Mannix (TV Series) The Faces of Murder (1973) User Reviews

Interesting premise leading to a good outing

[Guad42 · 8/10 · 9 April 2021]

Joe's client (Susan Strasman) wants him to prove she did a murder and not her brother (Fred Sadoff) who was caught standing over the body (John Considine) with the murder gun. She explains how she got in and out despite a cop (Frank Maxwell) "protecting" the dead man as he was a key witness against the brother. He was doing the protecting while watching TV in the other room. It was all a pretty casual setup for such a high profile case. Joe sets out to prove the sister did it. Of course we know the sister didn't do it and the brother didn't do it so we know the delivery of some antacid before the shooting is important.

The police are pretty shoddy in this outing. In addition to the blown witness protection, you would think they would check out the delivery of the medicine as a matter of routine police work and, if they had, they would have found out from he druggist that the order was cancelled. They also didn't do a full autopsy. Doing both would have told the true story of what happened. Joe figures it out and gets taken prisoner by the bad guys. He escapes and fights back. The police arrive just as Mannix is cleaning things up. Lt Malcolm's timing is always impeccable.

Good guest cast with those mentioned above along with Tina Louise and Woody Parfley. Woody is making one of his many appearances on the show. I think he gets killed in most if not all of them. Great at playing bottom feeder type of characters. Not sure why he is in this episode except to fill time. Two obvious facts about Tina - beautiful and not a great actress.

Joe doesn't get knocked out and does get paid. That's a win for him! He should date Susan Strasberg but probably against his ethics since she was a client.

Good episode but a point not out right stated

[belanger75 · 8/10 · 31 August 2019]

When the character of Chris Hume says to Mannix at the end of this ep how she might as well have shot her lover dead there is something to remember.We saw in her flashback how her lover was already dead and sitting in a chair when she came to kill him. She may have subconsciously realized he was already dead before she fired the gun.

Very familiar territory

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 5 January 2016]

This show begins with a very familiar and overused cliché for "Mannix"--the open and shut case that is really not so open and shut. When the show begins, a witness in a government corruption case is gunned down and when the cop in the next room runs in, he finds the same government official who the witness is going to testify against...holding a gun and the witness is dead*. Common sense would say that the guy with the gun killed the guy--especially since he was holding the gun and the cop arrived about 5 seconds later. But of course someone comes to see Mannix the next day saying they KNOW the alleged killer is innocent. However, the next part is original...SHE says she killed the guy and her brother (the accused killer) came in the room through another door and they switched places. Why? Well they never really explained that.

What follows is a case that pretty much goes as you'd expect--with the police Lieutenant refusing to believe Mannix's client's account and Mannix, for no discernible reason, insisting she's innocent. And, by the end, Mannix is nearly killed AND catches the real baddies. Few surprises in this one and a definite sameness to most of the show. Not inspired but watchable and entertaining.

*When the episode begins, the cop is standing guard over the witness and there is only one door. But when the folks come in and out of the room they appear to go through another and unlocked door! This isn't very logical and I don't know why they left this unexplained.

ANOTHER SOMEBODY DONE SOMEBODY WRONG SONG

[tcchelsey · 10/10 · 4 July 2023]

We blessed children of the 70s saw it all; the strange plots, all the switches, twists and turns. Case in point. Joe has the complex, if not frustrating task of proving one of his clients, Christine (played by lovely Susan Strasberg) guilty of shooting a man who was shot by her brother. Note: She is PAYING Mannix to find her guilty while her brother CONFESSED that HE killed the guy. Get it?

10 Stars.

A superior cast in this novel whodunut, lead by Tina Louise (as Linda), who was an exceptional dramatic actress, also John Considine as Gil and always fidgity, suspicious, Woodrow Parfrey, a staple in many classic movies (PAPILLON) and cop shows.

Always loved this guy, and in real life, he was a WWII hero.

Veteran Jeffrey Hayden (who was married many years to Eva Marie Saint) directed, also directing IRONSIDE at the time. For paperback and comic book collectors, this story was published in a MANNIX paperback book in the early 70s, and if you shop around (on ebay) there are still copies out there and in good condition.

A super duper late nite mystery.

SEASON 6 EPISODE 20 remastered color CBS/Paramount dvd box set. 6 dvds. 2012 release, very similar in makeup to the CANNON box sets.

The importance of guest stars

[lor_ · 4 July 2023]

This "Mannix" episode is hardly memorable, more porcedural than interesting, but chosen it random it underscores a truism regarding the change in tv series over the decades that makes me most nostalgic, namely the emphasis back when on exciting guest stars week after week.

As a tv addict in the '70s I could look forward to watching a variety of wonderful stars making the rounds of all the dramas, almost like clockwork. Pamela Franklin and Stefanie Powers seemed to be everywhere, and their like are sorely missed nowadays (with the obvious exception of Dick Wolf's series and his catalog of familair faces.

This segment pits Touch Connors opposite two fabulous actresses. The good girl is Susan Strasberg, clearly among the most celebrated acting talents reduced to popping up on nothing tv assignments and as the femme fatal the always beautiful Tina Louise. Gazing at these two almost distracts from the boredom or the rest of the show.

My favorite shows nowadays, take NCIS or Yellowstone for example, never have guest talent of this caliber.

Another plot implosion

[pkfloydmh · 2/10 · 21 November 2021]

This is yet another example of a show that collapses at the end when the plot is revealed and it doesn't add up. How did anyone know Ryan had ordered pills from the pharmacy or which pharmacy he ordered them from?

There are other plot holes too. Ryan is a government witness who is being protected but yet all of the doors where he's staying are unlocked so anyone can walk in. Then Faber conveniently showed Joe his security setup right before Joe broke in to steal the file. It's unrealistic that he would even show Joe his security setup at all. And why did Christina go to a private detective to confess to a murder? Why didn't she go to the police?

On top of all of the plot problems, there's very little action except at the end.

This is a dud.