Columbo: Fade in to Murder

September 9, 2022 8:29 PM - Season 6, Episode 1

Columbo investigates the death of a TV producer and immediately gets the attention of actor and murderer Ward Fowler (William Shatner), who plays a detective on TV. Fowler immediately sees through Columbo's aw-shucks act ("Why don't we stop pretending that I'm brilliant and you're simple for one moment?") and is among the least visibly rattled of Columbo's opponents. Episode is currently free to stream in the US via Amazon's Freevee (formerly IMDbTV), as is Columbo in general.
posted by brainwane (2 comments total)

This is one of my favourites for the mix of dislike and calculation Columbo has for the actor. It’s not breaking the fourth wall but it still does twist in a meta way and there’s this nice recognition between them that makes the tension crackle.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 5:43 PM on September 12, 2022 [2 favorites]

I watched this the other night! It's such an odd and tense one, for the reasons you suggest. But Shatner is so perfectly cast.

I just watched one with Johnny Cash earlier tonight. How do they get famous people to be on this show and basically play slightly-but-accurately uncharitable versions of themselves?
posted by iamkimiam at 3:37 PM on December 18, 2022