Columbo
A Case of Immunity
TV Flash files “A Case of Immunity” as hour 33 of 69 in the TV Flash guide — Columbo (1971–2003) on NBC, season 1975, episode 5, aired 1975-10-12, 90 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S1975E05: listed hour 33 of 69 in the Columbo guide, hour 5 of 6 in season 1975. It aired 1975-10-12 (90 min). The listed hour before it is “Forgotten Lady” (S1975E04). Next is “Identity Crisis” (S1975E06).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
The first secretary to the Suarian king may have immunity from the consequences of committing murder, but Lt. Columbo is wilier than any foreign diplomat.
Viewer FAQ
Where does A Case of Immunity sit in the Columbo guide?
S1975E05 is listed hour 33 of 69 — hour 5 of 6 in season 1975, season 1975 episode 5.
When did Columbo S1975E05 air?
A Case of Immunity aired 1975-10-12 and is listed at 90 minutes.
Where should I start?
Prescription: Murder for the 1968 trap, then Murder by the Book for the weekly form. If you only have one night, take Any Old Port in a Storm.
In the series
Why this series still plays
For the manners: an inverted mystery that spoils the killer on purpose, then lets Peter Falk talk a guest star to pieces. Prestige anthology in a raincoat — ego as the puzzle, courtesy as the trap.
The opening is a murder you are allowed to watch. That is the thesis, not a twist. Richard Levinson and William Link built Columbo as an inverted detective story: the killer's competence is the first act, Peter Falk's rumple is the second, and the third is a trap made of manners. If you came for a whodunit, the series has already spoiled itself on purpose. The pleasure is structural. How does a man in a raincoat talk a movie star into a mistake. The cut is the polite question that is not polite.
Filed against
- Peter Falk as Lt. Columbo
Peter Falk’s rumpled Columbo inverted the mystery — howdunit trap, one more thing, guest killers as prestige toys. Levinson and Link spoiled the murderer on purpose, then let a raincoat talk a movie star into a mistake. On TV Flash he is…