Title: Smog Alert
Directed by: Bruce Bilson
Written by: Tom Reeder
Air Date: Jan. 6, 1977
Previous: Hash
Next: Community Relations
Guest Starring: June Gable, Ron Carey, Lee Kessler, Alan Haufrect
"Smog Alert" is the 12th episode of the third season of Barney Miller.
New York's air pollution is worse than usual. So bad, in fact, that the city has issued a smog alert. Barney is concerned for Fish, the oldest detective in the squad room, who came to work short of breath. Fish however insists that he can do his job and heads out into the smog, with Harris, to talk a jumper off the Brooklyn Bridge. He goes off with Harris. Harris comes back with the jumper, one Miss Pettit, and some scary news: Fish fainted on the bridge after talking Miss Pettit down, and was rushed to the hospital.
Meanwhile, Detective Battista (June Gable in her 2nd and last appearance) comes into the squad room in high moral dudgeon, after finding an extremely obscene (and extremely long, based on the paper she transcribed it on) message in a subway bathroom. She calls the pervert's number, leaves to meet him, and brings in one Antoine McCarthy and charges him with public obscenity.
Tropes:
- The Big Rotten Apple: Just part of the problems of 1977 New York City, as the city is choked with smog so bad that the elderly, like Fish, are filling up the hospitals.
- Character Tic: This is the first episode where Levitt, in his second appearance, does his little spin move when exiting the squad room.
- Description Cut: Barney recommends that Battista let Mr. McCarthy off with a misdemeanor citation, saying that he's been embarrassed and "He won't write on any more walls." This is immediately followed by Mr. McCarthy reaching over and stealing the chalk that the detectives use to write on the duty roster. He then writes something on the wall.
- Height Angst: Levitt, who attributes his failure to advance to detective to his short stature, resents Detective Battista for being even shorter than him. He claims he's 5'6" but looks like he's even shorter (Ron Carey is listed at 5'4"), and assumes that Det. Battista got her job through nepotism.
- Maybe Ever After: Miss Pettit was considering jumping off the bridge because she is desperately lonely. Her storyline ends with her being taken off to Bellevue, as she memorizes the number that Antoine scrawled on the jail cell's wall.
- No Longer with Us: The hospital calls Wojo, who reports to Barney that "they lost Fish." Meaning, they lost him because Fish left on his own.Barney: For God's sake, Wojo, would you choose your words more carefully?!
- Second-Face Smoke: Wojo, who's had enough of the smog, complains about Harris creating his own smog in the squad room with his cigarettes. Harris deliberately blows smoke in Wojo's face, but Barney eventually makes him stop smoking.
- Talking Down the Suicidal: Fish says he's good at it, which is why he insists on going out to the bridge. He did manage to talk down Miss Pettit before he collapsed.
- The Unreveal: Whatever was the epic obscene message that Antoine wrote on the ladies' room wall.Yemana: It's too complicated to be obscene.
Harris: It's got everything but a plot!
