Do you agree?

I am a HUGE fan of Columbo and even bought one of Peter's drawings many years back, own original autographs/ pictures etc.

But I really, REALLY hated the last episode. It wasn't Columbo at all...the music was off, the acting wasn't right..the script wasn't right...

When I bought all the episodes (over a looooong period of saving money back in those days) I told my wife to safekeep this very last episode for a very special evening. So we did. But his Columbo episode differs so much from the other episodes, it completely ruined my evening.

Mike, I can relate to your excitement in postponing the (expected) gratification of seeing a brand-new "Columbo". I'm sorry to hear that you were disappointed.

It wasn't from the '70s or even the '80s or '90s, so we can't expect it to have the familiar feel. Also, they had enough trouble getting the studio and network to finance it -- I'm quite sure promises were made to "update" it, make it "hip and exciting to the kids today" , hence the bad techno-music. A mistake. It ended up running with ads for Viagra and Polident anyway.

But, subject to those constraints, I actually thought it a noble effort and a worthwhile addition, for several reasons.

* Columbo has a great "first investigation" scene (discovered lying on the ground, then examining the victim's feet and sticking his hand in the toilet bowl to collect evidence, etc -- things that "only Columbo" would do. Classic.

* I liked the grittiness of Columbo stalking the grim corridors of a warehouse-like scene, mixed-in with the usual posh surroundings.

* Even the show's harshest critics should agree that it had a socko ending, in the style of the old Columbo's flair for showmanship.

With such a good beginning and end, I found it easy to be forgiving of what happened in-between. And, even if the bad-guys were lightweights, I thought Peter Falk was on top of his game. Not the best episode ever, but certainly not an embarrassment or a bad way for Columbo to say good-bye.

I enjoyed it. Columbo was first thought of in the 1950s so any decade beyond then is going to have evolved with the times.

I've got to agree with Ted and Stephen.

"Night Life" isn't one of the best ever, no. But I don't think it's anywhere near one of the worst either.

I had fun with it and it sure looks like Peter Falk had a good time filming it.

When you realize that it is 35 yrs from the first Columbo to Nightlife it's not too bad.

I am very thankful that the last "Columbo" episode was "Columbo Likes the Nightlife" and not "Undercover".

I know it's a common subject for Columbo fans, but I'd just rewrite the ending without those miserable handcuffs. When it comes to either version of the show, handcuffs should always be "conspicuous by their absence."
And even though it's a clever scene as Mike says, I could do without the toilet part. Instead, give me Columbo and the Colonel in Dawn's Early Light, dancing around even saying the word "urinal"!

grant, it's funny that you mention handcuffs, because i just watched 'it's all in the game' and i was so surprised to see columbo himself putting handcuffs on faye dunnaway at the end. it was so odd!

Understood, Grant! But in this case, the handcuffs are "conspicuous by their presence," exactly because Columbo normally doesn't use them. Historically. Columbo-vs-killer is a chess game among intellectuals (whether the killer knows it or not). And while there are exceptions, usually there is a mutual, if unspoken respect at the end.

But in this case, Columbo really hated this punk. The cuffs were a deliberate, special sign of contempt.

I'm surprised about the handcuffs both here and in it's all in the game, like cassavetes said, because lauren killed a man who was molesting her daughter and columbo was aware of that, so indeed, very strange that she was one of the rare murderers that get handcuffed.

And as for the nightlife, I also feel like handcuffs and being so disliked by columbo was excessive for the 2 suspects, cause vanessa accidentally killed tony galper, could've been classed as manslaughter, then because lynwood filmed the situation, both her and justin became blackmail targets; yes, the murder on lynwood was particularly violent, but he also really asked for it, one of the most despicable victims, and vanessa didn't even want to go for it, she asked justin if, once they paid lynwood, they'd have got the photos back.

So in general I don't really think either of the 2 is a terrible murderer like franklin for example, which is why the handcuffs surprised me.

I think it was off.....no good music, not an interesting murder character....

But I'm happy you all enjoyed it :)