The premise is an interesting one. The widow of a recently deceased scuba diver hires Joe as she believes her husband's death was not accidental. Joe snoops around the yacht club where, fortunately, the security man (Milton Setzer) is a retired cop who Joe once saved. Joe gets him to check fingerprints on a glass and have the results by the morning. Security guy must have some pull to get that done. He also gives Joe his master key so he can look around. That is a job ender if caught. Joe does his investigating, gets in a fight with a naval intelligence agent, discovers a man's daughter is not his daughter, finds out the entire case is about a rebreather device that is worth millions. The ending is strange where the bad guy just gives up his gun and graciously surrenders. The Italian actress character is just a waste of time. Not sure why she is in the story at all except as eye candy. After all the excitement as the case is brought to a close, she comes out of her cabin without a clue as to what is going on. Gun shots usually alarm people but not her.
The cast is the TV veterans this series always bring in. Skip Homeier is making his only appearance on Mannix. A bit strange as he was very active as a guest on shows and Mannix was on for eight years. Milton Setzer was on everything back then. Paul Stewart did the rounds also. Look for Jonathan Goldsmith, then going by Jonathan Lippe. Decades later, he would be the "most interesting man in the world" in those great beer commercials.
Stray thoughts. Another reviewer wrote that Stoner's room is the same one used for Peggy's place in other episodes. He is right. When Joe and Peggy let themselves in to the place, they pass the hall closet with a sliding lock on the outside. In episode 3-1 (Eagles Sometimes Can't Fly), Joe and Peggy are locked in that closet and Joe kicks his way out. That episode stays with me because who puts a lock on the outside of a hall closet?
Andre Korvak (Paul Stewart) offers Joe champagne, which he accepts. Later, Korvak offers him a second glass of wine.
The Navy intel agent (Skip Homeier) receives a phone call in a girl's apartment. The caller is the agent's partner. How did the guy know where to call him?
Not a horrible episode but the plot holes (as pointed out by other reviewers) make it tough to recommend. At least Joe got paid and didn't get shot or knocked out. That's a win for him.
The cast is the TV veterans this series always bring in. Skip Homeier is making his only appearance on Mannix. A bit strange as he was very active as a guest on shows and Mannix was on for eight years. Milton Setzer was on everything back then. Paul Stewart did the rounds also. Look for Jonathan Goldsmith, then going by Jonathan Lippe. Decades later, he would be the "most interesting man in the world" in those great beer commercials.
Stray thoughts. Another reviewer wrote that Stoner's room is the same one used for Peggy's place in other episodes. He is right. When Joe and Peggy let themselves in to the place, they pass the hall closet with a sliding lock on the outside. In episode 3-1 (Eagles Sometimes Can't Fly), Joe and Peggy are locked in that closet and Joe kicks his way out. That episode stays with me because who puts a lock on the outside of a hall closet?
Andre Korvak (Paul Stewart) offers Joe champagne, which he accepts. Later, Korvak offers him a second glass of wine.
The Navy intel agent (Skip Homeier) receives a phone call in a girl's apartment. The caller is the agent's partner. How did the guy know where to call him?
Not a horrible episode but the plot holes (as pointed out by other reviewers) make it tough to recommend. At least Joe got paid and didn't get shot or knocked out. That's a win for him.