The Angels are hired by the sister of a roller derby skater who died in a freak accident when she went over the railing during a game; turns out the dead woman's boyfriend also died mysteriously (he was thrown into the river "wearing a pair of cement Florsheims!"). Three writers worked on this first-season episode of Aaron Spelling's monster-hit detective series, although the scenario this time--perhaps inspired by Raquel Welch's film "Kansas City Bomber"--is tacky, and convoluted with shady characters. Farrah Fawcett-Majors' Jill poses as a skater, in need of some "heavy bread", while Kate Jackson's Sabrina and Jaclyn Smith's Kelly handle the road work. Kelly sniffs around the deceased skater's apartment and finds a baggage claim ticket, unearthing over $100,0000 in cash not to mention damning evidence in a blackmail scheme; so why didn't the muscle-bound heavy who manages the property (and is in-cahoots with the girl's killers) search the apartment top-to-bottom himself? The owner of the roller derby squad also owns the insurance company which puts out policies on his players, and the woman running the insurance end (Andra Akers, in a hilariously menacing performance) has hit upon a scheme to involve skaters in multiple car accidents (under assumed names!) while she and her cohorts collect the profits from the insurance settlements. This leads to a 'pay off' confrontation between Akers and Jaclyn Smith that is rife with witty, hard-boiled repartee (but why would Akers want Smith's Kelly Garrett to be eliminated so quickly?--after all, Kelly has the suitcase full of cash and the phony driver's licenses in her possession). There are other gaffes: the skating double for Farrah appears to be a man sporting an unconvincing blonde wig; Charlie Townsend (of all people!) witnesses a bomb being attached to Kelly's car and still allows her to drive off in it; the character of the coach is a straightforward, no-nonsense guy and yet is implicated with the others at the end; and at one point, Sabrina asks Kelly a question and appears to call her Jill. Our trio of beautiful Angels do appealing work, however, and the stock footage of the roller games is a pretty good match for the newly-shot action. Plus, there's a lot of great dialogue: "We know you and the skater are working for a detective agency!" ... "That and a dime will get you an operator on a pay phone."
6 Reviews
"I need a five-letter word for 'heavenly creature'." ... "Try 'angel'."
moonspinner5530 September 2011
Warning: Spoilers
Here's to you 70s character actor
Fluke_Skywalker26 May 2016
Warning: Spoilers
Plot; The Angels are called on to investigate the death of a Roller Derby star that might not be the accident it appears.
I've never quite understood Roller Derby. To me it just sort of looks like a scrum on wheels. This episode doesn't attempt to clarify the rules and objectives of the sport, but that's okay since it really only serves as the backdrop. The real plot revolves around an insurance scam, and surprisingly it's much more entertaining than it sounds. In shows like these little effort is made to disguise the bad guys, and boy is that true here. If they look like they just stepped off the set of Behind the Green Door or stare shrewishly after one of the departing Angels, chances are pretty good they're a baddie.
Said Angels each get their moments here and are supported, as always, by a solid, blue collar group of character actors from the era, highlighted here by Dick Sargent and William Benedict. One thing I've noticed during my recent foray into 70s and 80s TV is just how strong the character actor bench was. One look at their resumes tells the story, with a lot of commonality between them. But every time, no matter how small the part or how bad the show, they delivered something above and beyond what was on the page. So here's to you, 70s/80s TV character actors. You may not have had the money and fame of the series' stars, but you also didn't end up with their bad plastic surgeries and drug habits. I mean, you couldn't afford them, right?
I've never quite understood Roller Derby. To me it just sort of looks like a scrum on wheels. This episode doesn't attempt to clarify the rules and objectives of the sport, but that's okay since it really only serves as the backdrop. The real plot revolves around an insurance scam, and surprisingly it's much more entertaining than it sounds. In shows like these little effort is made to disguise the bad guys, and boy is that true here. If they look like they just stepped off the set of Behind the Green Door or stare shrewishly after one of the departing Angels, chances are pretty good they're a baddie.
Said Angels each get their moments here and are supported, as always, by a solid, blue collar group of character actors from the era, highlighted here by Dick Sargent and William Benedict. One thing I've noticed during my recent foray into 70s and 80s TV is just how strong the character actor bench was. One look at their resumes tells the story, with a lot of commonality between them. But every time, no matter how small the part or how bad the show, they delivered something above and beyond what was on the page. So here's to you, 70s/80s TV character actors. You may not have had the money and fame of the series' stars, but you also didn't end up with their bad plastic surgeries and drug habits. I mean, you couldn't afford them, right?
Sloppy detectives
LaverneandShirleysucks15 April 2021
Warning: Spoilers
The angels cover is blown with a quick check on who insures their vehicles, which is the Townsend Agency. You would think a private detective agency wouldn't be so careless as to use their company name to insure the vehicles their undercover detectives drive around in.
Speaking of car insurance, poor Kelly almost gets blown to bits in her car when it blows sky high and later on has her brakes cut on another car and drives off the road into a haystack. I'm sure their insurance premiums went through the roof after those two incidences.
Speaking of car insurance, poor Kelly almost gets blown to bits in her car when it blows sky high and later on has her brakes cut on another car and drives off the road into a haystack. I'm sure their insurance premiums went through the roof after those two incidences.
Quite a complex insurance scam
neilclack11 April 2023
Warning: Spoilers
As a Brit, watching Charlie's Angels for the first time during the 2020 Covid lockdown, the first question I have to ask about this episode is, 'What on earth is a Roller Game?' - What are the rules? How do you score points? Or is it just a race? You certainly cannot work that out here, even though there are plenty of scenes of the competitors skating around the track. Whatever it is, Roller Game looks pretty violent!
The white, blue, and red gear the skaters wear, with big writing and numbers on the front, are very 1970s USA - reminds me of an Evel Knievel toy I had as a kid around the time this episode would have been made, or Elvis performing live at Las Vegas which was shown on the telly around this time too.
What an amazing entrance from Jill (Farah Fawcett) at the beginning; she boldly strolls into the Townsend agency office, braless, wearing a light blue vest-like top, nipples protruding - her trademark look. With matching light blue 1976 flared trousers, she joins Sabrina (Kate Jackson) and Kelly (Jaclyn Smith) on the sofa, both equally wearing enormous flares; white for Sabrina, green for Kelly. The girls are briefed by Bosley, and, unusually, are each handed a brown envelope with instructions of their tasks.
Dick Sargent is good as Hugh Morris, the owner of The Tornadoes, the Roller Game team. I don't think some of his lines would be allowed today though. When he first meets Jill who comes to his office to introduce herself, he asks, "You mind if I look you over?", while walking around her, looking at her body, "you got a shape that can sell tickets, little lady".
And now we know what Bill Clinton was doing back in the 1970s, as I'm sure that's him playing Red Loomis, the big-muscled, dirty-faced accomplice - the only difference is that Clinton must've been much more into bodybuilding back then (the part is actually played by Steve Sandor, who later appears in a very sinister role in season 2's Sandcastle Murders).
The bomb thing, that other reviews have mentioned, with the unseen Charlie warning Kelly on the phone in the car, is odd, I agree, but I rewinded it back and ran through it again, and thought about it - it can only be that Charlie was in the bus station car park where Kelly left her car while she collected the suitcase full of money, and Charlie must have witnessed Taylor Lecher (played by Jeremy Carr) attach a bomb to the underneath of the car, and then Charlie must have driven off down the mountain road and pulled into that 'first breaking area' himself, which is why he tells Kelly on the car phone to pull over at the 'first breaking area' she sees. Therefore, already being there, Charlie sees Kelly run out of the car without the suitcase, so shouts down the phone, "The suitcase, Angel, the suitcase".
That must be it, rather than Charlie having God-like powers, watching over proceedings from up high.
But why does Kelly have to keep driving until reaching that 'first breaking area', with the bomb ticking away? As Charlie says himself, he has no idea when it's going to go off.
And it does beg the question. How often does Charlie do this, follow the Angels around? And it's very surprising that Kelly doesn't mention to anyone afterwards that Charlie must have been there. Especially as in other episodes the girls get so worked up and excited if they think Charlie has been present in the same place as them.
All three Angels meet up together just after Sabrina has visited elderly financial wizard Emmet Winston (played by William Benedict), and it's a lovely scene as they sit on a park bench together discussing the case, trying to work it all out (you've got to concentrate hard to understand the ins and outs of the insurance scam). They're so relaxed, and you can really sense the well documented chemistry these three original Angels had between themselves.
The dinner meeting between Jill and Jessica Farmer, the leading scammer played by Andra Akers, and Betty (Kres Mersky), the skater who's in on the scam, reveals, through the dialogue, how this quite complex crime works, and Bosley explains in the car ,while driving Kelly and Sabrina to the final climatic Roller Game, that it's Jessica and her partner, the coach Toby Rizzo (played by Nate Esformes) who have been buying up all the stock in Morris Insurance - this explains why Rizzo ran off at the end (that other reviews didn't understand). Definitely one of the most complex and most difficult to follow Charlie's Angels plots, which shows it was lot more than just jiggle TV. Great entertainment.
Oh, and that bit when Emmet, the William Benedict character, says after meeting Sabrina, who's resplendent in a white skirt and jacket suit, 'Oh to be 30 years younger'; as a middle-aged man watching during lockdown, I found myself nodding in agreement!
The white, blue, and red gear the skaters wear, with big writing and numbers on the front, are very 1970s USA - reminds me of an Evel Knievel toy I had as a kid around the time this episode would have been made, or Elvis performing live at Las Vegas which was shown on the telly around this time too.
What an amazing entrance from Jill (Farah Fawcett) at the beginning; she boldly strolls into the Townsend agency office, braless, wearing a light blue vest-like top, nipples protruding - her trademark look. With matching light blue 1976 flared trousers, she joins Sabrina (Kate Jackson) and Kelly (Jaclyn Smith) on the sofa, both equally wearing enormous flares; white for Sabrina, green for Kelly. The girls are briefed by Bosley, and, unusually, are each handed a brown envelope with instructions of their tasks.
Dick Sargent is good as Hugh Morris, the owner of The Tornadoes, the Roller Game team. I don't think some of his lines would be allowed today though. When he first meets Jill who comes to his office to introduce herself, he asks, "You mind if I look you over?", while walking around her, looking at her body, "you got a shape that can sell tickets, little lady".
And now we know what Bill Clinton was doing back in the 1970s, as I'm sure that's him playing Red Loomis, the big-muscled, dirty-faced accomplice - the only difference is that Clinton must've been much more into bodybuilding back then (the part is actually played by Steve Sandor, who later appears in a very sinister role in season 2's Sandcastle Murders).
The bomb thing, that other reviews have mentioned, with the unseen Charlie warning Kelly on the phone in the car, is odd, I agree, but I rewinded it back and ran through it again, and thought about it - it can only be that Charlie was in the bus station car park where Kelly left her car while she collected the suitcase full of money, and Charlie must have witnessed Taylor Lecher (played by Jeremy Carr) attach a bomb to the underneath of the car, and then Charlie must have driven off down the mountain road and pulled into that 'first breaking area' himself, which is why he tells Kelly on the car phone to pull over at the 'first breaking area' she sees. Therefore, already being there, Charlie sees Kelly run out of the car without the suitcase, so shouts down the phone, "The suitcase, Angel, the suitcase".
That must be it, rather than Charlie having God-like powers, watching over proceedings from up high.
But why does Kelly have to keep driving until reaching that 'first breaking area', with the bomb ticking away? As Charlie says himself, he has no idea when it's going to go off.
And it does beg the question. How often does Charlie do this, follow the Angels around? And it's very surprising that Kelly doesn't mention to anyone afterwards that Charlie must have been there. Especially as in other episodes the girls get so worked up and excited if they think Charlie has been present in the same place as them.
All three Angels meet up together just after Sabrina has visited elderly financial wizard Emmet Winston (played by William Benedict), and it's a lovely scene as they sit on a park bench together discussing the case, trying to work it all out (you've got to concentrate hard to understand the ins and outs of the insurance scam). They're so relaxed, and you can really sense the well documented chemistry these three original Angels had between themselves.
The dinner meeting between Jill and Jessica Farmer, the leading scammer played by Andra Akers, and Betty (Kres Mersky), the skater who's in on the scam, reveals, through the dialogue, how this quite complex crime works, and Bosley explains in the car ,while driving Kelly and Sabrina to the final climatic Roller Game, that it's Jessica and her partner, the coach Toby Rizzo (played by Nate Esformes) who have been buying up all the stock in Morris Insurance - this explains why Rizzo ran off at the end (that other reviews didn't understand). Definitely one of the most complex and most difficult to follow Charlie's Angels plots, which shows it was lot more than just jiggle TV. Great entertainment.
Oh, and that bit when Emmet, the William Benedict character, says after meeting Sabrina, who's resplendent in a white skirt and jacket suit, 'Oh to be 30 years younger'; as a middle-aged man watching during lockdown, I found myself nodding in agreement!
Murder on the Wheels!!!
elo-equipamentos23 May 2017
Charlie's Angels was a big hit in mid seventies aired in prime time on TV, all the Angels are beauty, but skinny as it was fashion at this time, when was a teenager l used to watch some episodes, nevertheless l found it unbelievable and silly like today, in this story is about roller skate where had a suspicious accident that kills a girl, your sister hires the Angels to make sure if it was intentionally, thus the Charlie's Angels enter in the game, foolish but enjoyable to see again all those incredible things from the past!!!
Roller Angels... sorta
adamcshelby11 May 2021
Warning: Spoilers
This one was disappointing. The cold open promised roller derby action but the sport merely ended up serving as a backdrop for multiple types of insurance fraud, involving staged car wrecks and life insurance policies on the roller derby players. Not much of this made sense and there was a general feeling of convolution viewing this episode.
The absolute worse moment is when a car bomb (napalm??) is planted underneath Kelly's vehicle after she finds some incriminating evidence that will foil these insurance schemes. As she drives off with the bomb ticking, Charlie himself calls her on the carphone to inform her she has a bomb on board. She drives off the highway and abandons the car, inadvertently leaving the evidence inside the car. Suddenly we hear the voice of Charlie cry out, "Kelly, the suitcase!" and she turns backs to grab the evidence right before the car explodes.
HOW DOES THIS MAKE ANY SENSE? Is Charlie the voice of god who sees all? How was he in two spots at once? How did Kelly hear his voice on the carphone when she was already outside the car? Even if it was a speakerphone (and there is no evidence of this) how did Charlie know that Kelly left the suitcase in the car? It's so dumb I'm speechless (good thing I'm typing).
At the end of the episode we get some action shots of Jill playing for the roller derby team, where she gets to nail one of the perpetrators, although even this is awkwardly staged. And suddenly mass arrests are made with help from the cops (how did they show up s quickly?), including an arrest of the roller derby coach who up to that time had no hints he was involved in any wrong doing. A forgettable episode.
The absolute worse moment is when a car bomb (napalm??) is planted underneath Kelly's vehicle after she finds some incriminating evidence that will foil these insurance schemes. As she drives off with the bomb ticking, Charlie himself calls her on the carphone to inform her she has a bomb on board. She drives off the highway and abandons the car, inadvertently leaving the evidence inside the car. Suddenly we hear the voice of Charlie cry out, "Kelly, the suitcase!" and she turns backs to grab the evidence right before the car explodes.
HOW DOES THIS MAKE ANY SENSE? Is Charlie the voice of god who sees all? How was he in two spots at once? How did Kelly hear his voice on the carphone when she was already outside the car? Even if it was a speakerphone (and there is no evidence of this) how did Charlie know that Kelly left the suitcase in the car? It's so dumb I'm speechless (good thing I'm typing).
At the end of the episode we get some action shots of Jill playing for the roller derby team, where she gets to nail one of the perpetrators, although even this is awkwardly staged. And suddenly mass arrests are made with help from the cops (how did they show up s quickly?), including an arrest of the roller derby coach who up to that time had no hints he was involved in any wrong doing. A forgettable episode.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
