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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mel O&#039;Drama" data-source="post: 286823" data-attributes="member: 23">It’s All In The Game <img src="https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=http%3A%2F%2F1.bp.blogspot.com%2F-npP9f-KgwDg%2FUx3LYDguedI%2FAAAAAAAMqvE%2FKY6lR0fT44c%2Fs1600%2FColumbo-Its_All_in_the_Game-1993-CSS1-012.jpg&f=1&nofb=1" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 452px" /><img src="https://miro.medium.com/max/360/0*-gScmogtCrHVvAz8.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 509px" />When one considers that he nixed his wife taking a role that involved her character kissing another man, it’s interesting that the only Columbo episode written by Peter Falk features a beautiful woman making numerous sexual overtures towards his character. And while I thought that aspect was credibly written (since she was doing it to try and distract him from his investigation), I found Columbo’s response to her advances quite out of character. To me it seems most unthinkable that he’d allow her to drape herself all over him and cover his face in lipstick without a mention of Mrs Columbo. And it's even more unlikely to me that the Columbo I know would turn up at his target's home with flowers in a violin case and arrange dates to dine with them. That aside, there’s a lot about this episode that works for me. Most importantly, the formula is present. The murder scheme was engaging - I particularly enjoyed the nod to an early episode (I’m thinking Suitable For Framing) with the electric blanket to keep the body warm. The dance of pursuit between Columbo and the killer was enjoyable to watch and there was good onscreen chemistry. There was some decent detection going on and the Gotcha was acceptable enough. The handwritten confession was arguably a bit OTT, but given Lauren was protecting her daughter I bought it. God forbid there’d be a Nineties Columbo episode without a twist. But as twists go, this one was one of the less insulting ones. In fact I quite liked it. On the other hand, I'm not sure how I feel about Columbo letting Lisa get away with her role in the murder. But then, if we're expected to believe Columbo's goo-goo over Lauren it makes some kind of sense. Casting was great in this episode. Faye Dunaway, naturally, lit up the screen. Claudia Christian gave a really lovely performance as her daughter Lisa. It was great to see Doug Sheehan whose spontaneous and natural performance was a great fit here (as I watched, I thought he’d be a definite contender for the “Actors Who Deserve A Better Career” thread. He’s such a great, watchable actor). It was also great fun to see the wonderful Shelley Morrison - best known to me as Rosario in Will & Grace - once again playing a maid. Unfortunately, she was part of a gag that went on for far too long: the “On. Off. On. Off. On. Off” bit as Columbo messed with the circuit board and she kept an eye on the fridge light. But she gave it her all, and I loved her look of disgust midway through when it became apparent it was going to go on for a while. On the subject of filler, I found the diner scenes in this episode very static and dull. I feel the episode could have been that much better were it a little shorter. And just when I thought the episode was over, we had another diner scene to wrap things up. But, all told, not a bad episode. </blockquote>

Verification: What month follows July?