'Inspector Morse' is one of my all-time favourites, along with Agatha Christie it was the series that made me a fan of detective/mystery and of John Thaw. Also like 'Lewis' a great deal, though do vastly prefer the earlier seasons. Have loved 'Endeavour' ever since it first started, especially Seasons 1-3. As said many times before, as a prequel series it treats 'Inspector Morse' with immense respect and love while with enough of its own style to set it apart and not be too derivative.
Will admit to feeling slightly disappointed by Season 6. Not because the episodes have been terrible, actually they have all been solid with many exceptional qualities. It just is not quite up to the consistently higher standard of particularly Seasons 1-3, though Seasons 4 and 5's episodes are solid to wonderful too though not as consistent. Although some may disagree (as some episodes are more divisive), for me there is not a bad episode of 'Endeavour', and certainly do not consider "Pylon", "Apollo" and "Confection" of Season 6 bad either while having problems with all three. It is hard to say which is better between "Apollo" and "Confection", both have similar problems, though "Apollo" is not as "derivative" feeling, but "Confection" has more emotion and little character moments.
"Confection" is lesser 'Endeavour', like "Apollo". It is still a solid, well above episode with many qualities actually being exceptional, but as 'Endeavour' most of the time is much better than solid and above average and actually being brilliant much of the time it was disappointing in that respect. It is also interesting for its change of pace feel, a darker tone and for having one of the highest body counts of any 'Endeavour' episode.
Again, some of the story writing is patchy. Like "Apollo", there could have been a few less characters and the story could have been more focused with not as much going on. That way, the storytelling would have had more clarity and things developed more, as some parts were on the over-complicated side.
More especially could have gone into the explanations of who committed the killings and why, they were very interesting, clever and mostly surprising (figured the truth behind the poison pen letters too early though) but felt rushed and could have gone into depth more. Others have commented on "Confection" not feeling as much of an 'Endeavour' episode, feeling more serious 'Midsomer Murders' and being indebted closely in places to Agatha Christie.
On the other hand, "Confection" scores highly in many areas. Nothing can be faulted with the production values. It is exquisitely filmed, muted in use of colour yet never cheap as it is a perfect look for a mystery/thriller set in post-war Britain, and the idyllic and atmospheric setting is beautifully evoked. There is something very nostalgic and charming about the atmospherically evoked 1960s period detail. As always, the rest of the music is hauntingly beautiful with the way it's utilised never in question, the iconic 'Inspector Morse' theme will forever be immortal and it has always been a genius move to use it for 'Endeavour'. Would have liked more classical music featured, the most effective use being with "Casta Diva" from 'Norma', but nothing here jars like the use of Led Zeppelin did in the previous episodes. The writing is intelligent and thought-provoking, with some nice tension and moments of welcome and not jarring levity. Loved the conversation between Strange and Max, the highlight being Max's puke witticism.
The darkly elegiac tone of the previous two episodes is also seen in "Confection", with again some nice tension and poignancy. Am really liking what the season is doing with Strange, all the time getting more interesting, and Bright here bags the emotional moments with his heart-breaking and very relatable subplot, notably the dinner scene (tears welling up even thinking about it). Morse and Bright also have some nice scenes. Can never get enough of the dynamic and chemistry between Morse and Thursday, always one of the best elements of 'Endeavour', especially apparent in Thursday's date rebuke and Morse's shocking response. That is also one of the highlights of Shaun Evans' ever charismatic and never less than committed acting in the title role, an ever loyal interpretation without being an impersonation.
Roger Allam is also splendid, love his firmness and sympathetic edge and he has always made Thursday an interesting character. One of his highlights, and a dramatic standout of the episode, is the pub scene between him and Box, an unpleasant character yet not too much of a stereotype (Simon Harrison does a good job with him). As the character of Bright, Anton Lesser has never been as poignant or as understated as he is here. The supporting cast are also fine, if not up to the same level as the regulars.
Altogether, solid but disappointing. Not quite delicious but edible enough. 7/10
