Elegy for a Cop begins with the somber voice of Harry: "My friend Manny Quinlan called in sick, took the day off, and came north to Los Angeles on family business." There's a lot of Harry's narration in this episode, more so than in others, and it's another example of great first person narrative. The incomparable David Janssen is just pitch perfect when he voices Harry's thoughts.
Manny is ambushed in a run-down apartment building. His death scene is done so well. Henry Darrow played it perfectly, not over-the-top. After paying his respects at the gravesite, Harry goes to a bar and buys a bottle of tequila, writing "Manny Quinlan" on the label, and tells the bartender not to open it yet.
The middle section of the episode sags a bit. The interplay between Harry and Lt. Trench is great as usual. But Sal Mineo playing the bad guy and Kathy Lloyd as Manny's drug-addicted niece were less interesting.
This episode ends with an absolutely wonderful, really touching scene where Harry goes back into the bar alone and finally opens the bottle of tequila that he had purchased earlier. Harry is both sentimental and a realist. And we see this in the perfectly written ending. He had talked about private grief. And several of his voice-overs had begun with "my friend Manny." But in the end when the bartender asks about the bottle of tequila, Harry's response is, "Nobody lives forever." Although Harry is at heart a caring romantic, he's also a world-weary former cop who knows human nature and has experienced the disappointments of reality.
Manny is ambushed in a run-down apartment building. His death scene is done so well. Henry Darrow played it perfectly, not over-the-top. After paying his respects at the gravesite, Harry goes to a bar and buys a bottle of tequila, writing "Manny Quinlan" on the label, and tells the bartender not to open it yet.
The middle section of the episode sags a bit. The interplay between Harry and Lt. Trench is great as usual. But Sal Mineo playing the bad guy and Kathy Lloyd as Manny's drug-addicted niece were less interesting.
This episode ends with an absolutely wonderful, really touching scene where Harry goes back into the bar alone and finally opens the bottle of tequila that he had purchased earlier. Harry is both sentimental and a realist. And we see this in the perfectly written ending. He had talked about private grief. And several of his voice-overs had begun with "my friend Manny." But in the end when the bartender asks about the bottle of tequila, Harry's response is, "Nobody lives forever." Although Harry is at heart a caring romantic, he's also a world-weary former cop who knows human nature and has experienced the disappointments of reality.