You don't know what you've started here Fielding.

I'll bet even money there's a good chance 68 of 69 episondes will get a mention if everyone participates here.

To pick my top three is very, very hard but I'll try.

(Not in any particular order)

1. Exercise in Fatality
2. Agenda for Murder
3. Make ME a Perfect Murder

ken osha!! you're a pip!!

Thanks to all of you people for your wonderful replies and all so quick. I did realise after typing that I had asked a very toguh question bout top 3s.

I'm surprised no one mentioned Prescription: Murder, perhaps because it wasn't techically an episode; but everyone should have fun seeing Falk's debut--the beginning of the role.

Just watched Prescription Murder again 2 days ago.

I like the episode a lot, but I didn't like the continued slurred speech patterns of Columbo with the cigar in his mouth.

Of course the character really hadn't developed yet, although the plot formula was almost as good as any.

I agree and I think the character seemed to grow right before our eyes when he gave Miss Hudson that "You'll be followed . . .and you'll be hounded" speech.

That was a great scene. "You seem worried, Miss Hudson. Whatsamatter, you've never seen a pair of sunglasses before?"

any of thejack Cassidy , Robert Culp or patrick Mc Goohan movies, would be a great start

I think Columbo's character is quite
well developed in "Prescription Murder".
Peter Falk already had the role down
when he did it, and he kept it up faithfully for several seasons (i.e. his
"modest, mildly eccentric" persona) until
"Last Salute to the Commodore", which as others point out is a very poor episode, and the one in which Peter Falk decided to change the role to "arrogant and goofy" which he was in many, but not all, of the remaining episodes of the original 1970's series.

i personally really like Lovely but Lethal, but i can and do watch them all over and over all the time.