User Reviews

This episode begins with two drunk idiots coming into a liquor store and annoying the life out of the mom and pop who run the place. While the woman goes to the back room to phone the police, some robbers enter the place and kill her husband--and the two innocent drunks run off (one of which has been shot). She naturally assumes these two robbed and killed the husband and she alerts the police. In the meantime, the unhurt drunk (Georg Sanford Brown) goes to Peggy's apartment asking her for help. She calls her boss, Mannix, and he comes as soon as he can. And, despite the two drunks being IDIOTS, Joe Mannix is determined to help them--though they sure make it seem difficult for him to help!

The idea of the episode is quite good. Unfortunately, several times during the show people do stupid things--so stupid that you question the writing. One dumb glitch was the drunk who was shot in the stomach. Despite this belly wound, he was AMAZINGLY tough--too tough. Instead of behaving like an injured guy, late in the show he's more like the Terminator! Also at one point in the show, Mannix has been captured and is about to get killed--when the police show up and save his bacon. Fine. But there is no reason that they found him--how could they know where he was being held?! They said 'Peggy called us'--but she didn't know where he was either!! Watchable and interesting, but a show filled with holes.

I absolutely shriek with delight at seeing Mannix sniffing the mail and either putting a letter to the side or smiling at an envelope. Enjoy all the times that happens tbh.

Let's get to the actual meat of the episode. You really need to suspend disbelief for large parts of this episode. Starting from the very beginning to the very end imo.

I've mentioned in other reviews about my theory of the writers writing Mannix as being a sex god. I can get behind it. But I also have a theory for Peggy. The writers write Peggy as knowing practically all the black characters she comes in contact with. It makes me think of a scene from 'Roseanne' during one of Dan's poker games. Leon is at the table and he's a gay character. There's some awkwardness about Leon outting himself at this poker game. The joke comes into play that just because Leon's gay doesn't mean he knows gay Bill in Chicago. So I feel like thinking something similar for Peggy when it concerns black characters. And let's be honest, Peggy's not a fuddy fuddy but she is a serious character. Both these MEN are too wild to be anything more to Peggy besides maybe passing her on the street, bank, grocery store, etc.

Emphasizing men on that last section because it never fails to crack me up when you have men being addressed as boys. Toby is a boy. These drunks aren't boys and I'm sure the actors that had to address these men as being boys must've enjoyed that since there's probably only a few years age difference going on.

The injured drunk....wow, I want that man's energy levels. To have a gunshot wound and he's not getting woozy or fainting, it's impressive. I'm flat on my back while being depressed out of my mind and barely have the energy levels to get out of bed.

There's a suicide attempt in this episode. I get the feeling I'm missing something. I'm watching Mannix on Metv so they might cut a chunk off due to the serious nature of the content. I'm a bit iffy on if the suicide attempt makes sense at all. I must admit I'm reading between the lines here. The descriptions and script paint these two guys out as being friends, being brothers but I think they were more serious than that imo. So there's a part of me that feels it could drive another person over the edge if you had the feeling you betrayed your lover.

It does have an interesting premise for the episode. Two characters are acting out on the scene but they're being blamed for murders they didn't actually commit. It's an interesting idea but it could've used a bit more ironing out when it concerns some of the flaws. It's still an episode worth watching imo.

This one is about a liquor store robbery that results in two people getting killed.

This is an action-packed episode with great fight scenes and action sequences and an exciting ending. There are also some interesting and unusual camera angles during the fight scene at the end.

Joe does get clobbered over the head again in this one, so I'm taking a point off for that, but beyond that, this is an excellent episode.

If you remember the classic MATCH GAME with Gene Rayburn and the proverbial gag question... "Dumb Dora is so Dumb...." This episode picks up from there as one of Peggy's friends has a drinking problem and is not particularly smart. What's so surprising... is why Peggy would hang with such a careless guy?

George Sanford Brown plays the man in question, called Brad, suspected of killing the owner of a liquor store. The scene of the crime is a total nightmare as Brown and his bud (who is shot) run off when robbers actually pull the job. Had they remained where they were, it would have been a different outcome. But that's tv land! Popular character actress Shirley O'Hara plays the victim's wife.

Brown said he took up acting to do "something fun", and stood with it the rest of his life. He's best known for his starring role in THE ROOKIES, later working as a director. Robert Reed returns as the law, taking turns with Ward Wood. It was later revealed that Reed got the role to give him something else to do as he was unhappy with his role on the BRADY BUNCH, eventually leading him to quit the show.

Interestingly, some of the chase scenes were filmed in and around the storage warehouses at Paramount Studios. You can spot antique furniture and the rest, stuff used and re-used in hundreds of old movies.

Very well directed by Stuart Hagmann, and I agree with the last reviewer, there are some dynamic camera angles to spice things up. Not bad. Hagmann directed 4 episodes for the series, and also for MISSION IMPOSSIBLE.

First episode of SEASON 3 remastered CBS dvd box set.