All content on this site is copyrighted by the individual authors and may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, without permission.
Murder in Small Town X: Opening Gambits
by Jeffrey Clinard
-- 07/10/2002
We've already seen some interesting player strategies and storylines in the first two episodes of Murder in Small Town X. What do we know so far? Who can we pretty well exclude as a suspect? And where do we go from here?
As the investigation into the Murder in Small Town X continues, more characters are introduced to the storyline, another suspect is eliminated, and an interesting strategy has emerged.
Strategy
To start off, Shirley's selection of Kristen as the next lifeguard was inspired. While she went out early in the game, she's set up what might be termed as the "payback" strategy; that is naming the other investigator sent out as the next Lifeguard. The Lifeguard is safe, and can make the next selection for the killer's game. However, it was even more inspired to see the players foil Kristen's obvious desire to put up Andy by putting him up themselves! This forced her to make a real choice. It would not surprise me in the least if Andy's last will and testament named Brian as the next lifeguard, setting up an interesting cycle.
If I was a player not caught in the cycle, I'd be happy to put up the surviving investigator and force the Lifeguard to select another person from the pool.
Three things can break the cycle. First, the doomed player can break it by selecting a different Lifeguard other than the other black envelope player. Second, the Lifeguard can break the cycle by refusing to play payback. Finally, the team can put up a different investigator.
Strategically, if you are outside the cycle victims, it's in your best interest to keep it going. By conspiracy rather than alliance they keep their own name safe from one of the slots. You can't help it if you are dragged into the loop by the Lifeguard, but your odds are still better if you play the cycle game.
Storyline and the Red Envelope
It should have dawned on me before that the Red Envelope is a writer's tool as much as a player's tool. When X-Ray was eliminated, it sparked it my mind. People who are outside the main plot will be red eneveloped. It was important for the players to trust Duncan (the police chief) early, which is why he was the first cleared. The main plot is centering around some ghosts of the past related to the business dealing of Nate Flint. Why else would the killer drag it into the investigation? Red Herring perhaps, but the killer promised a square game. X-Ray didn't move in those business circles (though, of course, he might have had a past relating to it). In my own mind, this turn tends to eliminate the younger suspects, particularly Mary-Elizabeth Merchant and Jimmy Tinker. Then again, it could be a real or imagined wrong Flint performed on their families. I wouldn't bet money on it, but it's wise to consider everything.
The suspect with the most air time so far has been G.D. Thibodeaux. Bearing in mind that this is a work of fiction and not real life, G.D. doesn't have the personality profile to be an organized killer. Yes, I could see him killing in passion, but our killer planned the Flint job and the game with some detail. He does not have the control needed to be a viable suspect.
What he is good for though, is providing information about the town and the people in it. He's been around, and probably knows much more than he is telling.
The main plotline has shown us a ghost from the past regarding the Bonnie Rose and Oscar Blodgett. It's also dragged in General Hayden DeBeck and William Lambert. Nice, but there are plenty of suspects we've seen nothing of yet.
Food for Thought
I've read hundreds of detective stories in my life. I understand something of mystery writing. My intuition tells me the team isn't even close yet.
The question is, why is a crime of the past being introduced? Is there a connection, or is the killer using the investigators for their own reasons? I suspect the latter.
If this is the case, the most obvious beneficiary would be Leita Rose-Blodgett. Maybe she suspects the truth about what happened to the Bonnie Rose, and is using team to get to that truth. Evidence against her being the killer is the desecrated grave. Not that I don't believe for a minute she'd do it to fool the investigators, but because of the logistics involved. It's a lot of hard work to dig up a grave. We saw Angel and Andy dig it up, and they are in the prime of life. Leita is an elderly woman. I can't imagine her having the strength and stamina to do the job (and this kind of thing is a do-it-yourself project. I can't imagine a classified ad of "Wanted: Person to dig up grave. Will pay union scale").
Ironically, Leita pointing the finger at General DeBeck does a lot to clear him as the killer in my mind. Again, I won't deny that he may have been involved on what happened to the Bonnie Rose, but it's way too early in the story for the real killer to get a finger pointed at him. Of course, as with most things, there are exceptions to this general rule. A trick used in some stories is to put a lot of focus on a suspect, then have him whip out an ironclad alibi. Then, at the end, find evidence which made that alibi useless.
Speculation Time
Who is the killer? While admitting I have absolutely no evidence at all, my intuition tells me to suspect reporter Frank Kovick. Reporters are in many ways detectives. The process of getting a story is a lot like investigating a case. Reporters have access to a lot of information and the perfect excuse to ask people questions. He could legitimately bird-dog the team under the ruse of getting a story and know when to act boldly and when to divert the trail. Again, no evidence, just intuition and an analysis of which suspects would have the kind of data needed to lead the team around.
. And also check out 
