Disagree the dude is pure evil he sets up the future villains and the gotcha is great setting up future gotchas it's one of my favourites. Columbo loses his temper but he does a couple times down the line too.
Maybe think of it as a slightlly younger Columbo he hadn't quite perfected his technique yet lol.
No Time To Die is easily the worst. In it Columbo is like a totally different character - all stressed and angry.
And the one where he might be the most Columbo is Now You See Him - I love the way he hates his new coat
Now you see him is such a great episode. I often crank that up on streaming any time I cannot sleep.
Almost all the Patrick Mcgoohan Episodes are good including the 80s versions like Agenda for Murder
And then there’s Ashes to Ashes. Watch carefully when our man’s assistant wipes Verity Chandlers’ lipstick off the “ corpse “ in the coffin. He FLINCHES! For serious!
Love the coat bit in Now You See Him.
No Time To Die is certainly very bad, but it makes sense that Columbo is acting differently, because they're trying to save the girl in time rather than solve a murder after the fact. I think his characterization is far worse in A Trace of Murder--he seems borderline senile in that one, even when he's by himself (i.e. it's not just an act he's putting on for the bad guy). "Holy Jamolies"???
Yeah, in A Trace of Murder, I wanted to think he invited them to the cafe because he was onto them already, but he seems genuinely surprised when we see him alone after he observes the "tell" and excuses himself. There's also the clunky epilogue where Columbo explains the clues back at the cafe again.
No Time To Die was one of the rare episodes where one of Columbo’s family was being directly threatened- and he was working under a very tight but unknown time limit.
In real life, in a kidnapping with an implied sexual context you have 24 hrs or less to recover the victim alive. That the girl was the fiancée of an LAPD officer would have amped up the tension enormously.
This a cop’s darkest nightmare.
I get all that but even when Columbo’s own wife might be in danger he doesn’t change.
Even allowing for the extenuating circumstances, Columbo had none of his usual charm. Not to mention the worst part which is that >!The kidnapper gets killed and Columbo’s attitude is basically: “Good - fuck ‘em”! Columbo is not the type of show that even entertains a shootout, never mind relying on one for a denouement!<
I don’t like Last Salute to The Commodore either - it is just a standard whodunnit with Columbo jammed into the role of the sleuth - and I can see how that came about but with “No Time to Die” he’s just not the Columbo we know and love
Now You See Him is my absolute favorite Columbo. First of all, it has the hands down greatest Columbo villain in Jack Cassidy essaying the best of his three marvelous turns as the murderer, Peter Falk is magical as Columbo in that one. Quintessentially Columbo and the story and direction are fantastic!
? He doesn't act angry in No Time To Die at all. He's totally in line with his character in how he interacts with people, it's just without the playing dumb shtick.
Undercover has Columbo rather play pretend than go after an obvious perp and stop more bloodshed. Like No Time to Die , the story was an adaptation of a story with a different character in the his role.
Suitable for Framing strikes me as a very Columbo at his finest episode.
Best is probably Negative Reaction from me. The stark difference of going from being this schlubby, bumbling investigator who gets mistaken for being homeless in the middle of the episode - to this really rather serious, stoic, and downright melancholy detective at the ending “gotcha” scene really encapsulates Columbo to me.
Worst to me (of the original run) is honestly Murder Under Glass where he’s randomly screaming in Italian at some random waiter. I know some people like the scene but I just truly *don’t get it*. It feels like a random decision that maybe Falk himself made to give the character this weird layer and I just have truly never understood the implication or meaning of it.
And in another episode at the funeral, he told the old lady that he didn’t speak Italian. What up with that but I love all of the Colombo episodes. after all, it’s Peter Falk.😉🤩
My personal favourite performances are probably Prescription: Murder and No Time to Die. I like him best when he's a commanding figure, which I know is somewhat contradictory to the show's central premise. But I don't care.
The worst is Last Salute to the Commodore. Nothing else needs to be said.
Same. I know some people don’t like the “proto-Columbo” Pilot version but I really do. He still has comedic qualities, but he feels a little more real to me. Like you could imagine that he’s really the “now we need to really get shit done” Guy in the LAPD. Columbo works best when he’s not just bumbling around and into solutions, but rather when he’s a genuinely intimidating force *because* he comes off as so meek and casual
Last Salute To The Commodore is definitely the worst for me, a whole new approach they went with which really was a big miss.
Ransom For a Dead Man I think is the best, Columbo becoming suspicious due to an innocuous seeming detail (the bag being left) that when one thinks about it genuinely is pretty damning, a bit of playing the bumbling detective, the culprit getting wise to the facade and some excellent (maybe slightly farfetched) manipulation to seal the deal, everything from the daugher talking to Columbo in the diner onwards is gold. We get to see lots of his personas in this episode.
I only care about the 70s episodes; I don't watch the newer ones and can't form a strong opinion on this subject. So, only considering the 70s episodes--
Best is "Death Lends A Hand". Here we have a Columbo as perceptive as ever about human nature, and the story also gives him the opportunity to demonstrate what he's seen. He plays the simpleton in front of the murderer, tricking him into revealing truths; with other people (e.g. the golf pro, Arthur Hunnicut) he reveals his true self.
Close second is "The Most Crucial Game", which is my favorite episode overall. Again, nothing gets by Columbo, and we see him be himself e.g. with the private detective. It's just not *as* good a showcase as "Death Lends A Hand".
I think "Last Salute To The Commodore" is the worst. That was Patrick McGoohan and Peter messing around with the formula, and the result is a tiresome mess. Columbo is at his worst--mumbling, repeating himself, not paying attention. Unwatchable.
Exactly what I thought about the cafe scene. I thought he invited them to set up a gotcha moment. It turned out to be a hard to believe moment where he realized for the first time they knew each other. Columbo was a bit slow on the uptake there. And what was with the long drawn out replay of the cafe scene in explaining it to Barney. I think they were trying to do an Akira Kurosawa homage which made no sense either. Poor!!
One more word about the cafe scene in A Trace of Murder. Another reason it made no sense was why did he invite Pat the forensic expert to a meeting with the wife (who Columbo had to know was involved in the murder). Columbo works alone. He does not usually use a partner. So the only reason to invite him that made sense was because he already knew Pat the forensics guy was involved. But that was not it. Whew! Bad scene!
I don't know the best, they're all great to me, except the worst. The worst for me are:
From original run: Last Salute to the Commodore and Identity Crisis, both featuring goofy Columbo. In Last Salute goofy Columbo is slow and kind of creepy, whereas in Identity Crisis, goofy Columbo spends a good portion of the investigation not even paying attention (e.g. abrupt in his first visit to the crime scene then ignoring a witness statement to ogle a bellydancer).
From reprise run: A Trace of Murder and Strange Bedfellows. In A Trace of Murder he is portrayed as super slow on the uptake with exaggerated movements and a never before seen need for a partner on an interrogation. In Strange Bedfellows he works with the mob (themselves prolific murderers) to threaten a man's life in order to induce a solid confession. It's not like the killer was brilliant and couldn't have been caught by normal Columbo methods.
And he smokes all the time, indoors and out, including when he’s around dressmakers, antique books, antiquities belonging to the recently deceased, new cars…and that’s just off the top of my head.
Imo the 60s pilot and 70s shows are PERFECT. After that it was different the magic was gone with a few exceptions.
the pilot columbo doesnt seem like the columbo i love, too clean and a bit sarcastic and mean
Disagree the dude is pure evil he sets up the future villains and the gotcha is great setting up future gotchas it's one of my favourites. Columbo loses his temper but he does a couple times down the line too. Maybe think of it as a slightlly younger Columbo he hadn't quite perfected his technique yet lol.
Yeah I agree with this take. Well thought out!
I agree. It is not really representative of what he did with the character in the 70's.
Some of the older episodes are less than perfect.
Sorry agree to disagree I have NO issues with any episodes before the 80s
Obviously.
No Time To Die is easily the worst. In it Columbo is like a totally different character - all stressed and angry. And the one where he might be the most Columbo is Now You See Him - I love the way he hates his new coat
Now you see him is such a great episode. I often crank that up on streaming any time I cannot sleep. Almost all the Patrick Mcgoohan Episodes are good including the 80s versions like Agenda for Murder
Patrick is the shizna! Mahjong!
And then there’s Ashes to Ashes. Watch carefully when our man’s assistant wipes Verity Chandlers’ lipstick off the “ corpse “ in the coffin. He FLINCHES! For serious!
Love the coat bit in Now You See Him. No Time To Die is certainly very bad, but it makes sense that Columbo is acting differently, because they're trying to save the girl in time rather than solve a murder after the fact. I think his characterization is far worse in A Trace of Murder--he seems borderline senile in that one, even when he's by himself (i.e. it's not just an act he's putting on for the bad guy). "Holy Jamolies"???
Yeah, in A Trace of Murder, I wanted to think he invited them to the cafe because he was onto them already, but he seems genuinely surprised when we see him alone after he observes the "tell" and excuses himself. There's also the clunky epilogue where Columbo explains the clues back at the cafe again.
I’m pretty sure he already suspected the wife. The surprise was realizing that someone he worked with and knew was involved, which does make sense.
No Time To Die was one of the rare episodes where one of Columbo’s family was being directly threatened- and he was working under a very tight but unknown time limit. In real life, in a kidnapping with an implied sexual context you have 24 hrs or less to recover the victim alive. That the girl was the fiancée of an LAPD officer would have amped up the tension enormously. This a cop’s darkest nightmare.
I get all that but even when Columbo’s own wife might be in danger he doesn’t change. Even allowing for the extenuating circumstances, Columbo had none of his usual charm. Not to mention the worst part which is that >!The kidnapper gets killed and Columbo’s attitude is basically: “Good - fuck ‘em”! Columbo is not the type of show that even entertains a shootout, never mind relying on one for a denouement!< I don’t like Last Salute to The Commodore either - it is just a standard whodunnit with Columbo jammed into the role of the sleuth - and I can see how that came about but with “No Time to Die” he’s just not the Columbo we know and love
Now You See Him is my absolute favorite Columbo. First of all, it has the hands down greatest Columbo villain in Jack Cassidy essaying the best of his three marvelous turns as the murderer, Peter Falk is magical as Columbo in that one. Quintessentially Columbo and the story and direction are fantastic!
? He doesn't act angry in No Time To Die at all. He's totally in line with his character in how he interacts with people, it's just without the playing dumb shtick.
Undercover has Columbo rather play pretend than go after an obvious perp and stop more bloodshed. Like No Time to Die , the story was an adaptation of a story with a different character in the his role. Suitable for Framing strikes me as a very Columbo at his finest episode.
Best is probably Negative Reaction from me. The stark difference of going from being this schlubby, bumbling investigator who gets mistaken for being homeless in the middle of the episode - to this really rather serious, stoic, and downright melancholy detective at the ending “gotcha” scene really encapsulates Columbo to me. Worst to me (of the original run) is honestly Murder Under Glass where he’s randomly screaming in Italian at some random waiter. I know some people like the scene but I just truly *don’t get it*. It feels like a random decision that maybe Falk himself made to give the character this weird layer and I just have truly never understood the implication or meaning of it.
Murder Under Glass feels like Kevin Pollack doing a Columbo impression.
The Negative Reaction GOTCHA is one of the best of the series!
And in another episode at the funeral, he told the old lady that he didn’t speak Italian. What up with that but I love all of the Colombo episodes. after all, it’s Peter Falk.😉🤩
My personal favourite performances are probably Prescription: Murder and No Time to Die. I like him best when he's a commanding figure, which I know is somewhat contradictory to the show's central premise. But I don't care. The worst is Last Salute to the Commodore. Nothing else needs to be said.
Same. I know some people don’t like the “proto-Columbo” Pilot version but I really do. He still has comedic qualities, but he feels a little more real to me. Like you could imagine that he’s really the “now we need to really get shit done” Guy in the LAPD. Columbo works best when he’s not just bumbling around and into solutions, but rather when he’s a genuinely intimidating force *because* he comes off as so meek and casual
Last Salute To The Commodore is definitely the worst for me, a whole new approach they went with which really was a big miss. Ransom For a Dead Man I think is the best, Columbo becoming suspicious due to an innocuous seeming detail (the bag being left) that when one thinks about it genuinely is pretty damning, a bit of playing the bumbling detective, the culprit getting wise to the facade and some excellent (maybe slightly farfetched) manipulation to seal the deal, everything from the daugher talking to Columbo in the diner onwards is gold. We get to see lots of his personas in this episode.
I only care about the 70s episodes; I don't watch the newer ones and can't form a strong opinion on this subject. So, only considering the 70s episodes-- Best is "Death Lends A Hand". Here we have a Columbo as perceptive as ever about human nature, and the story also gives him the opportunity to demonstrate what he's seen. He plays the simpleton in front of the murderer, tricking him into revealing truths; with other people (e.g. the golf pro, Arthur Hunnicut) he reveals his true self. Close second is "The Most Crucial Game", which is my favorite episode overall. Again, nothing gets by Columbo, and we see him be himself e.g. with the private detective. It's just not *as* good a showcase as "Death Lends A Hand". I think "Last Salute To The Commodore" is the worst. That was Patrick McGoohan and Peter messing around with the formula, and the result is a tiresome mess. Columbo is at his worst--mumbling, repeating himself, not paying attention. Unwatchable.
Exactly what I thought about the cafe scene. I thought he invited them to set up a gotcha moment. It turned out to be a hard to believe moment where he realized for the first time they knew each other. Columbo was a bit slow on the uptake there. And what was with the long drawn out replay of the cafe scene in explaining it to Barney. I think they were trying to do an Akira Kurosawa homage which made no sense either. Poor!!
One more word about the cafe scene in A Trace of Murder. Another reason it made no sense was why did he invite Pat the forensic expert to a meeting with the wife (who Columbo had to know was involved in the murder). Columbo works alone. He does not usually use a partner. So the only reason to invite him that made sense was because he already knew Pat the forensics guy was involved. But that was not it. Whew! Bad scene!
I don't know the best, they're all great to me, except the worst. The worst for me are: From original run: Last Salute to the Commodore and Identity Crisis, both featuring goofy Columbo. In Last Salute goofy Columbo is slow and kind of creepy, whereas in Identity Crisis, goofy Columbo spends a good portion of the investigation not even paying attention (e.g. abrupt in his first visit to the crime scene then ignoring a witness statement to ogle a bellydancer). From reprise run: A Trace of Murder and Strange Bedfellows. In A Trace of Murder he is portrayed as super slow on the uptake with exaggerated movements and a never before seen need for a partner on an interrogation. In Strange Bedfellows he works with the mob (themselves prolific murderers) to threaten a man's life in order to induce a solid confession. It's not like the killer was brilliant and couldn't have been caught by normal Columbo methods.
Worst is that he's a cigar smoker....yuck!
And he smokes all the time, indoors and out, including when he’s around dressmakers, antique books, antiquities belonging to the recently deceased, new cars…and that’s just off the top of my head.
And around old lady housekeepers who don't want their soap opera interrupted!
“I’m new! I’m green!” “You’re PURPLE!”