Barnaby Jones (TV Series) The Lonely Victims (1976) User Reviews

Never, ever confront an evil man on the roof of a skyscraper!

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 21 July 2021]

The beginning of this episode featured a very bad cliche--one they've used on several other episodes of "Barnaby Jones". A woman now knows her boyfriend is using her and is a crook. So, instead of going to the police, she confronts him when no one is around...and he simply tosses her off the roof of the building they are atop of at the time. It's ruled a suicide by the coroner...I ruled it an overuse of a bad cliche!

So why did this man kill the woman? Well, he apparently dates middle-aged ladies who own companies. They are happy to have found love...and he takes advantage of this to pump them for information...which he uses to strip them of everything he can. And then, to prevent the police from getting involved, he kills them. But Barnaby is hired by the sister of the woman who was murdered at the start of the show...and we all know Barnaby is a crime-solving machine!

The episode, apart from the bad beginning, is very good and well worth seeing. I even though having his latest victim being that hard to convince by Barnaby is good...as sometimes folks in love can be quite easily fooled. Well worth seeing despite its problems.

HOW ABOUT A DATE WITH YOUR MONEY?

[tcchelsey · 9/10 · 12 January 2024]

Peter Haskell, one of tv's most unforgettable villains, returns to the series, and not to be missed. True, this is a familiar story, but the acting puts it across as you will see.

There's also a great footnote. Worley Thorne, who wrote this episode, later to teach screenwriting, began his long career as a newspaper reporter and may have based this story on a real incident, at least the possibility exists. It's a case of the homicidal romantic who hooks up with older career women for their money. And should they ask too many questions, they're DEAD.

Case in point with the opening scene as a female victim (Claire Brennan) is thrown off the top of a building. I do agree with the last reviewer there's a recurring mistake of people confronting killers at precisely the wrong moment, when they should have called the cops in the first place. It's also amazing how the killer could do his work so easily, yet is very careless in other ways.

That said, this still is a fairly effective thriller, thanks to Haskell and co-star Inga Swenson, who plays Ann Hobson. Swenson was an accomplished stage actress, later to gain tv fame on BENSON. She also was a master of accents, and many fans thought she was European, but actually born in Nebraska! On a sad note, Inga passed at the age of 90 in July 2023.

Also look for familiar character actor Joseph Mell, as the jeweler, who slightly resembled Joe Besser, one of the later THREE STOOGES. Mell was cast in dozens of tv shows, and in a wide range of interesting roles, a true character actor. Claire Brennan (the first victim) appeared five times on the show, also on STREETS OF SAN FRANCISCO. Claire passed unexpectedly in 1977.

This is also one of those engaging stories where Barnaby meets someone who is as crafty as he is. Do the math.

From SEASON 4 EPISODE 16 CBS remastered dvd box set.