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Had no idea there was a Columbo thread until someone in another forum pointed it out to me. I discovered the show about a month ago and it's probably been one of the best months of t.v. I've ever experienced. Others have mentioned this previously in the thread but I never realized how much a reliably entertaining formula could do for a show, and how much longevity it could have. So many of the shows that were big when I was younger like The X-Files, then later on stuff like 24 and Lost, they had some episodic elements but they also leaned heavily on a more serial nature where they wanted you to be able to follow storylines through entire seasons and beyond. And at the time that was treated as a step forward in the quality of t.v. entertainment and I suppose most people still think of it that way. Certainly the majority of successful shows today are serials, or at least partially serial. But with Columbo, the formula is so perfect and the guest stars so reliably excellent, there is a comfort level that I reached with it where I'm fluent in the language of the show and so it's kinda become like the background of my entire life. Get home from work and I have a few emails write, throw on an episode of Columbo while I do that. Every night as I'm winding down to go to bed, Columbo. Sunday morning when I wake up and don't feel like doing anything for a few hours, Columbo. I don't feel pressure to remember anything that's not contained in the episode I'm watching, and if I fall asleep during an episode I can pick it up right where I left off without any problems. And then of course, if I am in the mood to pay super close attention to every line and every facial expression, that's a totally rewarding experience too and each episode certainly will need to be watched at least twice to absorb all that stuff. I dunno man this may be one of the top 4 or 5 shows in t.v. history, it's just crazy to me that I could feel that way having only discovered it in my 30s more than five decades after it premiered.
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Feb 3, 2022 20:00
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| # ¿ May 10, 2024 12:34 |
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I watched Try and Catch Me from season 7 last night. I really enjoyed how Ruth Gordon was basically doing a Columbo impression, complete with "oh just one more thing Lieutenant..." She was definitely doing his mannerisms too.
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Feb 17, 2022 15:42
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I was just able to get my hands on the first season of the show after having seen a bunch of the later seasons. It's pretty amazing how fully formed the show is right from the start, like how did they know centering a detective show around Peter Falk would be such a home run?
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Mar 14, 2022 18:13
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El Fideo posted:The padding is often the best part. I feel like you also need some extraneous stuff so that it's not necessarily obvious all the time how Columbo is gonna find his leads and crack the case. If you start streamlining episodes down to 45 minutes I think naturally each case would become more simplified for the audience and Columbo's path to the answer would be obvious because they'd have to use every minute of screentime efficiently to lay the foundation for it. With the extra padding you can kinda camouflage those things a little more so the audience doesn't always see them coming from a mile way.
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Jul 7, 2022 14:04
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I also enjoy that initial period of time where the perp is all friendly to Columbo and arrogantly glad-handing him, and then that gradual realization that Columbo might actually be a threat.
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Jul 7, 2022 15:32
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I like the one with Robert Conrad where Columbo basically gets several sessions of free personal training from the guy before nailing him.
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Jul 8, 2022 14:40
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| # ¿ May 10, 2024 12:34 |
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A thought/question that occurred to me recently watching some Columbo. There are times, especially in particular episodes(I wouldn't be able to name the episodes off the top of my head) where the way Columbo says the word "m'aam" sounds weird. He like, puts a strange almost faux English accent on it or something, I dunno how to describe it exactly. So what I'm wondering if Falk just happened to say it that way for no particular reason, or maybe it's a specific character choice he made just to be a little more grating and annoying to the suspect? Like, he's already saying "m'aam" every two seconds and it clearly aggravates the women he's talking to because they know on some level it's not genuine and they just want to wring his neck, but is there an extra layer to it with the way he pronounces it or am I just thinking too much about this?
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Jan 26, 2024 21:47
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