History Recap / ColumboS06E01

* IKnowYouKnowIKnow: Fowler becomes aware that Columbo both isn't as stupid as he appears, and that he's closing in on Fowler and his secrets, fairly quickly. This in conjunction with him falling into character as Lucerne as both a help and a hindrance, leads to an odd game of wits where Fowler not only knows Columbo knows what he knows, but almost seems to enjoy and encourage it. There's even an extended scene where he and Columbo ''directly'' go over Fowler's own possible motive, means and opportunity and whether Columbo can deduce or prove anything solid.

* NiceJobFixingItVillain: For being this super-smart TV detective, Ward Fowler makes several very stupid mistakes, but his worst one is: while he brings the murder weapon back to the studio he not only fails to frame another character but leaves his own fingerprints of the blanks. Saves Columbo's time.

* ArtisticLicenseGunSafety: It's rather unlikely that a TV show would keep real, functioning guns, rather than prop guns.[[note]]Guns made to chamber blank rounds will not even take live ammunition and there would be no valid reason for a TV studio to keep actual guns in the props department. Brandon Lee, who was infamously killed by a prop gun, died due to unchecked debris stuck in the barrel being fired when the blank was discharged- though the gun seen in the episode is a standard revolver[[/note]]

* CluelessMystery: Unlike most ''Columbo'' episodes, the clincher in this one is a clue that comes out of nowhere that the viewer didn't see. It turns out that Ward Fowler left his fingerprints on the bullets he loaded into the gun.

* AluminumChristmasTrees: A VCR is a high-end home entertainment device that set Ward Fowler back $3000.

* BlackmailBackfire: Claire Daley is blackmailing Fowler for ''half'' of his salary. It turns out that, having discovered him, she knows his secret. Fowler actually isn't Canadian, he's an American, and a deserter from UsefulNotes/TheKoreanWar. However, like many Columbo victims, she doesn't anticipate that Ward will resort to murder. She does try to talk him down by trying to instill doubt that he's a killing type when she recognizes him through his ski mask, but this gambit ultimately fails.

* {{Blackmail}}: Claire Daley is blackmailing Fowler for ''half'' of his salary. It turns out that, having discovered him, she knows his secret. Fowler actually isn't Canadian, he's an American, and a deserter from UsefulNotes/TheKoreanWar.

* ArtisticLicenseGunSafety: It's rather unlikely that a TV show would keep real, functioning guns, rather than prop guns.

Ward Fowler (Creator/WilliamShatner) stars as "Lt. Lucerne" in a popular television mystery show. He is a prima donna who has been holding out for a higher salary. In this he is, surprisingly, supported by Claire Daley (Lola Albright), co-creator of the show. It turns out that she is blackmailing him. Claire, who discovered Fowler years ago and was once his lover, knows some dark secrets about Fowler (the secrets aren't revealed until later in the episode). In return for not spilling the beans, she is getting half of his salary.

Of course Ward doesn't count on the real homcide detective, Lt. Columbo, who notices how the bullet hole in Claire's dress doesn't line up with the one in her body, and wonders why the credit cards weren't taken. Columbo is assisted in his investigation by...Ward Fowler, who relishes the chance to play Lt. Lucerne for real, and sometimes seems to forget that he's investigating himself.

* ClockTampering: Part of Fowler's alibi--after starting the tape of the baseball game he alters the times of the clocks in his house as well as Mark's watch in order to trick Mark into thinking no time has passed. This bites him in the butt because of what he didn't know: Mark was in the habit of always setting his watch five minutes fast.

* FakeOutOpening: The first scene has Lt. Lucerne confronting a murder suspect with his gotcha. It turns out that it's a scene from a TV show.

Ward Fowler (Creator/WilliamShatner) stars as "Lt. Lucerne" in a popular television mystery show, ''Detective Lucerne''. He is a prima donna who has been holding out for a higher salary. In this he is, surprisingly, supported by Claire Daley (Lola Albright), co-creator of ''Detective Lucerne''. It turns out that she is blackmailing him. Claire, who discovered Fowler years ago and was once his lover, knows some dark secrets about Fowler (the secrets aren't revealed until later in the episode). In return for not spilling the beans, she is getting half of his salary.

* FakeOutOpening: The first scene has Lt. Lucerne confronting a murder suspect with his gotcha. It turns out that it's a scene from a TV show, ''Lt. Lucerne''.

* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: In the oddest ever use of this trope on ''Columbo'', Ward Fowler is clearly based on...Creator/PeterFalk. Fowler is the star of a hit murder mystery show, just like Peter Falk was with ''Columbo''. Fowler is involved in contentious salary negotiations with the network, as was Peter Falk--in fact, ''Columbo'' nearly got cancelled after Season 5 due to Falk's salary demands. The single episode of ''Lt. Lucerne'' we see shows Lucerne confronting the murder in classic ''Columbo'' style. Amusingly however, in dress Lucerne is the exact opposite of Columbo, wearing a natty suit with a flower in the lapel rather than Columbo's rumpled old raincoat.