User Reviews

This episode is heavy on the melodrama, but overall is an entertaining episode. Well-acted by everybody with the best performance given by Madeleine Stowe. Her character is beautiful and spooky.

Ed Harris plays the drug dealer who is a little too reckless and greedy for his own good. His solution to every problem is kill, kill, kill. So he almost comes off as a serial killer.

Barnaby doesn't do much in this episode, mainly just talks on the phone a few times.

Sean Penn has a very small part, but he plays it very realistic. What a gifted actor.

The biggest reason to watch "School of Terror" is for it's guest stars. It's actually pretty amazing to watch three stars well before they would achieve fame. The big baddie in the show is played by Ed Harris, Madeleine Stow plays a major roles and in a small part if Sean Penn. As for the plot....it's good and bad.

The show is set at a drug rehab program for young people. However, within this programs are a couple pushers who try to get folks in the program hooked on drugs once again. When one of the counselors finds out, he's murdered...and they make it look like the dead man was using drugs once again.

For once, Jedediah has a good idea...to take the dead man's place working at the program. While this seemed like a good role for him, there's no indication that he knew anything about drugs nor had a crash course on how to be a drug counselor! Fortunately, most of the drug language and anti-drug talk isn't as over the top as I expected. In addition, although some terminology and philosophies about drug treatment are a bit antiquated, 1979 was pretty early in the history of drug treatment.

I generally liked the episode but kept wondering....if a person is a drug dealer, why would they go to a drug treatment program? After all, it's not like you'd have hundreds of clients and the chances of getting caught would be very high. Still, it is enjoyable to watch...as enjoyable as any show about drugs and murder can be!

As was previously mentioned in another review, this episode had an array of guest stars who would become pretty big stars thru the 80s till even currently. One passed away this year. I rate it an 8 just for the guest stars on an otherwise average Barnaby episode

The guest star list is very impressive. Story good but somewhat predictable at the end. Overall good!

This story was a very good fit for JR, all about a counselor for a drug rehab program who is killed, made to look like he overdosed. JR cleverly enters the program as the next young counselor, obviously undercover to expose the mastermind behind an illegal drug operation. Mark Shera does a fine job with this role, and is backed by a top cast worth mentioning.

Ed Harris guest stars, and in a role that seemed to be written for him, likewise actress Madeleine Stowe. Both actors starred in CHINA MOON in the 90s. Alex Courtney has an early role, who had recently appeared in LOOKING FOR MR. GOODBAR, and we get an early glimpse of Sean Penn (as Sam), probably recommended by his famous father, Leo, who directed for producer Quinn Martin.

Cult movie fans will definitely recognize Dick Miller, as the deputy. Miller starred in many of Roger Corman's camp classic sci fi and horror films. Miller passed in 2019 leaving a legacy of offbeat screen characters.

Very good direction from Kenneth Gilbert, who headed 12 episodes for the series. JR's case, but never count Barnaby out. SEASON 8 EPISODE 10 remastered color CBS/Paramount dvd box set. Released 2018.