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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Angela Channing" data-source="post: 277365" data-attributes="member: 33">I'm so glad you liked this episode too and reading your review reminds me why it's my second favourite Columbo episode. I always think the best episodes are the one when Columbo and the murderer have a great chemistry and in this one they have it in bucket-loads. A significant part of every Columbo episode is the conversations between the lieutenant and the murderer so when they have a strong rapport it elevates the whole episode into something quite special. Add to the mix that Donald Pleasence created a fascinating, multi-layered and likeable character in Adrian Carsini and viewers are well on to the way of knowing this is one of the great episodes of Columbo.Every scene that Peter Falk and Donald Pleasence have together is electric. There's another scene which you didn't reference in which Columbo give a great insight into how his mind works. When Carsini offers Columbo a glass of wine and the lieutenant stops him from telling him what it is. Columbo tastes it, come out with a lot a wine jargon before identifying it as being one of 2 possible wines. Carsini is astounded by Columbo's knowledge and then  the lieutenant reveals he did it by knowing that Carsini only made certain types of wine and it wasn't the previous wine that he had tried so it was down to detective work rather than wine knowledge. It's a beautifully written and acted scene.The plot itself has holes, some of which you have pointed out, but that doesn't matter because everything else is so good that I'm prepared to overlook the few shortcomings it has. That said:The temperature on the day in question was exceptional and only achieved a handful of times  in history so it wasn't unreasonable for Carsini to assume that the wine would remain below the critical temperature above which it would go off but yes, it was a risk.Rigor mortis is a temporary condition, it sets in a few hours after someone dies but wears off after a few days. That's not to say it wouldn't be difficult (if not near impossible) to put a dead body in a wet suit single handedly.One thing that did bother me about the gotcha was why Carsini threw away all the wine. He said he was one of only a small number of people in the world who would be able to tell that the wine had been subjected to a high temperature so why didn't he sell it to one of the other billion plus other people who wouldn't know the difference? I guess he was such a wine snob and didn't want his reputation harmed that he wouldn't do such a thing.They were great and I think this episode is the first time that Vito Scotti (the maitre d') appeared in Columbo, he appears in several more roles in the original run and the rebooted series. I did wonder if Columbo or the LAPD eventually did pay for the meal in the end after all Columbo did supply the bad wine that was the reason for the bill being waived.I first saw this episode of Columbo when I was a child and at the time I previously had only seen Donald Pleasence in TV adverts for Holsten Pils.I can't adequately convey how much I loved the ending. The acting of the 2 principles was perfection. Carsini had caused his brother to died in what must have been a slow, uncomfortable and painful way, for which he showed no remorse, but I couldn't help but like him and feel sorry for him and that was down to the brilliance of Donald Pleasence. Every time he appeared in a scene, I felt we were watching an acting genius.</blockquote>

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