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Cold Case Season 3 Episode 17

Superstar

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8.6

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Episode Summary

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AIRED: 3/26/06

When a poison-soaked towel turns up at the station, Lilly re-opens the 1973 case of a murdered female college tennis star.

Fan Episode Reviews (9)

good episode....

10

By facebookfan, Oct 01, 2009

The team reopens the 1973 murder of female tennis player when the victim's sister comes foreward with evidence indicating someone may have tried it poison her. As usual, the the acting, music and plot was excellent. However, it was about time they did a tennis episode. I really felt bad for Andi, the victim. She was pretty, intelligent and (of course) great at tennis. However, her overbaring father, stalker-ish reporter friend, and the pressure of male "friends" to fail (because back then girls weren't supposed to be good @ sports) and her female "friends" to show everyone that girls rule and guys drool @ everything put Andi in a bad place, almost making her run away from and be her own person (before her untimely death, though).

Overall: 10/10moreless
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The sister of a 1973 murder victim finds her sister's towel laced with a deadly poison prompting the detectives to re-open the case.

7.2

By luckydagangsta, Jun 11, 2008

I can only describe this episode as I would describe tennis: BORING! It revolves around tennis. I mean, I don't know much about sports, but I don't get all of these conspiracies going on about tennis. Everyone wanted to get this girl because of tennis.

I feel more sad for her sister. It was sad to see the way her dad treated her, how he was going on about her being his superstar right in front of her. It was also sad to see how her dad treated Andi. He pushed her too way too hard and it was sad that because of it she wasn't able to get a life outside of tennis before she died.moreless
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There is more to the surface than simple battle of the sexes tennis match in this episode and a student that just want to play tennis, minus all of the political issues that are surrounding her game.moreless

9.2

By Minarvia, Jul 08, 2007

There is more to the surface than simple battle of the sexes tennis match in this episode and a student that just want to play tennis, minus all of the political issues that are surrounding her game.

Once again I see, an allegory in this episode, which I like seeing, but it isn‘t over the top, for it let‘s the viewer see the allegory without the writers connecting the dots for us. This time the allegory it the dark side of a person’s new found fame. How the new media and the fans can trump a person up as the greatest thing since slice bread, also now it can ruffle the feathers of a person fellow associates, how they think that they have gone all “Hollywood” on them. Despite the fact that they think that they haven’t done that and that they feel in the long run, that they will still be doing their job when all of the 15 minutes of fame has passed them by and the general public has move on a new craze. A good example of this, are the stars of Discovery’s hit series “Deadliest Catch”, who feel that they haven’t changed but the fellow fishermen that don’t get the airtime, feel like that they have changed.

This episode also goes into the demented world of obsessed fans that feel that it was them that had made the person the way that they are and the superstar should be grateful for what the fans have done for them. When they feel that they aren’t grateful for them, they feel like they are stuck up and all of the fame that they have acquired has gone straight to their head, that sometimes can lead up to stalking, harassment on the phone, and even, if things get out of head, death, something that we have seen before and something that I fear might happen again with new stars that we are in love with right now.

And finally, we also see how parents live vicarious through their children, controlling their action with the masquerade that they are doing what they think is the right thing for them, but in fact it what they want for them and that when they rebel against it they feel like they are betraying them, again something that we are seeing to much nowadays with parents fighting against the officials and coaches that they feel are putting their children down.moreless
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Obviously... it's a battle of the sexes match turned deadly after it.

9.3

By pokernerd_000, Oct 06, 2006

great episode... the killer is sure out of left field. Very good job with the camera work... (i probably am a little psycho... but i probably would want to see more of a struggle in the end. After all, Andi is a feisty athelte... she should be able to give her attacker a harder time, at least. 3 seconds just seems too short... lol!)
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Another good show as usual

9.0

By JPPT1974, Mar 30, 2006

No wonder I watch this show

It is indeed very good

Again showing that those cases that would had been forgotten

Really don't need to be

As a tennis star is murdered

And Lily and the team find her towel

They try to see who murdered her

As she was going to be a star

Then got laid out to dry and murdered

Good thing that they found the murderer
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Cast & Crew: STARS

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Danny Pino	Scotty Valens
Jeremy Ratchford	Det. Nick Vera
John Finn	Lt. John Stillman
Kathryn Morris	Det. Lilly Rush
Thom Barry	Det. Will Jeffries
Tracie Thoms	Kat Miller (Episodes 3.13+; recurring previously)

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

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Alicia Ziegler	Andi (1973)	Guest Star
Jeff Perry	Eric (2006)	Guest Star
Sam Murphy	Eric (1973)	Guest Star

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (2)
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- Andy Simmons died on October 5, 1973.
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- Highlight for a spoiler:
  Nick Vera breaks up with Julie (played by Nina Siemaszko), his wife of 12 years.
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QUOTES (10)
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- Fritz: (to Andi) When most people come to college, they bring a stereo, not their father.
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- Eric: You're the story. You're the superstar.
  Andi: Eric, that word is really starting to creep me out.
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- Grace: Have you ever been dragged through the mud so many times by a guy that you lash out in an inappropriate way?
  Lilly: You consider poisoning someone "inappropriate"?
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- Fritz: I got to apologize, for yelling at you the other day when we played!
  Andi: You're yelling now too.
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- (After Grace throws up in the bathroom.)
  Andi: You look great, you know. You don't have to do that.
  Grace: MYOB, okay?
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- Det. Will Jeffries: No one hates God-given talent like a second-stringer.
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- Fritz: This is rigged, lose-lose!
  Andi: What's your problem?
  Fritz: I'm screwed, that's my problem! I never should have agreed to this thing. It doesn't help me if I win. I'm supposed to win; you're a girl.
  Andi: Thanks a lot.
  Fritz: But if I lose, I'm over.
  Andi: So win.
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- Lt. Stillman: You doing OK, Nicky?
  Det. Vera: I'm going home tonight.
  Lt. Stillman: By invitation?
  Det. Vera: Ambush.
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- Fritz: Are you here for the ladies clinic?
  Det. Miller: Do we look like we're here for the ladies clinic?
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- Fritz: (to Andi) Enjoy your moment, superstar.
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NOTES (3)
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- International Airdates:
  - Denmark: April 26, 2006 on TV3+
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- This is the second appearance of Alicia Ziegler (Andi) on the show, although not playing the same character. She previously played Coed #1 in episode 1-7: A Time to Hate.
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- Music Featured in This Episode:
  - I Am Woman by Helen Reddy
  - I Feel the Earth Move by Carole King
  - You're So Vain by Carly Simon
  - Believe in Humanity by Carole King
  - Get It While You Can by Janis Joplin
  - O-o-h Child by The Five Stairsteps
  - Dancing in the Moonlight by King Harvest
  - Lonely People by America
  - Your Song by Elton John
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ALLUSIONS (4)
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- Fritz: (looking at Andi's picture in the paper where she's wearing shorts) She have something against skirts?
  Grace: Let's just say she's more Billie Jean than Chrissie.
  
  This is a reference to tennis players Billie Jean King and Christine Evert. In the early 1970's, Chris Evert was engaged to top men's player Jimmy Connors. She was also later romantically involved with several high-profile men. Billie Jean King, on the other hand, had a more brusque demeanor and, unbeknownst to the world at large, started a same-sex relationship with her secretary in 1971. However, it wasn't until some ten years later that this became public and she openly admitted to having a lesbian relationship. There are several innuendos throughout the episode as to what Andi's sexual preferences might have been (e.g. Fritz mentioning that she sweats unusually lot for a girl, women's liberation movement, or the pantsuit she wears at the pre-game party), but the subject is never brought up.
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- Lt. Stillman: So, Andi's a phenom, Grace is a grinder.
  Jeffries: And they hate each other.
  Scotty: Like Mozart and... that other guy.
  
  Although the myth is unconfirmed, "that other guy" Scotty is referring to is musical prodigy Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's (1756-1791) bitter rival Antonio Salieri (1750-1825). He has even been accused of being responsible of Mozart's death by poisoning him.
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- Fritz: You ever see McEnroe chuck a racket? That's just tennis.
  
  John McEnroe is known for being a champion tennis player and also for having a very bad temper. He won three titles at Wimbledon and four at the US Open. It was common for him to throw rackets (or break them) and yell at officials. He was especially known for saying "You cannot be serious!" when he disagreed with a call.
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- Battle of the Sexes
  The "Battle of the Sexes" tennis match between Fritz and Andi is inspired by the match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs on September 20, 1973. Riggs had claimed that women's tennis was inferior to men's, and that even at the age of 55, he could defeat the top female players. Billie Jean accepted the challenge, played against him, and defeated him.
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