Search - Columbo - The Complete Fourth Season on DVD

Columbo

Bill | Cleveland, Ohio USA | 06/26/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The fourth season ranks, in my opinion, with the second and first as being the best (I haven't seen season five yet), and, as there is almost universal agreement on, this set is highly recommended.

The episodes:

An Exercise in Fatality: Robert Conrad stars as a health club businessman who murders his partner and makes it look like an accident.

Negative Reaction: Dick Van Dyke plays against type as a famous photographer who kills his wife and makes it look like an ex-con committed the deed.

By Dawn's Early Light: Patrick McGoohan stars as the head of a military academy who kills one of the school's govenors by sabotaging a cannon on Founder's Day, making it look like a gun cleaning accident.

Troubled Waters: While vacationing on a cruise liner Columbo must solve the murder of the singer of the ship's band. The murderer, Robert Vaughn, sets up his alibi-he was recovering in Sick bay from a minor "heart attack."

Playback: An inventor video tapes his mother-in-law's murder and later plays it back to the security guard, to give himself an alibi.

A Deadly State of Mind: George Hamilton as a mesmerizing doctor who murders the husband of one of his patients that he's involved with (Leslie Ann Warren). He then decides to kill her.

Plus a Mrs. Columbo bonus episode: "A Riddle for Puppets."

Excuse me...just two more things:

1. Problems with the DVD is most likely an issue with your player, not the DVDs themselves. This is mostly evidenced by the thousands of copies that are watched with no problem. The DVD specification, and the huge variety of players out there guarantee some sporadic problems. Think of it as having to put a penny on the label of the 45 to keep it from slipping back when we used record players. It's possible that your disc is defective, but unlikely.

Don't let that potential problem stop you from watching these!

2. While I suppose some "extras" would be nice from an archival point of view, they're not necessary. With, what, thirty or forty episodes altogether, what is there to say about each one? This is a personality-driven show, so watching it is the real treat. I often...well maybe not often, but occasionally...wonder just what it is people do with the extras? Is it really all that interesting to watch the ten minute "backstage access" special or watch film trailers over and over again? How many films really warrant a commentary track, and of those, how many are well done? A few dozen over the history of film? Maybe? I'm all for the extras, but I suspect they would be of little interest in this series, and really would exist just to give those that complain about "no extras" the ability to complain about "bad extras."

Again, the lack of bonus materials shouldn't keep you from enjoying these shows. Enjoy!"

Season 4: When Columbo Was At Its Best

givbatam3 | REHOVOT Israel | 02/22/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Season 4 is when the series reached its peak.
Among outstanding guest stars were Patrick McGoohan
in "By Dawn's Early Light", Dick Van Dyke in "Negative
Reaction" and Robert Vaughan in "Troubled Waters".
If you can only afford one season's worth of DVD's,
this is the one. We see outstanding performances by
the guest stars, great directing, and ingenious
plots.
A tantalizing hint: It is in one of the episodes
from this season that we get closest to seeing
Mrs Columbo. Find out which one it is!"

A List of the Fourth Season Episodes

- Durrkk | Ohio/PA border USA | 03/17/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Here's a list of the six Columbo segments presented in this fourth season collection:

1.) AN EXERCISE IN FATALITY. Robert Conrad stars as a health club businessman who murders his partner and makes it look like an accident. This episode is highlighted by Gretchen Corbett who plays Conrad's sexy secretary.

2.) NEGATIVE REACTION. Dick Van Dyke plays against type as a famous photographer who kills his wife and makes it look like an ex-con committed the deed. This segment features the incredibly gorgeous JoAnna Cameron, who played Isis in the Saturday morning programs "Shazam" and "Isis" circa '75 and '76.

3.) BY DAWN'S EARLY LIGHT. Patrick McGoohan stars as the head of a military academy who kills one of the school's govenors by sabotaging a cannon on Founder's Day, making it look like a gun cleaning accident.

4.) TROUBLED WATERS. While vacationing on a cruise liner Columbo must solve the murder of the singer of the ship's band. The murderer, Robert Vaughn, sets up an ironclad alibi -- he was recovering in Sickbay from a minor "heart attack."

5.) PLAYBACK. An inventor video tapes his mother-in-law's murder and later plays it back to the security guard, to give himself an alibi.

6.) A DEADLY STATE OF MIND. George Hamilton stars as mesmerizing doctor who murders the husband of one of his patients that he's intimately involved with (Leslie Ann Warren). He then decides to kill her utilizing his hypnotic skills.

BONUS EPISODE: Mrs. Columbo -- "A Riddle for Puppets."

The three disks are thankfully one-sided, unlike the third season collection.

I'd rate the episodes, but we Columbo fans know that they're ALL fabulous!"

Fire the Executive Producer!

Martin Landau | New Jersey | 01/20/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Is the Executive Producer at Universal deaf, dumb & blind? Does he/she somehow not know about the Amazon review pages online? Does he/she somehow not know they are a direct reflection of the people's personal sentiments?

I've just received the 4th season from Amazon, and was shocked to see yet another no-frills packaged season set, ommiting any worthwhile extras, no interviews, no trivia, no trailers, promos, nothing.

Yet the producers, in their infinite backwards-wisdom, have decided to include yet another "bonus" episode of Mrs. Columbo, a putrid series that failed miserably and doesn't even qualify as a spin-off to Columbo, which it never was. If anyone has been reading reviews of the 3rd season, they will clearly see an overwhelming "negative reaction" to the Mrs. Columbo inclusion. All Columbo fans, myself included, love the show for its core essentials: Falk's mannerisms and his subtle nuances in forming the Lieutenant's character. The show also operated on a high level of intelligence . There was something special about the look of Columbo, and the style of Levinson & Link's storytelling. Columbo is ultimately about the power of perception and of course, the charm that Falk brought to the main character. Of course, none of this exists in the Mrs. Columbo production, and I couldn't even tell you the name of the actress who played her. I can't help but find the whole thing insulting- here we have an opportunity to create a lasting legacy for a very special show, and these mindless robots are insistent upon channeling Columbo down the superhighway of mainstream averageness. Columbo, Falk, Levinson & Link get 5 stars. The episodes do not even require review. They are all outstanding. The driving instruction scene with Larry Storch is hysterical, even after the 100th viewing.

The executive producers get zero stars. How fixated on mediocrity are the decision-makers at Universal??? And do the people's opinions mean anything? Apparently not.
"