What are your take on the great Columbo mysteries?

L Thammy · Sep 6, 2021

Despite the Columbo being such a formula show and taking so much from its main character's well-defined quirks, a big part of what makes the show work is what isn't clear about him. We see a lot of how he operates, but not necessary who he is or how he thinks, so there's room to interpret.

So here's the thread topic. How do you personally fill in the blanks around Columbo? For example:

- Does Columbo know the killer from the start and only needs to prove it, or does he figure it out along the way?
- Is Columbo a genius or does he solve his cases through hard work?
- Is Columbo actually as friendly as he seems to be, or is he playing it up to approach the criminal?
- Is Columbo legitimately scatterbrained, or is he trying to keep the killers off guard?
- Are Columbo's stories real, such as the ones he tells about his wife, or does he make them up to serve a purpose?

Lord Fanny · Sep 6, 2021

- Does Columbo know the killer from the start and only needs to prove it, or does he figure it out along the way?

In some cases, he does and some he doesn't. The show leaves this vague, but there are episodes where it is clearer. Like there is one episode I recall where he is working with the killer, who is another cop or detective, and it's not until an interaction with another character (I believe the victims wife who was involved in the murder) when the show clearly choreographs that a light goes off for Columbo. There are other times where he'll say something to the degree of 'I suspected this from the beginning.' The show is kind of subtle with this, but if you watch the small things in most movies/episodes, you can kind of see when he knows and when he doesn't.

- Is Columbo a genius or does he solve his cases through hard work?

Probably a little of both

- Is Columbo actually as friendly as he seems to be, or is he playing it up to approach the criminal?

Both. He's a friendly guy, in general, but also plays up his aloof nature to get close to those he suspects I imagine

- Is Columbo legitimately scatterbrained, or is he trying to keep the killers off guard?

Like above, I think it's a combo of both

- Are Columbo's stories real, such as the ones he tells about his wife, or does he make them up to serve a purpose?

I think they are real? I don't really see any reason for this to be made up, and I don't ever recall a time in any episode I watched where this played into the narrative in any way. I think it's more just a way of humanizing him and giving him a little extra personality. I don't think there is a lot more to it than that, honestly.

Jarmel · Sep 6, 2021

Lord Fanny said:
- Does Columbo know the killer from the start and only needs to prove it, or does he figure it out along the way?

In some cases, he does and some he doesn't. The show leaves this vague, but there are episodes where it is clearer. Like there is one episode I recall where he is working with the killer, who is another cop or detective, and it's not until an interaction with another character (I believe the victims wife who was involved in the murder) when the show clearly choreographs that a light goes off for Columbo. There are other times where he'll say something to the degree of 'I suspected this from the beginning.' The show is kind of subtle with this, but if you watch the small things in most movies/episodes, you can kind of see when he knows and when he doesn't.

- Is Columbo a genius or does he solve his cases through hard work?

Probably a little of both

- Is Columbo actually as friendly as he seems to be, or is he playing it up to approach the criminal?

Both. He's a friendly guy, in general, but also plays up his aloof nature to get close to those he suspects I imagine

- Is Columbo legitimately scatterbrained, or is he trying to keep the killers off guard?

Like above, I think it's a combo of both

- Are Columbo's stories real, such as the ones he tells about his wife, or does he make them up to serve a purpose?

I think they are real? I don't really see any reason for this to be made up, and I don't ever recall a time in any episode I watched where this played into the narrative in any way. I think it's more just a way of humanizing him and giving him a little extra personality. I don't think there is a lot more to it than that, honestly.

I generally agree with almost all of this except he probably is a genius as some of those revelations he has are pretty high IQ. He also picks up on stuff insanely fast.

dodo · Sep 6, 2021

great idea for a thread. rewatching the series for the first time in a while now and I've been having fun with similar questions.

- Does Columbo know the killer from the start and only needs to prove it, or does he figure it out along the way?

I feel like you can tell whenever he's got his hunch. It's usually in the first conversation he has with the killer, sometimes the second or third, but more or less whenever he starts needling someone being overly accommodating to him, he knows it's them.

- Is Columbo a genius or does he solve his cases through hard work?

iirc the writers and Falk always maintained that Columbo is something of a force of nature.

- Is Columbo actually as friendly as he seems to be, or is he playing it up to approach the criminal?

I'm not sure I'd characterize him as friendly actually. He's very polite on the surface but if it weren't for the fact he's explicitly presented as a protagonist detective I would find him incredibly menacing. Imagine the living hell your life would become pissing Columbo off on accident

EDIT- I do think that his act is more or less his genuine personality, however. My evidence would be the handful of episodes where he gets truly angry with the suspect. Falk plays it so earnestly every time it really feels like someone who doesn't get angry very often getting angry.

- Is Columbo legitimately scatterbrained, or is he trying to keep the killers off guard?

I don't think it's an act, most of the time, except...

- Are Columbo's stories real, such as the ones he tells about his wife, or does he make them up to serve a purpose?

...sometimes, his anecdotes and stories are. Occasionally he comes off like he's playing with his food.

Jarmel · Sep 6, 2021

dodo said:
I'm not sure I'd characterize him as friendly actually. He's very polite on the surface but if it weren't for the fact he's explicitly presented as a protagonist detective I would find him incredibly menacing. Imagine the living hell your life would become pissing Columbo off on accident

Yea sometimes he can be a real asshole if he thinks it serves his purpose.

Greg NYC3 · Sep 6, 2021

L Thammy said:
Despite the Columbo being such a formula show and taking so much from its main character's well-defined quirks, a big part of what makes the show work is what isn't clear about him. We see a lot of how he operates, but not necessary who he is or how he thinks, so there's room to interpret.

So here's the thread topic. How do you personally fill in the blanks around Columbo? For example:

- Does Columbo know the killer from the start and only needs to prove it, or does he figure it out along the way?
- Is Columbo a genius or does he solve his cases through hard work?
- Is Columbo actually as friendly as he seems to be, or is he playing it up to approach the criminal?
- Is Columbo legitimately scatterbrained, or is he trying to keep the killers off guard?
- Are Columbo's stories real, such as the ones he tells about his wife, or does he make them up to serve a purpose?

I don't know how many of these are really blanks, I think a bunch of his personality traits are very clearly laid out from the beginning in the show. I'll give my opinion on each one though.

- Does Columbo know the killer from the start and only needs to prove it, or does he figure it out along the way?
It differs from case to case. Sometimes the killer makes a really obvious error as soon as Columbo first meets them that gives them away. Other times he seems really unsure and figures it out very near the end of the episode. There's even one episode where Columbo seems sure who the killer is then that person got murdered and completely threw him for a loop.

- Is Columbo a genius or does he solve his cases through hard work?
I don't know if genius is the right word but he has an amazing intuition and application of common sense. In addition to that he has an amazing eye for small details. He definitely puts in the hard work in each case too.

- Is Columbo actually as friendly as he seems to be, or is he playing it up to approach the criminal?
His friendliness is an act. He's not a bad guy but he rarely has any real feelings for the murderer. He's doing his job, but there has been a few times where he seemed to feel sympathy for the murder and seemed to feel genuinely bad about having to arrest them.

- Is Columbo legitimately scatterbrained, or is he trying to keep the killers off guard?
He's not a scatterbrain, that's an act to make the killers feel like he's dumb so they're not threatened by him.

- Are Columbo's stories real, such as the ones he tells about his wife, or does he make them up to serve a purpose?
Most of the stories are real. There was even an episode where the killer was a spy who has Columbo's house bugged so we find out the stuff he was saying about his wife in that episode was real. He will make up stuff if it helps to make the killer slip up though.

Ultima_5 · Sep 6, 2021

L Thammy said:
Despite the Columbo being such a formula show and taking so much from its main character's well-defined quirks, a big part of what makes the show work is what isn't clear about him. We see a lot of how he operates, but not necessary who he is or how he thinks, so there's room to interpret.

So here's the thread topic. How do you personally fill in the blanks around Columbo? For example:

- Does Columbo know the killer from the start and only needs to prove it, or does he figure it out along the way? He seems to typically know from the start. Since most of the crimes involve financial gain, it probably isn't to tricky for him to know
- Is Columbo a genius or does he solve his cases through hard work? He seems to mostly be shown as a genius... we see him work, but he isn't doing anything to crazy.
- Is Columbo actually as friendly as he seems to be, or is he playing it up to approach the criminal? Seems like a friendly guy, based on how he interacts with people who aren't suspects. he is playing it up however for the criminals.
- Is Columbo legitimately scatterbrained, or is he trying to keep the killers off guard? Its an act so they under estimate him
- Are Columbo's stories real, such as the ones he tells about his wife, or does he make them up to serve a purpose? Made up. most of them are just to relate to the criminal ("oh, you love wine? my wife she went to a winery blah blah blah)". There's no proof he actually has a wife (other than that spinoff they tried to make). We actually see very little of his personal life apart from his car and dog.

Quinton · Sep 6, 2021

I really wish they got one more story in before... well, you know.

There were plans!

Kard8p3 · Sep 6, 2021

I've never watched columbo, but this 26~ minute video essay makes me tempted

John Dunbar · Sep 6, 2021

biggest columbo mystery: how many of the criminals he arrests would actually get convicted? assuming they don't just confess, trying to prove most of those cases beyond reasonable doubt seems impossible.

AlgusUnderdunk · Sep 6, 2021

Columbo uses a LOT of obfuscating stupidity to get people off-guard when he talks to them. But he is genuinely a friendly, humble, hard-working guy.

Jims · Sep 6, 2021

Regarding the scatterbrained question, I feel like it's deliberate in a sense that he knows it's a strategy he can take, so he doesn't worry about small unrelated details. I remember an episode where he's dumping out evidence out of a bag and he's like, "oh, that's my sandwich, that doesn't mean anything." And he didn't bother putting the sandwich somewhere else because, worst case scenario, it'll either disarm the suspect or provoke them. It literally doesn't matter where he put it, at that point.

I feel like, in some episode where the killer is super obvious to him, Columbo skips the disarming/underestimating strategy and just trolls the suspect to death.

Greg NYC3 · Sep 6, 2021

John Dunbar said:
biggest columbo mystery: how many of the criminals he arrests would actually get convicted? assuming they don't just confess, trying to prove most of those cases beyond reasonable doubt seems impossible.

Yep, there's definitely some cases that would have been impossible to get convictions. I'd love a spinoff show of just the trials actually lol

Jims said:
Regarding the scatterbrained question, I feel like it's deliberate in a sense that he knows it's a strategy he can take, so he doesn't worry about small unrelated details. I remember an episode where he's dumping out evidence out of a bag and he's like, "oh, that's my sandwich, that doesn't mean anything." And he didn't bother putting the sandwich somewhere else because, worst case scenario, it'll either disarm the suspect or provoke them. It literally doesn't matter where he put it, at that point.

I feel like, in some episode where the killer is super obvious to him, Columbo skips the disarming/underestimating strategy and just trolls the suspect to death.

The best episodes are the ones where the killer commits the perfect crime so Columbo just tortures them until they confess 😁

Dodongo · Sep 6, 2021

I just want to know if they ever gave him a raise. Dude was nailing murder suspects left and right.

Silvergun-Blue · Sep 6, 2021

Kard8p3 said:
I've never watched columbo, but this 26~ minute video essay makes me tempted

I got that one on my recommendations after watching this PushingUpRoses video. Both great watches and I confess that I knew about Columbo from a pop culture viewpoint but had never actually sat and watched it. I love the term "howcatchum"

The History and Influence of Columbo - The Quirky Detective Who Won Our Hearts

Just one more thing.Consider Supporting me on Patreon: http://patreon.com/pushinguprosesSocial Media:Twitter: http://twitter.com/pushinuprosesFacebook: http:...

www.youtube.com

Kard8p3 · Sep 6, 2021

Silvergun-Blue said:
I got that one on my recommendations after watching this PushingUpRoses video. Both great watches and I confess that I knew about Columbo from a pop culture viewpoint but had never actually sat and watched it. I love the term "howcatchum"

The History and Influence of Columbo - The Quirky Detective Who Won Our Hearts

Just one more thing.Consider Supporting me on Patreon: http://patreon.com/pushinguprosesSocial Media:Twitter: http://twitter.com/pushinuprosesFacebook: http:...

www.youtube.com

As someone who loves murder mysteries, I absolutely adore the term "howcatchum"

Whistler · Sep 6, 2021

It's such a perfect show. A wonderful time capsule, Falk is instantly iconic, all the villain guest stars are so much fun. It's also the only "howcatchum" that works, since it understands the point of the genre. Knives Out, for instance, tried to subvert this but failed since the point of Columbo is that you want to see these people get caught.

Silvergun-Blue · Sep 6, 2021

Jims said:
Regarding the scatterbrained question, I feel like it's deliberate in a sense that he knows it's a strategy he can take, so he doesn't worry about small unrelated details. I remember an episode where he's dumping out evidence out of a bag and he's like, "oh, that's my sandwich, that doesn't mean anything." And he didn't bother putting the sandwich somewhere else because, worst case scenario, it'll either disarm the suspect or provoke them. It literally doesn't matter where he put it, at that point.

Falk would work these things into the scenes without even telling the other performer, he'd blindside them with some weird little unexpected thing like asking for a pen and their confused scramble to comply would translate into the characters general reaction to Columbo, I fucking love that.

The show also traveled extremely well, it's premise of the smug rich person being taken down by the scruffy everyman translates well no matter the language.

sir_crocodile · Sep 6, 2021

First reply nailed anything except the stories. Columbo mixes true stories and fake ones as he pleases.

L Thammy · Sep 6, 2021

Silvergun-Blue said:
The show also traveled extremely well, it's premise of the smug rich person being taken down by the scruffy everyman translates well no matter the language.

I feel like a lot of fun could be had with this today, especially if it goes the route of having villains who are obvious analogues of some real life celebrity.

For example, have Columbo take down Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and Jeff Bezos.

b-dubs · Sep 6, 2021

Quinton said:
I really wish they got one more story in before... well, you know.

There were plans!

FYI, one of the writers or producers put out a book of Columbo stories. They're all pretty short and quick reads, but scratch that itch really well.

Silvergun-Blue · Sep 6, 2021

Greg NYC3 said:
The best episodes are the ones where the killer commits the perfect crime so Columbo just tortures them until they confess 😁

"Being chased by Columbo is like being nibbled to death by a duck" - Peter Falk.

Choppasmith · Sep 6, 2021

Kard8p3 said:
I've never watched columbo, but this 26~ minute video essay makes me tempted

Just fyi you can watch it on both Peacock and Tubi. Both should be free.

Kard8p3 · Sep 6, 2021

Choppasmith said:
Just fyi you can watch it on both Peacock and Tubi. Both should be free.

Awesome, will check it out asap thank you!

HStallion · Sep 6, 2021

You see Columbo drop the façade on a couple occasions. The episode with Leonard Nemoy as the doctor who purposefully fucks up a heart surgery then kills the nurse who is going to turn him in had Columbo ultra pissed. By the end he basically confronts Nemoy's character, calls him out without any of the usual absent minded theatrics and does it in a manner that is anything but friendly. Columbo would come at them hard if they actually managed to piss him off.

Choppasmith · Sep 6, 2021

Kard8p3 said:
Awesome, will check it out asap thank you!

I almost forgot, if you can find it try and find Prescription Murder, this is essentially the pilot movie and is separate from the series. I know it's on Peacock, not sure about Tubi.

turtle553 · Sep 6, 2021

HStallion said:
You see Columbo drop the façade on a couple occasions. The episode with Leonard Nemoy as the doctor who purposefully fucks up a heart surgery then kills the nurse who is going to turn him in had Columbo ultra pissed. By the end he basically confronts Nemoy's character, calls him out without any of the usual absent minded theatrics and does it in a manner that is anything but friendly. Columbo would come at them hard if they actually managed to piss him off.

Just watched that one. He waited until the very last second with the doctor thinking he won.

Binging a lot of them lately, it's funny how many people were prepared for a complicated murder plot at the drop of a hat.

bill crystals · Sep 6, 2021

Columbo might feign geniality to put criminals off guard/frustrate/menace them...but he is always perfectly polite and genuinely friendly to all the ancillary "small guy" characters he interacts with. Seems like a genuinely good guy. Of course ACAB so first up against the wall.

ConfusingJazz · Sep 6, 2021

Colombo is a hard working and smart guy. You can also usually tell he generally knows who did it at the beginning of the episode, because his demeanor between innocent and guilty is a completely different kind of nice, which is a supreme compliment to Peter Falk's acting abilities. He is a confident supporter of witnesses and potential victims, and an agreeable, sometimes forgetful friend to the guilty.

And I think Colombo's wife is real, I also pretend the other tv show isn't real.

Watershed · Sep 6, 2021

I'm a huge Columbo fan including owning several Columbo books and listening to Columbo podcasts and interviews with the creators. I love how much the show leaves up to us (though it occasionally contradicts itself and rarely takes its own continuity seriously.

Does Columbo know the killer from the start and only needs to prove it, or does he figure it out along the way?

Most of the time, Columbo figures out who the killer is or has a strong inclination after meeting them for the first time. He figures it out, even before having tangible clues, often based on how the murderer acts and responds to Columbo's questions. For example, most Columbo murderers are guilty of two things upon meeting Columbo: 1) immediately giving him their alibi 2) giving Columbo their version of how the dead person died.

- Is Columbo a genius or does he solve his cases through hard work?

Columbo is not a genius but he is very smart, VERY observant, understands human nature, AND is incredibly hardworking. We don't see every aspect of an investigation and often he will mention work he did off screen.

- Is Columbo actually as friendly as he seems to be, or is he playing it up to approach the criminal?

The Columbo we see interacting with murderers is largely an act. He has certain "moves" and "lines" he uses as part of his method. That said, I do think Columbo's personality is largely what we see.

- Is Columbo legitimately scatterbrained, or is he trying to keep the killers off guard?

A mix of both. He is haphazard in some ways, but also putting on an act so that murderers underestimate him.

- Are Columbo's stories real, such as the ones he tells about his wife, or does he make them up to serve a purpose?

The overwhelming majority of them are made up, especially concerning his numerous cousins and nephews and the very varied tastes of his wife.

Similarly, a few episodes mention Columbo having a child, but most of the time it is suggested that he only has a wife. A 90s episode makes clear the Columbos never had children. Yet, an officially sanctioned Columbo novel tells us he has at least two children. Continuity issues. Mrs. Columbo is definitely real. I believe they never had children. And the Mrs. Columbo show is not canon.

Nappuccino · Sep 6, 2021

Whistler said:
It's such a perfect show. A wonderful time capsule, Falk is instantly iconic, all the villain guest stars are so much fun. It's also the only "howcatchum" that works, since it understands the point of the genre. Knives Out, for instance, tried to subvert this but failed since the point of Columbo is that you want to see these people get caught.

A bold, incorrect claim. Different stories with different goals can work differently.

As for Columbo, it's probably the best mystery show--certainly of the full-length film variety, but maybe all together. My only quibble is that the episodes do get a bit rote here and there.

But as for the subject of the thread, I love how they intentionally muddy the waters. Sometimes Columbo is just so callous, like to the woman actor who was sucked into her love-interest's murder plot. He's surprising, and surprising in the best way because every surprise fits one more piece of him. But, he's never "complete."

If we had all the answers to the above questions, Columbo wouldn't be near as interesting.

Mezentine · Sep 6, 2021

I like the version in which he's genuinely a nice, considerate person who cares about catching killers, but also basically everything when he's on the job is deliberate performance. I don't think he always knows "who the killer is", but he's got it down to two or three suspects within the first round of interviews, and absolutely everything else after that is him just fucking with them to try and get them to crack. The stories about his wife, or his cousin, or his nephew, are probably 80% bullshit

LaoJim · Sep 7, 2021

L Thammy said:
- Is Columbo legitimately scatterbrained, or is he trying to keep the killers off guard?

The story I heard (not sure if it's mentioned in one of the analysis videos), is that during the filming of the pilot of Columbo, Peter Falk forgot a line containing important exposition, but caught his mistake just as he was exiting the scene and improvised - leading to the famous 'Oh, I nearly forgot, just one more thing I need to clear up' character trait that inevitably drives the villian crazy. The director decided it worked better that way.

Watershed · Sep 7, 2021

LaoJim said:
The story I heard (not sure if it's mentioned in one of the analysis videos), is that during the filming of the pilot of Columbo, Peter Falk forgot a line containing important exposition, but caught his mistake just as he was exiting the scene and improvised - leading to the famous 'Oh, I nearly forgot, just one more thing I need to clear up' character trait that inevitably drives the villian crazy. The director decided it worked better that way.

That's not quite it. It was written into the script in the original play that the TV movie Prescription Murder (starring Falk in the Columbo role) is an adaptation of. In that original play, the writers (the creators of Columbo) wrote the "just one more thing" line as a way to bring Columbo back into a scene he had just walked out of. It was a convenient solution, but it was scripted and a part of the very first version of Prescription Murder before Peter Falk was ever involved.

Silvergun-Blue · Sep 7, 2021

LaoJim said:
The story I heard (not sure if it's mentioned in one of the analysis videos), is that during the filming of the pilot of Columbo, Peter Falk forgot a line containing important exposition, but caught his mistake just as he was exiting the scene and improvised - leading to the famous 'Oh, I nearly forgot, just one more thing I need to clear up' character trait that inevitably drives the villian crazy. The director decided it worked better that way.

As far as I know "One more thing" comes from when it was a stage play (before film/Falk) and one of the scenes was running slightly too short so they had Columbo walk back on stage with the now immortal line.

Quinton · Sep 7, 2021

B-Dubs said:
FYI, one of the writers or producers put out a book of Columbo stories. They're all pretty short and quick reads, but scratch that itch really well.

Oh, awesome. I'll check it out.

N64Controller · Sep 7, 2021

I remember watching some of them as a kid with my mom. The one that still stands out to me was that one where this guy was actually able to fool Colombo, he thought a woman was dead but the guy didn't kill her yet to throw Colombo off the scent (I think she was in on it somehow? it's been literally more than 20 years since I watched that) he then killed her and hid her in a zipbag.

It made Colombo not feel like he was invincible, so that was nice. Maybe I'm misremembering things, but to me it cemented how I liked the series!

So in my mind I think he can tell when someone is a killer, or a would be killer, but he's not 100% sure.

Choppasmith · Sep 7, 2021

GoemonTheNinja said:
I remember watching some of them as a kid with my mom. The one that still stands out to me was that one where this guy was actually able to fool Colombo, he thought a woman was dead but the guy didn't kill her yet to throw Colombo off the scent (I think she was in on it somehow? it's been literally more than 20 years since I watched that) he then killed her and hid her in a zipbag.

It made Colombo not feel like he was invincible, so that was nice. Maybe I'm misremembering things, but to me it cemented how I liked the series!

So in my mind I think he can tell when someone is a killer, or a would be killer, but he's not 100% sure.

I actually just watched that episode a couple days ago! It's "Columbo Cries Wolf" from Season 9 (in the 90s). Those episodes, they really tried to shake things up.

the murderer and the victim worked together to stage a disappearance with fake clues and everything just to increase the value of their magazine, when the victim still wanted to sell the magazine, he killed her for real.

BrokenFiction · Sep 7, 2021

I actually just started watching Columbo for the first time and I love it. I've only just started season 2. One thing I've noticed is that after the crime is committed, and Columbo first speaks to who we know to be the killer, they almost always are sassy and obstinate about the investigation, no matter how trivial the matter, instead of saying "I'll cooperate in anyway i can." Every damn time.

kamineko · Sep 7, 2021

I believe Columbo is a nice guy IRL, but his detective persona is part real, part façade. I love it when he lets it drop--this doesn't happen every episode--and tells the killer he has them cold. Wonderful TV moment, every time

Ultima_5 · Sep 7, 2021

BrokenFiction said:
I actually just started watching Columbo for the first time and I love it. I've only just started season 2. One thing I've noticed is that after the crime is committed, and Columbo first speaks to who we know to be the killer, they almost always are sassy and obstinate about the investigation, no matter how trivial the matter, instead of saying "I'll cooperate in anyway i can." Every damn time.

They mix that up a bit as time goes on with them wanting to help the investigation sometimes. Enjoy! It's a fantastic series

sir_crocodile · Sep 7, 2021

ConfusingJazz said:
And I think Colombo's wife is real, I also pretend the other tv show isn't real.

Columbo's wife is confirmed as real in a number of episodes (Troubled Waters, No Time to Die, Rest In Peace Mrs Columbo, etc).

Lafazar · Sep 7, 2021

MonsterJail · Sep 7, 2021

A bit of an aside - I only started watching Columbo this year and if you're looking for a good start, the very first proper episode (Murder by the book, directed by Steven Spielberg) is an absolute banger

Discontent · Sep 7, 2021

People have answered the questions better than I could have but I just wanna say Columbo is the best TV show ever made.

Swiggins · Sep 7, 2021

Jims · Sep 7, 2021

MonsterJail said:
A bit of an aside - I only started watching Columbo this year and if you're looking for a good start, the very first proper episode (Murder by the book, directed by Steven Spielberg) is an absolute banger

I started watching them earlier this year and completely agree. Honestly, the first two regular episodes are such a good primer for the series, going from Jack Cassidy to Robert Culp in back to back episodes. It makes such a great first impression, it's hard not to fall down the rabbit hole of watching all of Season 1.

Soybean · Sep 7, 2021

I'm watching Murder by the Book right now on Peacock thanks to this thread. Halfway in and I'm already hooked. Thank you all!

St. Elmo's Fire · Sep 8, 2021

L Thammy said:
- Are Columbo's stories real, such as the ones he tells about his wife, or does he make them up to serve a purpose?

He makes most of them up to serve a purpose.

Watershed · Sep 8, 2021

St. Elmo's Fire said:
He makes most of them up to serve a purpose.

Exactly.

What are your take on the great Columbo mysteries?

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