'The Ripper' is a fine pilot episode for a loyally supported, well loved cult TV series in which Darren McGavin made the most out of a fun role, intrepid investigative reporter Carl Kolchak. Kolchak would often make a nuisance of himself as he stubbornly insisted on following the strange stories. He'd already been introduced in a pair of TV movies, 'The Night Stalker' and 'The Night Strangler', and while the series wouldn't last very long, fans still find his adventures quite endearing.
This episode shows how well the cast, writers, and directors could successfully put together true spookiness & suspense and genuinely funny comedy into the same stories without the balance ever tipping too far to either side.
The story here has a series of brutal murders plaguing Chicago, done Ripper style. Kolchak knows of similar Ripper style murders that have occurred throughout the decades, and comes to believe that the perpetrator may very well be THE Jack the Ripper.
Directed with efficiency by Allen Baron ("Blast of Silence"), 'The Ripper' features some solid action sequences and stunts (The Ripper is played for maximum menacing presence by stuntman Mickey Gilbert) and some undeniable tension as Kolchak checks out the house where The Ripper has been spotted. The hilarious bits often come from the confrontations between Kolchak and his long suffering editor Tony Vincenzo, wonderfully played by Simon Oakland, as well as between Kolchak and stuffy colleague Uptight - I mean Updyke (Jack Grinnage) - and weary police captain Warren (Ken Lynch). One can see how Kolchak would rub people the wrong way, but that's why we as fans love him. It's also hysterical seeing an agitated Kolchak trying to do what he would rather do when faced with the task of filling in for advice columnist Miss Emily.
Popping up in supporting parts are Beatrice Colen ('Wonder Woman', 'Happy Days') as upbeat reporter Jane Plumm, Ruth McDevitt, who would go on to play Miss Emily in subsequent episodes, as the elderly woman, Mews Small as a masseuse, and Roberta Collins as an undercover cop.
Good fun all around, and well establishes the formula for the series.
Eight out of 10.
This episode shows how well the cast, writers, and directors could successfully put together true spookiness & suspense and genuinely funny comedy into the same stories without the balance ever tipping too far to either side.
The story here has a series of brutal murders plaguing Chicago, done Ripper style. Kolchak knows of similar Ripper style murders that have occurred throughout the decades, and comes to believe that the perpetrator may very well be THE Jack the Ripper.
Directed with efficiency by Allen Baron ("Blast of Silence"), 'The Ripper' features some solid action sequences and stunts (The Ripper is played for maximum menacing presence by stuntman Mickey Gilbert) and some undeniable tension as Kolchak checks out the house where The Ripper has been spotted. The hilarious bits often come from the confrontations between Kolchak and his long suffering editor Tony Vincenzo, wonderfully played by Simon Oakland, as well as between Kolchak and stuffy colleague Uptight - I mean Updyke (Jack Grinnage) - and weary police captain Warren (Ken Lynch). One can see how Kolchak would rub people the wrong way, but that's why we as fans love him. It's also hysterical seeing an agitated Kolchak trying to do what he would rather do when faced with the task of filling in for advice columnist Miss Emily.
Popping up in supporting parts are Beatrice Colen ('Wonder Woman', 'Happy Days') as upbeat reporter Jane Plumm, Ruth McDevitt, who would go on to play Miss Emily in subsequent episodes, as the elderly woman, Mews Small as a masseuse, and Roberta Collins as an undercover cop.
Good fun all around, and well establishes the formula for the series.
Eight out of 10.