I love Mannix but the problem the show ran into (most blatantly in its seventh season) was the time allotted by CBS. Once the teaser was eliminated before the opening titles, the stories suffered from a time crunch. Stories never entirely wrapped up in any safisfactory sense and budgets even seemed to be trimmed. Early Mannix episodes had quite a "lush" (for lack of a better word) look about them while later episodes seem to have been dictated by bean-counters. Once Mannix's dark green Barracuda convertible was replaced with an uncharacteristic hardtop, so was the rich look of the series along with fully fleshed-out plots. The series deserved much better.
7 Reviews
A breath of fresh air with no sheriff in sight
pkfloydmh13 April 2015
In this one, Joe is hired to try to find the pilot of a plane that crashed and his search takes him to a small town called Gopher Flats.
This is a terrific episode with an interesting story and lots of tension, suspense, action and excitement. There are also very few clichés.
The performances from the entire cast are excellent. Mark Lenard appears in one scene early on and then disappears for the rest of the episode.
Despite being yet another episode about a small town hiding a secret, this one does not contain the usual cliché regarding the obnoxious and corrupt sheriff who tries to run Joe out of town or throw him in jail on phony charges. In fact, there's no sheriff at all, which is a breath of fresh air as that extremely worn out cliché is avoided here. Instead, the focus is on the action, tension and mystery, which is why this is the best small-town themed episode yet. This one will keep you on the edge of your seat.
Joe doesn't clobbered over the head but does get shot at. There are several good fight scenes and lots of action.
The total body count is three.
The one problem I had is that there are obvious picture quality issues as there are several scenes that are very grainy and dark, but other than that, this one is excellent.
This is a terrific episode with an interesting story and lots of tension, suspense, action and excitement. There are also very few clichés.
The performances from the entire cast are excellent. Mark Lenard appears in one scene early on and then disappears for the rest of the episode.
Despite being yet another episode about a small town hiding a secret, this one does not contain the usual cliché regarding the obnoxious and corrupt sheriff who tries to run Joe out of town or throw him in jail on phony charges. In fact, there's no sheriff at all, which is a breath of fresh air as that extremely worn out cliché is avoided here. Instead, the focus is on the action, tension and mystery, which is why this is the best small-town themed episode yet. This one will keep you on the edge of your seat.
Joe doesn't clobbered over the head but does get shot at. There are several good fight scenes and lots of action.
The total body count is three.
The one problem I had is that there are obvious picture quality issues as there are several scenes that are very grainy and dark, but other than that, this one is excellent.
Is it just me?
erikbaade26 January 2019
Or did it seem like there were about 100 people in this episode?
If Mannix drove into the town in obviously a red rental car, how did he drive out in his own green car?
I realize that he couldn't drive back out in the rental car since those guys took his distributor cap.
Who was the guy who the bad guys killed toward the end?
A town without pity... or common sense
Guad4223 April 2021
Warning: Spoilers
By this season seven, there are a number of things Joe should avoid. Military buddies, small towns (ghost towns), car racing tracks, and cases where bad guys want to hire him. By the way, Joe does seem to be on a first name basis with lots of bad guys.
A veteran guest cast here does the best they can with the material given them. It is a bit convoluted. Mark Lenard, forever linked to Star Trek, plays the bad guy behind the whole affair very well. I wish he had been in more scenes. Jeanette Nolan's Granny turns out to be morally better than I thought she would be. Ken Tobey had a good career. John Doucette and Ford Rainey are the active bad guys in the almost-ghost town and know how to get that particular role done.
The comment on lighting is germane. Seems to be night at times and then the next scene is bright as day.
Considering how many times Joe gets his gun taken away, you would think he would go with a backup in an ankle holster by now. Why does Joe get the idea of going to a particular mine? Joe gets a lot of ideas out of the blue and they always seem to pay off. Joe being chased around the town is very similar to the last episode with a gang of kids chasing Joe around. Joe still has his luck. One bad guy gets the drop on him but his rifle is empty. Another gets conveniently shot by his own rifle when Joe jumps him. Long odds for that to happen. As already pointed out, lots of plot holes here. One not mentioned by other reviewers is the townspeople leaving a briefcase full of money in the mine where anyone (included one of them) can get it and hide it. They must trust each other a lot.
Once again, no pay for Joe. Someone should do a count on cases he didn't get paid for. I bet it adds up to a high percentage. This outing has some good moments if you can overlook the plot holes.
A veteran guest cast here does the best they can with the material given them. It is a bit convoluted. Mark Lenard, forever linked to Star Trek, plays the bad guy behind the whole affair very well. I wish he had been in more scenes. Jeanette Nolan's Granny turns out to be morally better than I thought she would be. Ken Tobey had a good career. John Doucette and Ford Rainey are the active bad guys in the almost-ghost town and know how to get that particular role done.
The comment on lighting is germane. Seems to be night at times and then the next scene is bright as day.
Considering how many times Joe gets his gun taken away, you would think he would go with a backup in an ankle holster by now. Why does Joe get the idea of going to a particular mine? Joe gets a lot of ideas out of the blue and they always seem to pay off. Joe being chased around the town is very similar to the last episode with a gang of kids chasing Joe around. Joe still has his luck. One bad guy gets the drop on him but his rifle is empty. Another gets conveniently shot by his own rifle when Joe jumps him. Long odds for that to happen. As already pointed out, lots of plot holes here. One not mentioned by other reviewers is the townspeople leaving a briefcase full of money in the mine where anyone (included one of them) can get it and hide it. They must trust each other a lot.
Once again, no pay for Joe. Someone should do a count on cases he didn't get paid for. I bet it adds up to a high percentage. This outing has some good moments if you can overlook the plot holes.
Not yer everyday ghost town
cpotato101020 January 2022
Warning: Spoilers
OK, There is the small town/semi-ghost town where a small plane appears to have crashed nearby. There is something it was carrying that the menfolk (most of them) are willing to kill to hide.
So of course the menfolk are a bit hostile when Mannix starts nosing around. From their point of view, who could blame them.
There is a fair amount of suspense, will Mannix find out what happened to the plane and/or pilot, will he make it out alive? Mannix does use a bit of ingenuity in the final manhunt to take out a couple of the menfolk.
This is after a shoot-out that ends one of the menfolk and the out-of-town bad guy.
A few comments - I know some of this is supposed to take place at night, but seems to be rather well-lit. Personally, I don't mind, I hate the newer movies/TV shows that try to emulate the real darkness of a night scene, which makes everything very hard to see. I would rather see the actors faces during the "night" scenes, and what they are doing.
The guns of the menfolk - Mannix does not forget to take the weapons. The guy he hits with the wagon wheel, the gun spins off into a bunch of boxes. Mannix even spends valuable time searching for it. Then next one, the gun either misfires, or appears to be empty. The third one, the menfolk is shot by his own gun when he falls. This is then the end of the chase, as there do not appear to be any more hostile menfolk.
The car Mannix drives out of the town in is some kind of Chevy. I don't think it was Mannix's car, but another rental, like the red car.
So of course the menfolk are a bit hostile when Mannix starts nosing around. From their point of view, who could blame them.
There is a fair amount of suspense, will Mannix find out what happened to the plane and/or pilot, will he make it out alive? Mannix does use a bit of ingenuity in the final manhunt to take out a couple of the menfolk.
This is after a shoot-out that ends one of the menfolk and the out-of-town bad guy.
A few comments - I know some of this is supposed to take place at night, but seems to be rather well-lit. Personally, I don't mind, I hate the newer movies/TV shows that try to emulate the real darkness of a night scene, which makes everything very hard to see. I would rather see the actors faces during the "night" scenes, and what they are doing.
The guns of the menfolk - Mannix does not forget to take the weapons. The guy he hits with the wagon wheel, the gun spins off into a bunch of boxes. Mannix even spends valuable time searching for it. Then next one, the gun either misfires, or appears to be empty. The third one, the menfolk is shot by his own gun when he falls. This is then the end of the chase, as there do not appear to be any more hostile menfolk.
The car Mannix drives out of the town in is some kind of Chevy. I don't think it was Mannix's car, but another rental, like the red car.
THE GHOST TOWN RULES.
tcchelsey19 October 2022
I knocked this one down a point because its been done before, but a ghost town setting is always fun, and this episode originally aired about a week before Halloween!
Not really that spooky, but the air of mystery, coupled with the usual remote trappings keep it all on track, and with some very devious characters. One of the best western bad guys, John Doucette (TRUE GRIT) co-stars, along with the pioneer lady of tv westerns, Jeanette Nolan playing Granny. Series regular Ford Rainey plays the local reverend for a change of pace.
All about a lost plane and its pilot, leading to this ominous little town where the bodies are buried and lots of money. I agree with the last reviewer, director Leslie H. Martinson did some interesting moody camera work. There's scenes that will jump from dusk to broad daylight and then back.
Martinson directed everything from sitcoms to dramas, and he leaves his trademark here.
Old hat, but fun to watch Joe arm wrestle with the strange folks of GOPHER FLATS. Look for James Sikking (as Sketchley) in an early role, pre HILL STREET BLUES.
There are no notes, but the crew probably filmed in the High Desert, around Lancaster, CA, or the old Paramount movie ranch.
SEASON 7 EPISODE 6 remastered color CBS dvd box set. 6 dvd set.
Not really that spooky, but the air of mystery, coupled with the usual remote trappings keep it all on track, and with some very devious characters. One of the best western bad guys, John Doucette (TRUE GRIT) co-stars, along with the pioneer lady of tv westerns, Jeanette Nolan playing Granny. Series regular Ford Rainey plays the local reverend for a change of pace.
All about a lost plane and its pilot, leading to this ominous little town where the bodies are buried and lots of money. I agree with the last reviewer, director Leslie H. Martinson did some interesting moody camera work. There's scenes that will jump from dusk to broad daylight and then back.
Martinson directed everything from sitcoms to dramas, and he leaves his trademark here.
Old hat, but fun to watch Joe arm wrestle with the strange folks of GOPHER FLATS. Look for James Sikking (as Sketchley) in an early role, pre HILL STREET BLUES.
There are no notes, but the crew probably filmed in the High Desert, around Lancaster, CA, or the old Paramount movie ranch.
SEASON 7 EPISODE 6 remastered color CBS dvd box set. 6 dvd set.
Rather illogical...but for season 7 that's not all that unusual
planktonrules30 January 2016
I've noticed when I've watched several series on DVD that after a while, the shows tend to be second-rate. Smart programs like "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" end when they're still on top of their game and many, such as "Hawaii Five-O" (the final season was just god- awful), go on too long. I have been watching the "Mannix" series on DVD and can see that by season 7, the show had definitely seen better days. The biggest problem is that more and more of these shows have glaring plot holes--something they rarely had in the earlier shows. It's as if some sloppy complaisance set in or they just ran out of decent ideas.
This show begins with a woman hiring Mannix to find her husband and his missing airplane. The trail might lead to a weird almost ghost town- -a place with only about a half dozen residents in a mostly dead western desert town. However, a few problems develop. First, the women who hired him is NOT the wife of the missing man. Second, her boss really is the one hiring Mannix because some else was with the missing man. Third, the townsfolk are bonkers.
The plot problem is fundamental...if the guy who actually hired Mannix is planning on killing him once he finds the missing man, why hire him in the first place??!! It simply doesn't make any excuse to bring in a top notch and indestructible private eye. Nor does it make much sense when Mannix beats up folks in town trying to kill him BUT he forgets to find their guns after he subdues them AND they magically stay unconscious for a very long time after he slugs them. It just didn't make much sense...any of it.
This show begins with a woman hiring Mannix to find her husband and his missing airplane. The trail might lead to a weird almost ghost town- -a place with only about a half dozen residents in a mostly dead western desert town. However, a few problems develop. First, the women who hired him is NOT the wife of the missing man. Second, her boss really is the one hiring Mannix because some else was with the missing man. Third, the townsfolk are bonkers.
The plot problem is fundamental...if the guy who actually hired Mannix is planning on killing him once he finds the missing man, why hire him in the first place??!! It simply doesn't make any excuse to bring in a top notch and indestructible private eye. Nor does it make much sense when Mannix beats up folks in town trying to kill him BUT he forgets to find their guns after he subdues them AND they magically stay unconscious for a very long time after he slugs them. It just didn't make much sense...any of it.
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