Alda) & homicide Sgt. Herb Gleason (Dane Clark) have also all been lured there under false pretences. Judge Blake's wife Dorothy (Ann Blyth) is also there & knows nothing of why they have been summoned there, mild curiosity soon turns to terror as Judge Blake's dead body is discovered & with the roads blocked by snow the unwilling guests are stranded with a killer...

Episode 19 from season 8 this Quincy story was directed by Mel Ferber & was the show directly after Quincy got married where he is supposed to be on his honeymoon, but wouldn't you just know it he gets caught up in a complex murder mystery where he is a potential target. Trouble just follows this guy around doesn't it? I have to start off by saying Murder on Ice is a great Quincy episode, a lot of season eight has been really bad with a lot of show's devoted to boring moral issues but Murder on Ice is a terrific murder mystery set in an isolated log cabin. There are several twists at the end which come a little quickly but for the most part this is a really good Agatha Christie style whodunit even down to the end when Quincy calls everyone involved with the case into the living room to explain all the how's, why's & where's to them & expose the murderer. There's also a touch of 80's slasher horror film with it's killer on the loose stalking people in an isolated location style storyline, I liked it & thought it was one of the very best Quincy episodes I've seen & probably the best from a generally disappointing season eight. The character's are decent, Emily didn't get in the way too much but I wasn't sure about the mute servant Max! This is one of those infrequent episodes where the traditional laboratory setting doesn't feature at all & Quincy has to live on his wits as he ends up making a microscope from bit & pieces he finds lying around & performing an autopsy with a razor blade.

The log cabin setting makes a nice change from the laboratory & it's good to get Quincy out of Los Angeles, it's actually a very nice location & the cabin looks great as well. There's a real sense of isolation which was essential if the story was going to work. There are three murders in this although not by who you would initially imagine & the twist at the end isn't that predictable which makes for a nice change. There's also a surprisingly action packed snowmobile chase sequence near the end which at times felt like it belonged in a James Bond film! Murder on Ice is maybe the only Quincy episode where the cheesy comedy moment at Danny's happens at the very start rather than the very end. The acting is pretty good.

Murder on Ice is one of the best Quincy episodes ever, it's a cracking old school whodunit with a twist or two that I doubt most will see coming, in fact at times it tries to be a bit too clever & there's even a snowmobile chase. What more do you want? If your a fan of the show or murder mysteries in general then Murder on Ice is quite simply essential viewing.

Exposition, Exposition, Exposition!!!

[amorehl · 8/10 · 8 November 2023]

I agree with everyone else here who rates this as one of the better Season 8 shows since it avoids the incessant lecturing and moralizing by Quincy (& the new wife), to the detriment of the crime solving the show is supposed to depict. This is one of the rare shows that *does* focus on crime solving. Not sure of the timing, but definitely by this last season Jack Klugman had seized control of the show after ousting Creator & Producer Glen Larson, whose focus was entertainment for the viewing public. But hollywood has only gotten much worse over the years. Viewer entertainment is way down on the list of what they want to present: It falls well below casting overly diverse actors, showcasing alternate lifestyles, and writer's presenting their leftist views and causes as the only right answer to everything.

So, while happily this show does focus on crime solving, my biggest complaint is related to that by another reviewer about all the people arriving and having no way to keep them all straight unless blessed with a photographic memory. Unfortunately, I was not. But to me, the worst part was the *last* 5 minutes of the show where Quincy's exposition comes thick & fast, and impossible to process because he's already on to more circumstance-heavy exposition. Once he was done, I could have thought it through and put it all together, but why bother? Still, way more entertaining than the rest of Season 8. And the best part was Emily's adroit line about Aida and the elephants, that was funny.