The episodes generally feature two cases each, and include commentary from Kenda of his thoughts throughout the re-enactments. This is where Kenda shines. Being able to hear what’s going through an investigator’s mind as the case unfolds is great, especially for writers like me. Even if you aren’t using things as inspiration, his quips and sarcastic comments are sure to make you laugh, even with the not-so humorous content.
Sometimes his wife is featured too, giving you a behind-the-scenes look at what family goes through when being married to homicide detectives and how it affects their home life. In one episode, she even explains how this series came about. After Kenda retired, he was having a lot of trouble sleeping. He couldn’t get these cases out of his head. She asked him to start telling her about them, to just talk about them and vocalize what he was focusing on the most. It helped.
After that, he realized keeping things bottled up wasn’t serving any purpose, and going through these things would not only help others, but would help him to purge those memories that were keeping him awake. Thanks to ID and Discovery, we now have a treasure trove of true crime details to sift through, watching as crimes are uncovered and solved from the first step to the last, at least from the law enforcement side.
Truthfully, if you’re like me, it’s a lot of fun trying to “solve” the case with Kenda… analyzing the crime scene you’re shown, watching as he goes through the evidence he finds and sorts out his prime suspects. Guessing along with him about motive, means, opportunity… until the very end, where the perpetrator is found out and arrested. Then, you know if you were correct or not!
Mom and I tend to watch together, seeing who “reads” the clues correctly, who comes up with the answer first. What can I say? We were never what you’d classify as ‘normal’. Though the cases can be tough to stomach at times, and the details hard to bear, Kenda’s sense of humor and sarcastic personality are really endearing, and keep you watching. I can certainly understand why he became one of the top homicide detectives in Colorado, and why he earned his own TV shows.
After this, try American Detective with Lt Joe Kenda, and Homicide Hunter: Never Give Up.
Sometimes his wife is featured too, giving you a behind-the-scenes look at what family goes through when being married to homicide detectives and how it affects their home life. In one episode, she even explains how this series came about. After Kenda retired, he was having a lot of trouble sleeping. He couldn’t get these cases out of his head. She asked him to start telling her about them, to just talk about them and vocalize what he was focusing on the most. It helped.
After that, he realized keeping things bottled up wasn’t serving any purpose, and going through these things would not only help others, but would help him to purge those memories that were keeping him awake. Thanks to ID and Discovery, we now have a treasure trove of true crime details to sift through, watching as crimes are uncovered and solved from the first step to the last, at least from the law enforcement side.
Truthfully, if you’re like me, it’s a lot of fun trying to “solve” the case with Kenda… analyzing the crime scene you’re shown, watching as he goes through the evidence he finds and sorts out his prime suspects. Guessing along with him about motive, means, opportunity… until the very end, where the perpetrator is found out and arrested. Then, you know if you were correct or not!
Mom and I tend to watch together, seeing who “reads” the clues correctly, who comes up with the answer first. What can I say? We were never what you’d classify as ‘normal’. Though the cases can be tough to stomach at times, and the details hard to bear, Kenda’s sense of humor and sarcastic personality are really endearing, and keep you watching. I can certainly understand why he became one of the top homicide detectives in Colorado, and why he earned his own TV shows.
After this, try American Detective with Lt Joe Kenda, and Homicide Hunter: Never Give Up.
