Sat, Sep 6, 08 - Columbo, Flashpoint, Greg The Bunny

06:30 Columbo
08:00 Flashpoint
09:00 Greg The Bunny
09:30 Greg The Bunny

Columbo. Episode 9. "Blueprint for Murder" A great script, but not one of the great episodes. Though it is very clever and satisfying it lacks the tension of the really great Columbo episodes. Patrick O'Neal makes a great foe in many respects, but the game of cat-and-mouse is never as engaging as it is in many other stories. I never believed that there was a contest between them, I suppose, so the ending felt like less of a "win" for the rumpled detective.

Flashpoint. Episode 5. "Who's George?" Predictable from the very first scene to the very last but still very good. Flashpoint does it's first bank-siege storyline and offers nothing that we haven't seen before in other shows. What makes it worthwhile, however, are the regular characters as they deal with the crisis and the aftermath. Parker, Lane and Braddock get a few pivotal scenes here and there and that is what I enjoyed. Braddock is used in this episode like Greg is on CSI and it works.

Greg The Bunny. Episode 12. "The Singing Mailman" A pretty good episode. Some genuine laughs as Dottie is blackmailed into getting a really bad actor onto the show. When he's bad (on camera) it's very funny, and the episode continues to amuse as we see how everyone reacts. First of all when they all openly hate him and later when Dottie has sweet-talked them all into helping her help the guy keep his job. At one point Alison is told the guy is "clearly ahead of his time". When she points out that this makes him no use to the show, the compliment is amended to: "He's only about three weeks ahead of his time, so by the time the show airs he'll be perfect!" Man, I laughed at that.

Greg The Bunny. Episode 8. "Jimmy Drives Gil Crazy" Decided to give this classic episode a second watch. It takes a heck of a long time to get going, but when it does it sure provides the laughs. Greg being held hostage in a speeding car: Funny! Jimmy tied up and filmed by a scantily-clad schoolgirl: Funny! The gang watching the police chase on TV: Funny! And Gil declaring his love for Corey Feldman: Funny! Definitely on a par with the egg-throwing episode.

Highlight? Flashpoint (sad ending)
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