By Dawn´s Early Light

Season 4, Episode 3, Aired

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The head of a military school, kills one of the governors, by sabotaging the gun, that is used on founders day.
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  • One of my very favorite episodes in the series

    10
    "Perfect"
    By gorillaschoice, Jun 30, 2008
    Patrick McGoohan's performance is magnificent as the picture of dignity and discipline in Colonel Rumford. This episode had many of the earmarks of a classic Columbo episode: great interaction between Columbo and the killer born of a grudgingly built mutual respect, a completely reprehensible victim, self-deprecating humor ("I suppose that's a uniform too" or when they try to have Columbo removed initially from the crime scene), and a finely constructed string of clues that ultimately cause the murderer to be hopelessly snared by a preonderance of evidence when all signs seem to point to an accident or another suspect. There are many memorable scenes in the great outdoor setting of the Citadel, a military school in South Carolina: * the preparation of the murder weapon and the execution of the plan * the chapel scene following the disaster

    * Columbo's ill-fated supper after struggling to find the mess hall * Cadet Springer scrubbing the courtyard tiles with a toothbrush while the Colonel assures him he will support him despite an impending charge of murder

    * the wonderful moment when the Colonel offers Columbo one of his cigars ("I allow myself just one a day") * the incredible finale when Columbo enlists the Cadets help and the Colonel admits, "You've really done a very good job."

    There are so many moments in this episode when McGoohan says so much just by not responding to one of Columbo's persistent inquiries. I loved at the end when he admitted that he should have acknowledged the rag the first time he saw it, as his reaction and Springer's were very different to such a vital piece of evidence.moreless

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    9.0
    "Superb"
    By LAntichristo, Jul 24, 2006
    Another fine Columbo episode, as the detective investigates a murder at a military academy. Patrick McGoohan plays Col. Rumford, the academy commander, in one of his best Columbo performances. He is always good at roles like this one, playing characters who are extremely controlled and keep their inner lives veiled. His use of psychology to lure his victim to his death and to set up an obnoxious cadet to take the fall is beautifully matched by Columbo's parallel study of psychology as he starts to unravel the plot. The conclusion of the mystery is particularly satisfying, as it depends not upon tricking an admission from the murderer, but from linking together his own statements and trapping him in his own words. McGoohan is great in the last scene, accepting his defeat without flinching.
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  • TRIVIA (1)

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    • After the "accident," Cadet Morgan tells Rumford that all the cadets are in the chapel, as ordered. A few minutes later, we see a group of cadets walking beside a building.

  • QUOTES (2)

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  • NOTES (6)

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    • 94 minutes long.

    • If George Kramer and Cadet Morgan look and sound a little alike, it's not surprising--they are father and son. Bruce and Bruno Kirby.

    • This episode was filmed at The Military College of South Carolina. Many of the Corp of Cadets appeared in the episode as extras, some with speaking parts.

    • Along with Robert Culp, William Shatner, Jack Cassidy and George Hamilton, Patrick McGoohan is one of only five actors to play more than one murderer on the series. McGoohan, at four, played the most.

    • Patrick McGoohan claimed to have done some script work on this episode at Peter Falk's request when the initial drafts were considered insufficient - the Screen Writer's Guild credits only Howard Berk, however.

    • This is the first of Patrick McGoohan's four appearances as a murderer on Columbo. Supposedly McGoohan and Peter Falk, both perfectionists, got on great upon first meeting and ever since, leading to McGoohan's continuing association with the show.

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