Bird of Prey: Part 1

In Part 1 of this ep, Joe looks for someone on behalf of a client who this someone saved. He's supposed to meet someone else who knows about him at a certain time only for this someone else to not show up. We then find out things about that first someone that are either true or not that's not so pleasant about him. So as a result, Mannix gets beaten quite a bit while he also gives it all in return. Among the guest stars are Andrea Marcovicci who's quite stunning here. I remember her from a couple of "Taxi" eps. And then there's Robert Loggia as a cop who I just saw in a couple of "Cannon" shows. I'll just now say this was quite an intriguing first part of "Bird of Prey" that I couldn't wait for Part 2 which I'll be reviewing next...

PART 1.

Mannix is off to a South American country, and right away, you get a hunch -- this may have been another "proposed" MISSION IMPOSSIBLE story.

I have to shave a point off for that, and the obvious setting at Catalina Island. Still a well-oiled ride with a few cool surprises. True, the show had a tight budget, but the production crew did an admirable job of disguising buildings and houses, also putting up street signs and the like to change venues. Catalina, to its credit, does cover a lot of territory with low mountains and hills and old fashioned narrow streets, giving it a semi European look. That's a plus.

Joe's mission -- should he decide to accept it? -- is to search (between punches) for another missing adventurer, this time who may be an accessory to a political hit job. Robert Loggia plays an integral part in this caper, called Inspector Varga. His performance is spot on. The dialogue between Varga and Mannix is exceptional, a slick script, a tug of war between two strong characters. Rare for a final season story in itself.

Rounding out the cast is Andrea Marcovicci (as Adriana). Prior to this episode, she co-starred opposite David Janssen in the thriller, SMILE, JENNY YOU'RE DEAD, the pilot for HARRY O. Look for two seasoned actors, Jay Novello as Thomas and Tito Vandis, as the mayor. Tito played many eccentric characters, from cons to gypsies. Watch him.

Best of it is the chase around Catalina island, leading way atop the slippery tile roof of the famous casino in Part II. That is one TALL building and its incredibly filmed as you will see. Shows off the talent of director Michael O'Herlihy (HAWAII FIVE O), from the school of Reza Badiyi. These two famous directors had us kids glued to the tv screen for years.

And yes, you also have to credit Mike Connors, still on the go, reminiscent of the early slam bang episodes. He never let us down.

Wardrobe department gets an 'A' for the old fashion gangster hats.

SEASON 8 EPISODE 20 remastered color CBS/Paramount dvd box set. Collectors Edition 100 percent.

When the story begins, Mannix is flown into Catalina Island off the Coast of California. Despite the obvious landmarks that show it's Catalina, you are soon told that Mannix is in South America...in some craptastic land in which revolutionaries abound, San Leone. As for Mannix, he's there looking for someone in order to complete a seemingly easy task. Little does he know that soon the revolutionaries will be paying him a lot of attention.

While I have never been to Catalina, I've sure seen it in plenty of 1970s TV shows like "Quincy" and "Cannon" and the red and white casino is clearly seen as the show began. Because of this, it took me out of the episode and seemed pretty cheesy. Well, that's one strike against this episode.

Apart from that, this is just a fair episode. Mannix gets beaten up a lot (almost like a season one episode) and the show seems to have been stetched out to feaure length...with an ordinary (at best) story.