History YMMV / Columbo

* TheWoobie: Numerous murderers are pushed around by {{Asshole Victim}}s, such as Beth from "Lady in Waiting" who is held down by her dominating brother and mother for her whole life. Once her brother is dead her life turns around and she's suddenly more assertive and in control of her life for once.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: "Rest in Peace, Mrs. Columbo" involved Vivian Dimitri, the ex-wife of Pete Garibaldi, a man Columbo had arrested years before, plotting to kill Columbo's wife because her husband died in prison of a heart attack, for which she blames Columbo, as well as her husband's partner Charlie Chambers. It's too bad that the case in question was never one that had been filmed as an episode, leaving us to merely guess at the exact details.
** Actually, they do give us a few details: namely, the fact that Pete committed embezzlement and may have killed someone who threatened to expose this (he plea-bargained the charge to manslaughter).

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: Prominent ones include the theory that Columbo's oft-mentioned but never-seen wife doesn't actually exist -- along with a host of other relatives that turn up in his conversations with perps -- and that his "façade" of foolishness really isn't a façade at all.
** His wife exists -- there's an episode where they're on a cruise together. Another ends with them talking on the phone.
** The one episode which involved the ex-wife of one of Columbo's past arrests trying to murder his wife in revenge.
** She did have her own [[Series/MrsColumbo TV Series]]. Though it could have just been a bad [[Series/StarTrekVoyager holonovel]].
*** {{Word of God}} is that the character in ''Series/MrsColumbo'' is the wife of some other guy named Columbo. She certainly doesn't resemble Columbo's description of his wife.

* Padding: Many of the two-hour episodes suffer noticeably from this; since the Lieutenant didn't have a personal life by conceptual mandate, the writers were forced to stuff in scenes like him taking the dog to the vet or asking a suspect where he'd bought his shoes.

* CompleteMonster: While a few Columbo killers were obviously and openly selfish and regarded their victims as more than annoyances, the only criminal to fit this would be Rudy Strasse (who ironically never actually ''kills'' anyone) from "No Time To Die". He was completely insane and obsessed with a fashion model, enough to [[spoiler: kidnap her on her wedding night, declare the marriage a sham, and immediately spill his intent to force the model into his own marriage, have sex with her and then slit her throat followed by his own suicide]]. His house was in the middle of nowhere with all windows sealed by glass building blocks painted over, his only opening window wedged and no escape for his hostage. [[spoiler: He witnessed his mother's murder and subsequent suicide of his own father as a child, which no doubt led to serious mental trauma. His only goal was to marry a woman and slit her and his own throats in the same manner!]] He also does many things that are far beyond creepy. It does not help that he is a certified medical student.
** The very first killer, Dr. Ray Flemming in "Prescription: Murder," is a FauxAffablyEvil psychopath who brutally murders his wife simply because he's tired of being married to her, manipulates his friends and his patients into helping him cover up his role, and seems to take a sadistic delight in rubbing Columbo's nose in his inability to prove his guilt. Really, one of the few killers on the show to just have no redeeming qualities whatsoever.
** Harold Van Wick from ''Playback'' is an egocentric inventor, who married a wheelchair-bound woman hopelessly in love with him and so took over her role in her mother's company. He was a sub-par businessman only tolerated because of his wife's love, and he cheated on the wife with several women while pretending to be very much in love with her. He then murdered her loving mother because she was about to fire him. Also, he almost threw a tantrum at the very mention that his wife might take an active part in running the company and put him in a [[StayInTheKitchen subservient position to his own wife]].

** She did have her own [[Series/MrsColumbo TV Series]]. Though I guess it could have just been a bad [[Series/StarTrekVoyager holonovel]].

** He may have been pretty bad, but probably doesn't come close to Joe Devlin, his son, the O'Connell family or the rest of the IRA terrorist bunch from ''The Conspirators''. We're talking about a terrorist cell that was operating in the US under the guise of an anti-terror peace group, claiming to raise money to help end the violence, only to use the money they raised to buy guns which they sent to Ireland.

* HilariousInHindsight: "Etude In Black" is the same episode in which Columbo gets Dog. Trying to think of a name and hearing that the victim named her bird Chopin, he considers naming his dog [Film/Beethoven].

** She did have her own [[MrsColumbo TV Series]]. Though I guess it could have just been a bad [[Series/StarTrekVoyager holonovel]].
*** {{Word of God}} is that the character in ''MrsColumbo'' is the wife of some other guy named Columbo. She certainly doesn't resemble Columbo's description of his wife.

* HilariousInHindsight: "Etude In Black" is the same episode in which Columbo gets Dog. Trying to think of a name and hearing that the victim named her bird Chopin, he considers naming his dog ''Film/Beethoven''.

* HilariousInHindsight: "Etude In Black" is the same episode in which Columbo gets Dog. Trying to think of a name and hearing that the victim named her bird Chopin, he considers naming his dog [[Film/Beethoven]].

* HilariousInHindsight: "Etude In Black" is the same episode in which Columbo gets Dog. Trying to think of a name and hearing that the victim named her bird Chopin, he considers naming his dog [[Film/Beethoven Beethoven.]]

** Don't forget the one episode which involved the ex-wife of one of Columbo's past arrests trying to murder his wife in revenge.

* AnimatedAdaptation: He's a police Lieutenant who wears a raincoat, drives a car that [[TheAllegedCar literally falls apart when he parks it]], and keeps popping up when the villains least expect it. Oh, just one more thing... [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrcYILNS6Ds&NR=1 he's played by the dog]] from ''WesternAnimation/WackyRaces''.

** The very first killer, Dr. Ray Flemming in "Prescription: Murder," is a FauxAffablyEvil psychopath who brutally murders his wife simply because he's tired of being married to her, manipulates his friends and even his patients into helping him cover up his role, and seems to take a sadistic delight in rubbing Columbo's nose in his inability to prove his guilt. Really, one of the few killers on the show to just have no redeeming qualities whatsoever.

* FridgeBrilliance: Columbo has a glass eye; as he already DoesntLikeGuns, that would make effective shooting in an actual fight much harder.

* TheScrappy: Detective Sergent Fredric Wilson, the outcome of a long and bitter [[ExecutiveMeddling attempt to foist an eager young sidekick on Falk.]]

** She did have her own [[MrsColumbo TV Series]]. Though I guess it could have just been a bad [[StarTrekVoyager holonovel]].
*** WordOfGod is that the character in ''MrsColumbo'' is the wife of some other guy named Columbo. She certainly doesn't resemble Columbo's description of his wife.

* FridgeBrilliance: He has a glass eye; as he already DoesntLikeGuns, that would make effective shooting in an actual fight much harder.

* CompleteMonster: While a few Columbo killers were obviously and openly selfish and regarded their victims as more than annoyances, the only one to fit this would be Rudy Strasse from "No Time To Die". He was completely insane and obsessed with a fashion model, enough to [[spoiler: kidnap her on her wedding night, declare the marriage a sham, and immediately spill his intent to force the model into his own marriage, have sex with her and then slit her throat followed by his own suicide]]. His house was in the middle of nowhere with all windows sealed by glass building blocks painted over, his only opening window wedged and no escape for his hostage. [[spoiler: He witnessed his mother's murder and subsequent suicide of his own father as a child, which no doubt led to serious mental trauma. His only goal was to marry a woman and slit her and his own throats in the same manner!]] He also does many things that are far beyond creepy. It does not help that he is a certified medical student.

* TheWoobie: Numerous murderers are pushed around by AssholeVictims, such as Beth from "Lady in Waiting" who is held down by her dominating brother and mother for her whole life. Once her brother is dead her life turns around and she's suddenly more assertive and in control of her life for once.

* TheScrappy: Detective Sergent Fredric Wilson.

** CompleteMonster: While a few Columbo killers were obviously and openly selfish and regarded their victims as more than annoyances, the only one to fit this would be Rudy Strasse from "No Time To Die". He was completely insane and obsessed with a fashion model, enough to [[spoiler: kidnap her on her wedding night, declare the marriage a sham, and immediately spill his intent to force the model into his own marriage, have sex with her and then slit her throat followed by his own suicide]]. His house was in the middle of nowhere with all windows sealed by glass building blocks painted over, his only opening window wedged and no escape for his hostage. [[spoiler: He witnessed his mother's murder and subsequent suicide of his own father as a child, which no doubt led to serious mental trauma. His only goal was to marry a woman and slit her and his own throats in the same manner!]] He also does many things that are far beyond creepy. It does not help that he is a certified medical student.