Show214
I have to say that, to my surprise, I rather enjoyed Sue Ane Langdon’s ditzy but good-hearted performance, especially in the scenes with the very Irish and very demonstrative Sean McClory. The two of them are hilarious together! (Until the game turns dark.) Submitted by gracenote, 3/31/2011.
+ Sue Ane Langdon reminds me of a slightly older Joyce Bulifant, both in appearance and in the portrayal of their characters. jfh 30Aug2022.
I would have given anything to be the 'eyes' of the two women who came in upon 'Bonnie' in the opening scenes as she was posing for 'Hannibal'. That Sue Ane Langdon .. whew! Yes, I know she was not likely truly topless, but a man can imagine, can't he?? Submitted by MikeReese, 3/27/2014.
--- the above comment demonstrates that objectifying women still persists even though the fifties are long gone and we are now well into the 21st century ---
+As a woman, I think the previous poster should lighten up. There's nothing wrong with a man expressing his admiration for the female form. Women love to pretend they don't court male attention when they wear low cut blouses, short skirts, and heavy makeup. Similar to those women who claim to be feminists until they get a divorce and simply MUST have alimony to live. DellaMason 12/23
In the first scene, as Ivy pays off the taxi driver (who appears to be in his 60s), she says, “There you go, Sonny,” a bit of humor revealing her lively personality. Submitted by cgraul, 11/8/2011.
+ It was actually Ivy's companion, Lottie (Isabel Randolph), who said it ("Here you are, son. Keep the change."). Ivy is played by Nydia Westman who, 25 years earlier in "The Cat and the Canary", fed Bob Hope the line, "Don't big, empty houses scare you?" Submitted by masonite, 12/10/12.
++ Answer: "Not me, I used to be in Vaudeville.". Kilo 3/25/2020.
It seems to be a "stock character" trait in PM episodes that if an artist is involved, he must emote all his lines loudly and appear emotionally uncontrolled. The artists I have known are all controlled, calm and pleasant personalities. cgraul 3.13.2013
The goofy tone and breakneck pacing of much of this episode suggests a screwball comedy from 1930's, not very Perry at all. At first, I thought I had accidentally tuned in an old, silly movie. Submitted by EricM 12/8/14
Of all the times Paul and Perry "tipped" for information, the bill given to the bartender seemed unnecessary. There didn't seem to be a reluctance to answer that would necessitate a cash payment. Was Paul impatient or was the scene poorly played? Submitted by H. Mason 4/6/15
But, what a great name for a bar. The Potted Penguin. The penguin looked rather dapper to me. Submitted soberly by Rickapolis 03/25/2022
Hannibal Harvey -- what an annoying character! I barely lasted through the opening scene where, for some reason, he's "singing" a song at the top of his lungs and can be heard all the way down on the first floor. Do real sculptors scream while they work? And later on he smashes some of his own artworks, and a mirror. Maybe he should try selling them instead of destroying them if he needs $10,000 so bad. Unfortunately, he wasn't the murder victim.
Submitted by scarter 4/19/15
+ I agree. He was annoying, and worse. He acted like a person with bipolar disorder having a manic phase. Submitted by catyron, June 16th, 2108
++ Ditto (times three). Hannibal gives Aunt Clara Thorpe (Episode #97, TCOT Credulous Quarry) a run for her money as the Most Annoying Character in Series History. Submitted by BobH, 18 June 2018.
+++ Ugh. I made it 17 minutes in (including commercials) and couldn't watch any more. I couldn't stand the sculptor, and I don't care for Mona's uncle (the actor always seems to play some sad sack type). I can't believe someone like Mona (although I only saw a few minutes of her) would marry him. I couldn't take it. -yelocab 18JUN18
The Twilight of the Cups: For the first time in this series, the trio of Perry, Della, and Paul neither retired to Perry's office during a court recess, where Della could serve coffee from the Curious Coffee Set, nor did they stop off at a cozy restaurant, where Miss Carmody, doubling as a waitress, could serve them from the Coffee Set. Instead, Della put money into a horrible vending machine in the courthouse hall, which produced a striped paper cup of swill for her to slavishly carry to Perry, and Paul got nothing to drink and neither did Della. Between the utter waste of a potentially great appearance by the wonderful June Lockhart because she has to tenderly emote over the terrible overacting of the repellent sculptor, the almost complete lack of courtroom terminology and procedure, and the social descent of Della as she is forced to procure instant coffee from a vending machine, this is the episode in which the show jumped the shark for me. Submitted by catyron, June 16th, 2018
TCOT Atrocious Acting Jumping on the bandwagon here to say ugh! Is this the worst PM episode ever? It didn't even feel like PM. It was a showcase for Sean McClory's OTT style. It felt like a soap opera; the murder was delayed and had no impact; there was zero tension; the oft-mentioned board of directors' meeting and the struggle for control of the business, a venerable PM theme, felt irrelevant at best; neither the blackmail scheme nor the secret affair that led to murder had any emotional punch or believability. It was a trashy script, badly acted. Perry and Paul barely went through the motions. Pure slop! Submitted by JazzBaby, 5/29/2019.
Agree. Just - ugh. Ironically, Stu Erwin was in my contender for the finest episode, TCOT Double Entry Mind. DOD 04/11/23
+ Even Perry seems to be rude, abrupt, sarcastic, and accusatory in this episode, even going so far as to continually interrupt his own witnesses. jfh 26Jun2019
++ Is this the worst PM episode ever? JazzBaby, you have my vote. I just watched the entire series in sequence, but kept skipping this one because I could barely stand the first 15 minutes of Sean McClory's inexcusable performance. He makes the performances of Robert H. Harris and Victor Buono (both of whom I love -- there is a place for big acting) look minimalist and restrained. OldDave 10/8/2020
> It's a contender. Notcom 072321.
+ According to IMDB this episode is rated 7.2/10. The worst rated PM is TCOT Sad Sicilian, 6.8/10. (And FYI the highest rated show is TCOT Deadly Verdict, 9.0/10.) Kilo 6/6/2022.
++I vote for this Perry episode as the worst for the same reasons that others list above. Even Miss Carmody didn't appear. Submitted by Miss Carmody, 19 Dec. 2023.
Tridefecta three dud episodes in a row... a sign of things to come ?? Unfortunately, we know the answer. Notcom, 071020.
Season 8 does get off to a poor start, doesn’t it. Rickapolis 03/25/2022