Just in the middle of this one and really can't decide if it's really good or average. The murder was quite nicely done and some good clues, a nice scene with the hairdresser Daryl but something about it says not sure.

What do yuo guys think?

"How did two men shoot themselves in the dark?" That's the first mistake Litton makes. But she is a very (how do I say this in a politically correct way) arrogant throughout the entire episode. I rather liked it. Of course, she is referred to as being 'old fashioned' in the flick, ergo the title. It was enjoyable to me, but not the strongest of episdoes. About a 7 out of 10.

i didn't like this one very much the first few times i saw it...but i have grown to really love it very much. and much of my enjoyment comes from the performance of joyce van patten. there is an underlying current that she reveals in the character of ruth lytton. she exposes a dark humor which i have not seen in too many columbo murderers....cracking dry-humor jokes in the middle of murdering 2 men. she also exhibits a strength, without arrogance, when dealing with the other characters, including columbo. her performance has to be seen a few times over to truly appreciate what she accomplishes with this character. i thought she was absolutely amazing.

i wasn't impressed with the slapstick character of phyllis brandt...i think it went over the top a bit.

and i can't comment on this episode without bringing up yet again the eerie reaction of janie brandt when she discovers the bodies and approaches aunt ruth!! that scene will haunt (and amuse) me for the rest of my days!!!

I didn't like it all that much either at first but it's grown on me. I particularly like watching Janie use the belt buckle for an ashtray in prison.

Great scene.

The main thing that I didn't like about this episode was the ending. If Ruth murdered her brother and tried to frame her niece (and possibly murdered her sister's husband many years earlier), why would she suddenly decide to confess just to save her family a scandal? Columbo states that the evidence probably wouldn't be enought to convict her.

Maybe if they had dropped the part about murdering Janie's father and portrayed Ruth as someone who really thought she was doing the right thing by murdering her brother so that the museum could stay with the family, then maybe the self-sacrificial confession could have worked better. But everything they show us about Ruth demonstrates that her motives were selfish, not family-oriented.

Clever murder, good clues, decent performances, but inconsistent ending.