Doodle Dana

Upon rewatching, Prescription Murder was a lot more engaging than I remembered. The cat and mouse between Columbo and Dr. Flemming has high tension, especially as Columbo gets closer to the truth. This episode had a lot of twist compared to a normal episode. You have a complex lie in order to create a fake alibi, a "she's not dead" moment, Columbo getting pulled off the case, and a second death fake out, amongst other shocks in one episode. While this episode does have a lull between the murder happening and Columbo sticking his claws in, overall I think it manages to keep up viewer interest throughout the runtime.

This episode had originally been written as a play and it shows. For starters, it's much longer than your typical episode of Columbo. Much of the dialouge, direction, and setting felt like it was pulled straight from the stage, though not in a bad way. Thoughout my time watching, I found myself wishing I could see this preformed live as a live show. I would be fascinated to see how sets and action worked on stage. There were several shots in this episode that struck me as more "artistic" than what other episodes have in them. I'm sure this is due to Prescription Murder being a teleplay instead of a true TV show, but I found myself appreciating them all the same.

On that note, the Columbo seen here has yet to fully evolve into the Columbo we all know and love. I found myself thinking he comes across a little more put together and cunning in this iteration, something I found myself appreciating. He even has a few scenes without his trench coat on! Personally I found it seemed to make him come across as slightly more realistic. That having being said, you can definitely see glimpses of Columbo's characterization that the show runners and Peter Falk will refine as the show goes on. Overall an amazing start to a legendary series!

TLDR: Great episode with good tension. It has a long runtime, but the twist and turns keep viewers engaged. Strong start for the series!

Original Air Date: 1968

Murder: Dr. Ray Flemming played by Gene Barry