History YMMV / Columbo

* MemeticBadass: Columbo has become one in the 2020s (partially owing to Creator/GianniMatragrano's portrayal of him), quickly becoming a humble individual who can solve any crime, no matter how trivial, and may, in fact, be a god.

** The small bit in the ending of ''Murder, Smoke, and Mirrors'', when Columbo is suddenly and randomly wearing a circus ringmaster's outfit for a few seconds, as he is bowing to Alex. While this would be symbolism, it's made all the more random because Columbo had just played the part of ''film director''.

** Again in reference to "Forgotten Lady", Peter Falk himself died of practically the same condition that Grace Wheeler was suffering from.

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: In "Forgotten Lady" Dr. Willis mentions the Shah of Iran. For modern viewers unfamiliar, the Shah was the leader of Iran before the Islamic Revolution only a few years after the episode was filmed.

** In "Forgotten Lady" Dr. Willis mentions the Shah of Iran. For modern viewers unfamiliar, the Shah was the leader of Iran before the Islamic Revolution only a few years after the episode was filmed.

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* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: There are two competing alternate theories about Columbo (other than ObfuscatingStupidity). One is that he's a GeniusDitz. The other is that he isn't smart at all, just an average cop. He himself claims in one episode that the main reason he's successful is that he's a professional with years of experience in hunting murderers, while most of the murderers he captures are amateurs who are doing it for the first time and thus making rookie mistakes.
** There's also the theory that Columbo is a proletarian version of the classic PoliceProcedural. Almost all the villains are rich, powerful, wealthy people who look down on the disheveled and dogged Columbo, yet he proves time and time again that he is intellectually superior to them, despite his act.
** Either that, or (as he freely admits) Mrs. Columbo solves all the crimes when they talk about it over dinner (which he probably cooks, given that he's shown quite a proficiency and interest in cooking on a number of occasions).

** Was Abigail Mitchell really seeking revenge for the murder of her daughter, or had old age and her writing career left her mind in a state where she only perceived a murder? The episode itself really only offers a single piece of evidence for murder, that being Edmund has no pictures of Phyllis on display in his room, and he gives some sort of smile when he does look at a picture of her. However her death had only been months prior & some grieving individuals do not like having open reminders of their loss out to be seen so soon after. That smile could be interpreted as either Edmund thinking of a successful killing or him having bittersweet memories of his late wife. Given Abigail's obsession with writing murder mysteries the episode leaves open the possibility that she constructed a scenario & killed an innocent man.

* FountainOfMemes: Since 2021, Columbo memes have exploded in popularity on Twitter, Tumblr and Reddit. The detective's manner of speaking and gruff, working class attitude has made the franchise the darling of Internet culture.

** In "Fade in to Murder," Creator/WilliamShatner's chillingly persuasive and ambiguous portrayal of an actor who may or may not have split personality disorder comes as a bit of a shock to those familiar with his usual hamtastic style.

** "Columbo Goes To College'' has two students rig a [[Recap/BreakingBadS5E16Felina gun to a garage door opener]]

* ItWasHisSled: Not a proper example of the trope itself, but the TropeNamer is used as a plot device in "How to Dial a Murder", although they carefully avoid giving away the spoiler.

** "An exciting meal has been ruined by the presence of this... [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqU4d4Rej5A LIQUID FILTH!]]"

** Two actors who played murder victims later became murder victims themselves: Barbara Colby ("Murder By The Book") and Sal Mineo ("A Case of Immunity").

** It was also immensely popular in Romania, to the point where when they ran out of episodes they [[https://www.avclub.com/romania-asked-peter-falk-to-help-prevent-an-uprising-af-1847093587 had Peter Falk give a speech to stem the resulting riots]].

* AcceptableTargets:
** Murderous doctors, whether they be surgeons, psychologists/psychiatrists, or in one case a dentist, are almost always portrayed as vile sociopaths who only entered the field of healing others for their own selfish ambitions. They also always kill or plan to kill one of their own patients. The sole exception, Dr. Joan Allenby from "Sex and the Married Detective", has the excuse of having been cheated on by her AssholeVictim boyfriend and is genuinely passionate about helping couples' sex lives as a therapist, but the rest have nothing of the sort.
** Blackmailers. At best, they're TooDumbToLive and end up stupidly getting themselves killed. At worst, they're {{Asshole Victim}}s of the highest caliber who can make both a statutory rapist and, in an extreme case, an ''ex-Nazi SS guard'' sympathetic by comparison by deciding to profit off heinous crimes rather than ensure justice is served. Regardless of where on the spectrum they fall, blackmailers end up getting punished in some way as consistently as murderers.

** Was Abigail Mitchell really seeking revenge for the murder of her daughter, or had old age left her mind in a state where she only perceived a murder? The episode itself really only offers a single piece of evidence for murder, that being Edmund has no pictures of Phyllis on display in his room. However her death had only been months prior & some grieving individuals do not like having open reminders of their loss out to be seen so soon after. Given Abigail's obsession with writing murder mysteries the episode leaves open the possibility that she constructed a scenario & killed an innocent man.