This episode first aired February 1, 1990.
This is the third of four appearances by Patrick McGoohan as well as the third of four episodes he directed. McGoohan won his second Columbo Emmy Award for his performance as Oscar Finch.
His portrayal of the Governor would end up being actor Arthur Hill’s final film appearance.
My thoughts on this episode in chronological viewing order…
Patrick McGoohan as Oscar Finch looks like Alan Napier as Alfred from the old Batman series.
A suitably ominous dark and stormy night.
Wow. A lot of thought and prep went into this murder.
Columbo struggling with that state-of-the-art fax machine!
Not sure about Columbo sniffing out the Parmigiana Reggiano like, well, Dog. He is an appreciator of fine cheeses though.
Blood UNDER the gun instead of on top of it. Suspicious! And sloppy.
But isn’t it possible that the gun would eventually slip out of the dead man’s hand? It’s not such leap.
Really? NO ONE can figure out the fax machine?
Mrs. Columbo is more tech-savvy ever since he got her a computer. Reminds me of someone I once worked with back in the day who bought his wife a computer. She became quick learner – so much so that she ended up developing software that was licensed by the FBI and paid her roughly 1 million dollars a year.
Hmmm. Only 1 of 2 pages sent!
Columbo amazed by the new fangled phones!
I love this secretary, indignant over the stench of cigar smoke.
“That oxidized relic is yours?” Brilliant.
Love the way Columbo tracks him down: “One more thing…”
Can I just say how much I love McGoohan’s performance as the cool and calculated Finch.
Love Finch’s reaction to seeing Columbo at the courthouse – none too pleased.
“He shot himself between jokes.” Well, when you put it that way, that IS suspicious.
Finch’s delayed sustained laughter is all sorts of unsettling. What a great villain.
Columbo can’t get the pen to work. “Twist it,” suggests Mackey. Is Columbo a Luddite? Was he raised Amish?
This is a great bit where Columbo asks Mackey for an autograph for his wife…
“What’s her name?”
“Mrs. Columbo.”
Love Columbo noting that Finch beat him to his own parking spot.
Finch offers a perfectly reasonable explanation for why the gun drop was delayed. “Brilliants, sir,”says Columbo. “I wouldn’t have thought of that in a million years.”
Wow. He admits the murder to Mackey. The bigger the circle of trust, the weaker its borders!
Does every political campaign scene have to show people in styrofoam hats celebrating to the tune of When the Saints Go Marching In?
“I think you did it.” Columbo refreshingly/shockingly honest.
“That was an extraordinary remark you made just now. I’m very disappointed in you.”
“I’m sorry about that.”
“I thought we had a nice relationship going.”
“Well, nothing’s perfect, sir.”
A terrific exchange.
Come on. There is no way that parking spot would have been dry if he left at 2 am. How long does it take wet pavement to dry? Am I missing something here?
That suit could have been rain-damaged at any time though, no? I mean, I understand it’s L.A. and it rarely rains but that feels like a bit of a stretch as well.
The swimming-upstream-against-the-crowd scene is kind of funny.
He matched the bite mark on the chewing gum to the teeth mark in the cheese? That IS poppycock.
What a pleasant surprise. I really enjoyed this episode despite the preposterous case Columbo ultimately builds against Finch. I know bite mark analysis was a thing back when this episode was shot but it nevertheless feels kind of ridiculous. Still, Columbo does establish motive, means, and opportunity and it is a pretty strong episode overall, bolstered by the two fantastic performances of our leads – Falk and McGoohan. Columbo was more reserved than previous outings and the direction was more restrained, which I appreciated. No silly ringmaster outfits this time out, just a good, solid story and a worthy adversary reminiscent of Columbo of old. Easily my favorite episode of the new batch.
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