This is a terrific episode with an intriguing plot, some great action scenes and some nice twists. The bodies really pile up too.
It's about a briefcase that is stolen during a hotel robbery and the owner of the briefcase, who is a syndicate lawyer, hires Mannix to find it. The lawyer is played by Barry Atwater and it's well-known that he was a heavy steroid user which resulted in significant and noticeable changes to his face, which is evident here as he looks pretty bizarre and sickly. In fact, Joe himself even comments on his appearance at one point. In the scene where he's talking to syndicate hood Johnny Larkin at Larkin's house, he said that he had just met with his client and that "he looked awful", which is quite prophetic as Atwater died at the age of 60 about four years after this episode aired.
Robert Reed makes his final appearance and has a substantial role and is excellent. Barbara Rhoades makes her third and final appearance and shows off the long legs that she's known for. James Luisi makes his second and final appearance and is solid once again as a syndicate hood.
There's an exciting and extended car chase, the best one in quite a while. There's also a great action scene at the end.
There are no clichés once again, which has been the case for pretty much this entire season, which makes this season unique in that respect as all of the previous seasons were loaded with clichés from start to finish. Joe has only been clobbered in the head once this entire season!
Joe should know better by now than to be talking to syndicate hoods in a dark and lonely warehouse. That never turns out well.
The total body count is four, the highest in quite a while.
One problem I had is at the end Joe is essentially able to solve the entire case based on one thing that Peggy said, which is unrealistic, but other than that, this one is outstanding.
It's about a briefcase that is stolen during a hotel robbery and the owner of the briefcase, who is a syndicate lawyer, hires Mannix to find it. The lawyer is played by Barry Atwater and it's well-known that he was a heavy steroid user which resulted in significant and noticeable changes to his face, which is evident here as he looks pretty bizarre and sickly. In fact, Joe himself even comments on his appearance at one point. In the scene where he's talking to syndicate hood Johnny Larkin at Larkin's house, he said that he had just met with his client and that "he looked awful", which is quite prophetic as Atwater died at the age of 60 about four years after this episode aired.
Robert Reed makes his final appearance and has a substantial role and is excellent. Barbara Rhoades makes her third and final appearance and shows off the long legs that she's known for. James Luisi makes his second and final appearance and is solid once again as a syndicate hood.
There's an exciting and extended car chase, the best one in quite a while. There's also a great action scene at the end.
There are no clichés once again, which has been the case for pretty much this entire season, which makes this season unique in that respect as all of the previous seasons were loaded with clichés from start to finish. Joe has only been clobbered in the head once this entire season!
Joe should know better by now than to be talking to syndicate hoods in a dark and lonely warehouse. That never turns out well.
The total body count is four, the highest in quite a while.
One problem I had is at the end Joe is essentially able to solve the entire case based on one thing that Peggy said, which is unrealistic, but other than that, this one is outstanding.