Nothing Ever Works Twice

Legend has it Lucille Ball, the annoying redhead that somehow - thank Baby Lucifer! - finally dropped off perennial TV reruns, saved this show from cancellation. This episode shows you exactly why it couldn't have lasted the way it was going.

Second of all, no Peggy. That's right, she's my favorite character in this series. Best actress ever (well, Gail Fisher!), classy, glamourous, well-dressed and a very pretty lady to boot.

First of all, Mannix: insufferable wanna-be macho-macho man. Violent to a T, as violent with women as he was with men. Roughing up the ladies was his classless shtick in the first few seasons. Who thought that would fly? He's spinning them around, putting his hand on their mouth, tightening his grip upon their biceps or shoulders (I bet he hurt the actresses, too!) and, when that's not enough for him, he violently tosses them on the floor. Who wanted to watch that?!

Mr "look at me, I'm an Armenian macho man" didn't stop at that: he was also ordering the men around, putting his foot on their foot on the gas pedal to force them to speed up and a bunch of bully stuff like that. That's right: your TV "hero" started up as a major bully. This was the late sixties. And the show got promptly cancelled. And Lucille Ball was to this show what Robert Wagner and (Natalie Wood? Stephanie Powers) was to Charlie's Angels: producer on the hush-hushed invisible downlow.

And Lucy promised and delivered some changes: no more roughing up the ladies, no more tossing them face first on the concrete ground, no more acting like Mr. Macho man in the navy. The dude actually got sensitivity training and became a kindlier character fraught with sensible humanity. He still was a violent hero, but mostly now getting beat up than beating up the bad guys. Punches at every turn.

In this one, you see Mannix first wife. (Or was that an ex-girlfriend?) She had old wive vibes. What did he ever want with her? She was no looker, she had short boy hair, her makeup looked weird; she looked like an escaped QVC host from the 1990s, not that I would know or anything. What did she want with him? He was rough, curt and abrupt.

There's bad gals and guys galore in this one, Mannix is accused of murder and good luck proving you're not a bad guy cos you act like one. Boring in spite of being fast-paced but some of you might be into the whole violent personality. 6/10 because there's a lot more boring episodes to be had, mainly if you let your TV trickled down onto Cannon, that comes right after, you'll see what I mean in the boring department. Take it or leave it. That show incomprehensibly still has fans. Heh.

"Nothing Ever Works Twice" is the first episode with a storyline featuring someone from Joe's past. In this case, a former flame looking for help in her efforts to obtain a divorce.

Some familiar tropes of the series begin appearing.

A client lies to Mannix.

Joe gets hit from behind and KO'd.

There's a car chase. This one involves a 1967 Mercury Colony Park, damaged by Mannix, but drivable.

Joe also goes off-roading in a four-door sedan.

Mannix uses a car phone (though not his).

There's a fist fight.

Joe lights up two cigarettes.

Body count of three.

Someone shows up in the end to help "clean up". In Season One it's usually Wickersham (Joe Campanella), in later seasons it's usually one of several police lieutenants.

As for the story itself, it's well-written enough to keep viewers interested. The only downside is by the time of the denouement, the killer is the only suspect left, there's no twist or surprise in the reveal.

Speaking of reveal, the George Barris customized 1967 Oldsmobile Toronado makes its first appearance in the series. A really sweet ride. Beats the heck out of those Mercury Comets.

Overall it's a strong episode, good action sequences, you get a glance into the past of Joe Mannix, and the Barris Toronado definitely raises the "cool factor" of our hero.

He strongarms nearly everyone he encounters, even if they are not known to be guilty of anything yet. He also smokes, something I don't recall happening in later seasons. As the other reviews pointed out, he takes a divorce case for an old flame and gets involved in a shootout, a car crash and a few fights. He seems really worked up over this "old flame", despite her lady-prison-guard aesthetic. Like much of the '67-'68 season, this one is a little weird, but it's entertaining. The house of the final shootout looks familiar, maybe from Twilight Zone or Hitchcock; I assume it's something from Universal's lot, maybe in Beaver's old neighborhood.

Neilson ratings at the time showed MANNIX was off to a slow start... but if you were a kid growing up back in the day and watched this wild stuff, you were hooked.

Former MGM movie star Gloria DeHaven appears in this tough episode, playing an old flame (named Gloria, of course) who needs Joe to do some undercover work. If you guessed watching her husband -- you are right. What happens next is CLASSIC Mannix. Joe gets bopped and is framed for the guy's murder in one EZ lesson.

This episode also holds the distinction of beginning a series of lovely female guest stars, who were either Joe's former gal pals or clients, who became close friends. Gloria DeHaven was popular on tv at the time and guested on the soap opera RYANS HOPE. Robert H. Harris (an Alfred Hitchcock favorite) co-stars as Malloy. He generally played quiet, unassuming types with something up his sleeve. Also check out the nice wardrobe changes in this episode, so Hollywood.

Joe's sporty Oldsmobile Toranado gets a spin, which would begin a line of classic cars to take him from one smack down to another. I think the producers at the time were trying to figure out what type of car would suit someone like Joe. Personally, I always thought he was a Corvette type of guy, mainly because he was a bachelor, but he did finally get a super Dodge Charger. All about the budget.

THERE IS... a real cool car chase with Joe in a brand new Chrysler Imperial. Looks to have been partly filmed on the winding road up to the Griffith Park Observatory. The perfect spot to wreck your car as there are hills and ditches everywhere.

Well directed by Murray Golden, who was also handling episodes for MISSION IMPOSSIBLE. SEASON 1 EPISODE 3 remastered color CBS/Paramount dvd box set. 6 dvds. Classic edition released 2008.

An old flame of Mannix's comes to the detective agency. Apparently, she's not a happily married woman and she wants Joe to spy on her husband in order to learn who his mistress is--so she can have grounds for divorce. However, shortly after he begins the case, he's bashed on the head and set up for the husband's murder. It's obvious that Mannix is not having a good day and he makes it worse by running. Now all he needs to do is prove his innocence as well as catch the real killer--especially since bodies are beginning to pile up! Not a bad episode. However, the first two episodes were so fantastic that this one seems a bit disappointing. The plot is somewhat routine by comparison but still interesting. I particularly like the way the ending was handled. Worth seeing.