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The second season of Columbo again
has the seasoned Los Angeles Lieutenant Columbo (Peter Falk)
who solves crimes through his meticulous eye for details and
distinctive approach to wrongdoings. Lt. Columbo’s persona
attracts the audience’s attention, as he is a scruffy looking
character with a cigar between his fingers and a beige trench
coat. He does not come across as intelligent or charismatic
and it is never clear whether he is smart or lucky. However,
one thing is obvious Columbo’s humbleness is very deceptive,
as his persona often leads the criminals to make some form
of mistake or pressures the guilty to admit to guilt, which
solves the case. ***
Season two consists of eight different
episodes, which are more or less freestanding crimes that
Columbo solves. Each episode ranges between 90 and 120 minutes.
These episodes open with a lengthy description that entails
all the details of the crime. After the description of the
crime the audience follows how Columbo approaches the crime,
as he seeks to solve it. This often displays how the forensics
and the rest of the LAPD are left without any clue as to who
has committed the crime. However, Columbo always succeeds
in discovering some minute detail that he follows up on that
leads to a solution at the perfect crime. ***
Étude in Black is the first episode
where the audience gets to follow Columbo who does not buy
into the idea that a young gifted classical pianist has committed
suicide. Instead he suspects that musical genius has staged
the suicide, but how can he prove it. This episode features
John Cassavetes, as the suspect and during the episode Columbo
displays his skills on the piano. ***
In the second episode, The Greenhouse
Jungle, the audience bears witness to a staged kidnapping
in order to attain a large amount of money out of a trust
fund. However, the kidnapping leads to murder and Columbo
is assigned to the case. Ray Milland’s performance in this
episode is excellent, which gives even more reason to see
it. ***
In the Most Crucial Game, which
is the third episode, Colombo brings the gridiron to the show.
An owner of a football team is found dead in his pool while
the LAPD believes it is an open and shut case Columbo thinks
differently. ***
Dagger of the Mind is probably
one of the best episodes of the second season. In this fourth
episode Columbo travels to London, England, where he is to
study new methods of solving crimes by the Scotland Yard.
However, when a crime is committed, he becomes the educator
for the Yard. ***
Nora Chandler (Ann Baxter), a movie
star that has fallen from fame, finds herself being blackmailed
by her secretary’s fiancée. She decides to take the law in
her own hands and try to kill the blackmailer. However, something
goes wrong and Columbo is on the case. In this episode, Requiem
for a Falling Star, the audience can see Ann Baxter from the
brilliant film All About Eve. ***
A Stitch in Crime brings the audience
to a story about a shady surgeon who has dubious operational
methods. A nurse finds out about his crooked methods, and
he must find away to stop her from telling others. Leonard
Nimoy from Star Trek is the crooked Dr. Barry Mayfield in
this episode whom Columbo begins to follow. ***
When a grandmaster chess player’s
ex-girlfriend convinces a superior chess player from the Soviet
Union to challenge her boyfriend, the ex-boyfriend finds his
ego and title being threatened and he plans to stop the game
from taking place. Columbo finds himself playing for more
than just fun, as he must find a way to maneuver the suspect
to checkmate in the seventh episode, the Most Dangerous Match.
***
In the final episode, Double Shock,
an older wealthy man dies by electrocution, as someone tossed
an electric mixer in the bath water. However, it is disguised
as if the old man died of a coronary in the exercise room.
Columbo arrives to the scene and he smells foul play, as he
begins to investigate the murder. ***
All episodes have solid performances
by most of the cast members, which makes each episode even
more enjoyable. Peter Falk’s character accentuates the other
characters through his original behavior, but this is probably
also anticipated by the directors. In the end, each episode
offers suspense and humor, which turns out to be an enjoyable
TV show experience. *** ---
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