Difficult.
It has been so well advertised - like a hyped movie - that we are not sure what we are to expect from a Midsomer featuring a new DCI.
Well, let's be honest, the opening was inauspicious.
We are asked to believe - as we have never been asked before - that all the locals know Sgt Jones and are suspicious of the new guy.
And this is taking place in a location that is so obviously Windsor and Eton - so not Causton or Midsomer. (Note to location researchers and directors, the Castle skyline is a bit of a giveaway).
But we certainly had a cadaver before the opening credits - discovered by some local lad essaying a tumble in the hay with a minx from the local private girls' school.
Happily, the plot, concerning Samantha Bond (woof woof!), David Warner, classic cars and a dopey DJ is just bonkers enough to keep Midsomer fans happy.
A nice surprise is the new Barnaby's eccentricities: for one, he pretends to discuss things with his dog, Sykes - surely Harvey from the TV ad advertising TV ads?
He's also immune to the advances of his new neighbours - male and female - and manages to impress Jones, who perhaps will settle down in later episodes.
So, we await the arrival of a new Mrs Barnaby, who, we are promised, is not the patronised, hobbyist, rotten cook her predecessor was.
A promising restart. Keep it silly and we're there.
