The Lt. Columbo Forum

An area where fans from all over can ask each other questions and voice their own ideas and opinions on anything Columbo.

This Forum is fondly dedicated in memory of  "cassavetes45"  (Carleen Zink),
Columbo's greatest fan and a great friend to us all.
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The Lt. Columbo Forum
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Re: Is Murder Under Glass the second weirdest after Commodore?

To me, the episode that feels least like a COLUMBO is still "The Conspirators." Partly for the political side and partly in other ways. I almost have to think of it as genuinely outside of the series to like it.

Re: Is Murder Under Glass the second weirdest after Commodore?

Although far from the worst episode, I'd have to say "Mind Over Mayhem" had to have one of the weirdest alibis, with the claw-handed robot directing the war games from the keyboard to protect Cahill.

I guess they didn't have USB ports back then. :)

Re: Is Murder Under Glass the second weirdest after Commodore?

I've always enjoyed Murder Under Glass but I've never understood why the other restaurant owners don't drop Paul right in the soup over the fact he's an extortionist. When Columbo is talking to them at their restaurants they both had a golden opportunity to explain they were being blackmailed by Paul and that would have been a possible motive for murder. It's all a bit odd. The whole deal with the bottle opener and the poison is a bit strange as well. By the way, has anyone ever seen or owned a pneumatic bottle opener like that?

Re: Is Murder Under Glass the second weirdest after Commodore?

I pretty much agree with Rob L. It isn't the greatest episode, but it's watchable.

The biggest problem I have with the plot (apart from also not understanding what the other two restaurant owners are doing) is that I've never found it credible that Louis Jourdan has such a big influence on a restaurant's reputation that he can blackmail someone for $100,000. If these are award-winning restaurant owners, why don't they just stop paying?

Re: Is Murder Under Glass the second weirdest after Commodore?

So many stories about blackmail and other kinds of extortion make you wonder why the person doesn't do "counter-blackmail," especially when money is being extorted for something other than a CRIME. So I wonder the same thing. In fact, I can't help wondering it about Vittorio himself - it seems like he could have said to Paul, "Stop extorting money from me and the others, and I won't tell anyone that you've been doing it."
Of course, then there would be no story.