With story editor Howard Rodman writing, this Naked City segment starts off with 5 minutes (pre-credits) of set-up that departs from the realism the show made famous. It paints a pretty, sentimental picture of a family man climaxing with the reveal that he's a cold-blooded hired killer, offing six guys in the blink of an eye.
McMahon soon fulfills the title, recognizing the anoymous killer as if he had a photographic memory, and the show becomes its police procedural self. It would be all downhill from there except for the guest cast's brilliance: Theodore Bikel cast way against type as the Polish immigrant who compartmentalizes his "great dad" persona away from his hard-nosed murder for hire profession; Keir Dullea perfect as a precursor of his patented neurotic teen persona; and Peggy Feury of the Actors Studio solid as a rock as Keir's mom.
It's easy to criticize the corny ending with a shootout of our cop heroes versus stereotypical gangsters, but like "The Outer Limits", perhaps my favorite show during the 1960s and its "Bear" (requisite monster thrown in every week) gimmick, these shows had commercial limitations working contrary to any artistry.
McMahon soon fulfills the title, recognizing the anoymous killer as if he had a photographic memory, and the show becomes its police procedural self. It would be all downhill from there except for the guest cast's brilliance: Theodore Bikel cast way against type as the Polish immigrant who compartmentalizes his "great dad" persona away from his hard-nosed murder for hire profession; Keir Dullea perfect as a precursor of his patented neurotic teen persona; and Peggy Feury of the Actors Studio solid as a rock as Keir's mom.
It's easy to criticize the corny ending with a shootout of our cop heroes versus stereotypical gangsters, but like "The Outer Limits", perhaps my favorite show during the 1960s and its "Bear" (requisite monster thrown in every week) gimmick, these shows had commercial limitations working contrary to any artistry.
