User reviews

8.2 stars.

I am beginning to get a little nervous because I just watched the 5th film, which I feel is the best one so far. Don't get me wrong, the first 4 films were all quite delicious little mysteries. I am simply dubious about nearing the end of the journey because there are some blatantly pessimistic opinions of the 7th film.

What's so gratifying about 'Mystery 101' is if you get a pen and paper and jot down all the minutia and press pause every 10 minutes or so, then try to figure out whodunnit, you will have a jolly good time of it. The writers were careful to leave breadcrumbs at every turn, and it's an exciting mystery expedition. A couple of the episodes seemed somewhat obvious, but most were like a jigsaw puzzle and I had a lot of fun. I had a hunch who the killer was in #5, but I couldn't make a case for this person until I started tallying each "insignificant" detail to form a complete picture. Looking back, I realized by the end of the 2nd film I was hooked. Now the 5th film is completed and I can honestly say this has scratched the mystery itch sufficiently enough that I have no need to grab a mystery novel neatly tucked in my bookcase between several other juicy mystery novels.

I've seen a few of the Hallmark mystery series, and some of the movies as well, and 'Mystery 101' is the best of the bunch so far. I'm writing this in April 2023, so who knows if something better has come along since. I just saw 'The Cases of Mystery Lane', which I found to be decent, but does not hold a candle to 'Mystery 101'. I haven't tried Aurora Teagarden because many of the reviews are dissuasive, however it sounds like I should watch at least the first several and then quit while I'm ahead (according to several critics).

I don't understand the negative assessments of 'Mystery 101', what are these nay sayers looking for? This show is well written and while it fits the same formula and contains most of the clichés, it retains its status as upper class Hallmark mystery pleasure.

I love the chemistry between the leads. I also love Amy's father. He is great in his role. As far as people being offended Jill was pregnant, good grief. This is not a romance novel but I didn't notice she was pregnant. I was actually concentrating on the words coming out of her mouth and her facial expressions. If you don't like to see a pregnant woman acting, just pretend she gained a little weight. Welcome to the 21st century!

I've seen tons of Shows where a woman's pregnancy needed to be disguised. The Lawrence Welk show was outstanding in doing this. Now, I'm pleased for Jill that she is expecting, but you could have used locations where the weather obviously needed the coats.

I'm writing this review because I was surprised that some people were not happy with the main character was actually expecting a baby. In Japan, nowadays many actresses and models do work right up until their doctors tell them not to work. Even back in the late 60's when my mother was expecting she was working till a weeks away from her due date. Unless, she was forced to work on a film project there's nothing wrong to work even as an actress. I feel Mystery 101's two main characters have good chemistry and the scripts are not too simple like other murder and mystery series on Hallmark channel. Please, continue filming this enjoyable mystery series!

This series is my favorite Hallmark Mystery series in large thanks to the chemistry between Amy and Travis! loved this one and Jill's pregnancy didn't affect the movie .. chill people, it's 2020! I really enjoyed this one and hope there are many many many more movies in this series!

Once again, the writers surprised me, I did not expect that ending, i'm talking both the guilty person and the final scene (you know). I'm so happy that even after 4 movies they still do. The flirting between Amy and Travis was amazing, all that bulding up was so worth it.

I hope that after Jill's pregnancy and this pandemic they continue giving us this series because it truly is enjoyable.

6/10 - one of the more promising premises in recent HMM history works out to be decently entertaining

A few missteps but overall a good mystery and chemistry. The two leads are GREAT together. When would a cop ever stalk and nearly run over someone at the police station? (face palm) I was very impressed that Mr. Polaha did not rely on the fake stuttering he sometimes does. The conversations all felt real. It was an enjoyable movie!!!! Thank you.

Professor Amy Winslow (Jill Wagner) and police detective Travis Burke (Kristoffer Polaha) plan to go on their first date. New research from young writer Ella Quincy leads Amy to reconsider the conviction of former colleague Mac McKinnon.

It's a low intensity murder mystery from Hallmark. I like the whodunnit aspect but the tension is never that high. There isn't much danger and there are no thrills. The one moment of danger is suppressed with the police car in the background to maintain the scene's safe feeling. The climatic fight has a scrawny nerd going up against the duo and they have the gun. I still like the easy partnership of Wagner and Polaha. It's just not that exciting which is par for the course with Hallmark.

This Mystery 101 film has Jill Wagner trying to get her detective friend Kristoffer Polaha to look into the wrongful conviction of a colleague in prison for the murder of his wife. What piques his interest is his discovery of another case in a nearby town with the exact same method.

If this perpetrator had used another method he would never have been discovered. There's a third homicide but by that time our two sleuths are on the trail.

Average entry for the series.

I like both Jill Wagner and Kristoffer Polaha but I can't get past the obvious pregnancy. I do think all women should be able to work through their pregnancy but in a movie that the character is not pregnant it's hard not to notice. Big scarves, purses, sweaters, and standing behind a podium. I couldn't pay attention to the movie. I was looking forward to this movie because I enjoyed the previous ones.

I love this duo... They have great chemistry and you can tell that they work well together. This was a great mystery that had you guessing the whole way through. It was also nice to see their relationship develop and grow - - despite her father :-) I can hardly wait for the next installment! Hallmark, please keep them coming!

I don't know what it is about Hallmark and casting pregnant women as single romantic leads in their movies - I watched this one because it was more of a mystery than a romance but it really takes away from the romantic interplay between the two leads in the movie. Jill must but at least 6 months pregnant - give or take a couple of weeks and show wore coats, sweaters and did a lot of sitting. I hope Kristoffer makes an honest women of her soon . As for the Mystery = first rate and worth the time to watch - I give the mystery a 10 , and the romance about a 2 - I will never understand Hallmarks casting department .

This was a great movie. Since the majority of people who watch Hallmark are women, I'm disappointed. Should a woman be fired or replaced because she is pregnant? This is 2020. I guess I just expect people to be a little more open minded.

This is the 5th installment in the Murder 101 series on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries. The murder in this one was a bit more interesting & complex than the others in this series, in my opinion (even if I already knew who did it LoL). The moment of the big reveal was a bit more violent than their previous ones. The acting was wonderful, as usual.

Another reviewer said they didn't understand the casting because Jill Wagner is pregnant but considering she was cast in her role WELL BEFORE she was pregnant since there are 4 movies before this one.I just think it's a silly thing to be bothered by. The first movie came out in January of last year (2019). It would be dumb to recast her when they could just cover up the baby bump. Kristoffer Polaha & Jill Wagner have amazing on screen chemistry & I enjoyed how their relationship has unfolded so far. I can't wait for the last installment.

I love Kristoffer Polaha in his romantic roles and he makes an even better police detective. I've grown to like Jill Wagner more lately as a veteran Hallmark actor. And these two have chemistry.

One of my pet peeves with amateur detectives is when they go off on their own and take reckless chances, but this series isn't too bad at this so I can relax and enjoy the mystery. Not to say that Amy doesn't come close to death two or three times in every installment, but that's required for this kind of drama.

I usually don't do well on figuring out who dunnit in these TV mysteries, but in this one, I was leaning toward the real culprit. There were some blatant red herrings and when one gave explanations I thought they were a little lame.

I really enjoyed this one. I wish it weren't so hard to keep track of the order if you don't catch them all the first showing or during a marathon.

I really loved the crisp beautiful shots of the scenery and the entire neighborhood... real eye candy. Kudos to superb cinematography.

I very much enjoyed this movie. The chemistry they have on screen is fantastic. I am looking forward to the next one. And no, the first time I watched it had no clue Jill was pregnant.

This is my favorite Hallmark Series, featuring far and away my favorite Hallmark couple. I found it an interesting mystery with plenty of viable suspects and a method I'd never heard of before. I love the interplay between the characters of Amy and Travis and am so pleased that their relationship continues to grow.

Now to address the nonsense from other commenters about Jill Wagner's pregnancy: first I want to agree with the other commenter that the very complaint is just pitiful. But also I think people should be reminded that Jill Wagner and Kris Polaha are real people who are acting as characters in a TV movie and what they do in their real lives should NOT impact whether they can play a part in a movie. Also the pregnancy wasn't all that noticeable, unless you want it to be. In fact, I didn't realize she was pregnant until the second time I watched the movie (and I still enjoyed it). I just hope this series continues for many, many more episodes!

I'm speechless!!!

By far, Mystery 101 is the best of all HMM mystery series. The plots are well written. Each episode has its own circumstance that it gets harder to guess the perpetrator. Kudos to the writers. The series' casts are well picked. Jill and Kris once again showed their versatility as actor (despite of Jill being pregnant). Their chemistry is awesome. Loved the ending. The attraction between Amy and Travis finally showed up. Cannot wait for the next installment.

A young writer's research prompts the police to revisit a famous murder case that convicted Amy's former colleague at Elmstead, Mac McGinnis. Travis and Amy get a second chance at clearing the professor's name, but that becomes more difficult when the writer is murdered as well.

Travis and Amy team up again to solve a murder - a cold case one - and it's a riveting watch with a seamlessly smooth plot, a striking focus on the main nucleus of the story, it's characters and never failing to keep us interested with its unraveling plot. Mystery 101 is a consistently entertaining series and Education in murder is a great example of the series.

8.2 stars.

This is my favorite episode so far and I don't anticipate any surpassing it. I can't put a finger on why this is my favorite, but the ambience and adrenaline were higher than usual. While this sort of mystery series doesn't really get my adrenaline pumping, this episode was the closest to it. The reason is that I was keeping up with the mystery from start to finish and had a pretty good idea who the culprit was and I was correct, but not for the exact reasons I had concluded earlier. So while my hunch was on point, the logic was not completely. Putting the pieces together after the fact, I could see some holes in my theory, but that was a deliberate strategy the writer used. Brilliant story in this 5th installment of the series. The supporting cast are all critical in making this my favorite one. I won't go into specifics, but something about all the players makes this a must see episode above the rest.