Re: Funniest instances of Columbo derailing the murderer's hopes?
In "Swan Song," Tommy Brown is clearly feeling very confident at the airport, actually laughing at Columbo's failure. Presumably Tommy's elation continues right up until the moment Columbo stuns him with the headlights in the woods, carrying the proof of his guilt -- almost literally a "deer in the headlights," if deer were murderers.
Re: Funniest instances of Columbo derailing the murderer's hopes?
Oh man, when Paul Hanlon is at the gymnasium with the basketball practice, and Columbo tells him that not only was Mr. Wagner's house bugged, but so was Hanlon's. The way he breaths out a sigh of horror is beyond perfect. He goes from being super irate at Columbo for waisting his time to pretty much realizing he's going to jail for sure, in a matter of five seconds. LOL
Columbo: "So we checked your office, and you know what? Your phones are bugged too. By the same equipment and by the same man."