User Reviews

While I enjoy watching my DVDs of "Mannix", I must admit that the show had more than its share of clichés. Too often, Joe is bashed over the head, charges into danger without backup and overcomes folks who have loaded guns aimed right at him. While this show has a few of these, at least it seemed to try a bit harder to avoid these mistakes. For example, when he thinks that perhaps Peggy is in trouble, Joe calls for police backup!

The show begins with some kids from Little League hiring Mannix to find their missing coach. Joe's investigation leads him to discover that the nice, beloved coach is actually a guy who recently got out of prison and jumped parole! How could the very nice guy that his team, employer and girlfriend talk about be on the run from the law? And, if he is, why? Well, at the same time, a group of mobsters are looking for the guy--and so you know something big is going on here.

As I said, the show avoided many clichés. Sure, there still is a scene where the missing coach beats up a thug...yet leaves the gun lying on the ground! And, the ending is a bit tough to believe. But, despite these things, the show is quite interesting and better than usual.

This one is about some kids on a baseball team who hire Joe to find their manager.

This is the best episode of season five so far. It's intense and exciting and has numerous action sequences and fight scenes, so the punches are really flying in this one and that's what makes it great.

Joe gets shot at but doesn't get whacked in the head. Osborn sure takes a beating though as he gets his wrist and ribs crushed by a baseball bat.

Val Bisoglio is not credible or convincing as Larrabee, the mob boss. He doesn't look or sound sinister and was a poor choice for this role. The acting from the rest of the cast is superb, especially Charlotte Stewart as Barbara.

Woodrow Parfrey makes another appearance as an informer and proceeds to double cross Joe and almost ends up on a slab as a result.

There's no body count in this one, which is incredible considering all of the seedy characters involved. I thought for sure Osborn and Small were goners, but shockingly it didn't happen, although Joe himself almost ensured Small would end up in the meat wagon but held back. It's actually implausible that Osborn wasn't rubbed out since he failed to kill Thomas when he had the chance and was extremely clumsy in the process as he made it SO OBVIOUS that he was following Thomas.

This is the first good episode of season five.

The type of episode all us kids loved -- a super charged story with a baseball team?

Series writer Daniel B. Ullman cooked up a very original script, all about a team of little leaguers who actually hire Joe to find their coach and mentor who totally disappeared. Give it an "A" for originality. It eventually comes out that he has a criminal past, an ex-con who has ruffled some feathers and the mob wants him dead.

Murray Golden did an excellent job with this cast, right down to the kids. He may have signed a few autographs for the crew, having ties to BATMAN and the GREEN HORNET in the 60s.

Jonathan Goldsmith leads the cast as Lee Thomas, the man at large. He set a record in his career by appearing in over 350 tv shows and became a tv commercial legend as the distinguished Dos Equis "most interesting man in the world" who made you want to go out buy beer! One classy guy.

Two LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE alumnus appear; Charlotte Stewart (as Barbara) and Katherine MacGregor, who plays a nurse. In a gag appearance, look for all purpose character actor Val Avery playing a guy named "Mel Cooley." Was that from the DICK VAN DYKE SHOW? Shifty Woodrow Parfrey plays Willie, always fun to watch.

Popular juvenile actor Gary Dubin plays one of the little leaguers. Gary is fondly remembered as Punky, Danny's bud on the PARTRIDGE FAMILY. Gary was an actor for years, also a personal gymnastics trainer up until his sudden death from cancer in 2016. He is missed.

In another series appearance, veteran J Pat O'Malley plays Mr. Bryant and stone-faced Ward Wood returns as Malcolm, our favorite LAPD detective.

This episode moves, and even Peggy is in danger, again thanks to Daniel Ullman's creative writing, a veteran of tv westerns; LARAMIE and WYATT EARP. Some fancy footwork here, comparable to any knock 'em down western. Western writers were, in fact, the backbone of this series.

I agree, I do NOT think Joe charged the kids a dime.

Worth staying up late for. SEASON 5 EPISODE 7 remastered color CBS dvd box set.