A romantic episode of Columbo? Perish the thought! And yet this late-entry episode in the long-running series works well, thanks to a script by Peter Falk, no less (for the only time in the series) and a guest appearance by the great Faye Dunaway, who really has a ball with her multi-layered guest villain role.
IT'S ALL IN THE GAME opens with quite a routine murder scene; no cunning plans here, just a straightforward shootings. There are the usual trivial clues that have no seeming link to the murder, but ones which Columbo gets his teeth into nonetheless. And Claudia Christian (THE HIDDEN) gives an ice-cold turn as the accomplice.
Where this episode offers something different is in the romance. Dunaway decides to seduce the sleuth, leading to scenes that are both touching and awkward; you've never seen Columbo like this before! Falk for his part plays it bashful and embarrassed, the two actors have genuine chemistry, and it's nice to see Dunaway on screen again years after she was a blockbuster actress. She won an Emmy for her performance here, so this episode is definitely worth a look for that reason alone.
IT'S ALL IN THE GAME opens with quite a routine murder scene; no cunning plans here, just a straightforward shootings. There are the usual trivial clues that have no seeming link to the murder, but ones which Columbo gets his teeth into nonetheless. And Claudia Christian (THE HIDDEN) gives an ice-cold turn as the accomplice.
Where this episode offers something different is in the romance. Dunaway decides to seduce the sleuth, leading to scenes that are both touching and awkward; you've never seen Columbo like this before! Falk for his part plays it bashful and embarrassed, the two actors have genuine chemistry, and it's nice to see Dunaway on screen again years after she was a blockbuster actress. She won an Emmy for her performance here, so this episode is definitely worth a look for that reason alone.