So we're back to Chicago, the city with the best weather for someone to drive a convertible. No wonder Chicago is known as "The Sunny City." And if last episode was Christmas, now it's September, but we still got a glimpse of a (plastic) Christmas tree.

I'll skip plot descriptions because there are people here that do this much better than I could. Going straight to some key points, when the old lady with a dog (Mrs. Sherman) saw the ghostly image that seemed to be Bond, Ryder Bond, I wonder how Kolchak knew what she had seen.

You see, these are all stories we're told by Kolchak himself. We don't see things as they happen. Rather, they have happened some time or a long time ago, since we hear Kolchak's recorded narration. Which got me really intrigued when Felicia Porter saw the Bond, Ryder Bond doppelganger appear and disappear, and then she was killed. Kolchak even tries to reason with Vincenzo saying that Felicia was also a witness, and she was now in an urn. How could he possibly have known what she saw? But I suppose that, after everything he saw, he could assume that the witnesses had actually seen the doppelganger.

Early in the episode I thought this was going to be like a Columbo episode with Kolchak trying to prove Bond, Ryder Bond, the orchestra conductor was the mastermind behind all those crimes. Bond, Ryder Bond did look sinister, especially because his beard sometimes looked more like a goatee, and we all any man who displays a goatee is a villain. That's a scientific fact. But it turns out Bond, Ryder Bond was just a poor victim of the circumstances.

Once again Kolchak has to deal with the police trying to cover up the truth. I always thought that was incredibly stupid, because when the police try to explain the inexplicable and adopt "reasonable" explanations that don't take into consideration the extraordinary circumstances in which the crimes happened, they are closing their minds to the possibility that some criminal may develop some method or technology capable of doing something fantastic, such as inducing a human body to spontaneously combust. To say that the victim burned himself or herself because they']d been smoking and fell asleep is ludicrous. And come on, Kolchak is used to deal with police chiefs, lieutenants or cruise captains. Mayer was a simple sergeant. That's peanuts for Kolchak.

One thing I found strange is how the whole doppelganger theory was developed. One thing is to see bite marks and assume it's a vampire; we all know what vampires can do, so that's a pretty reasonable assumption. But quite another is the weird tale of a spirit that is so fixated on somebody that assumes his or her identity and burns people to a crisp. (What???) Yet, somebody suggested that to Kolchak and he ran with it.

I'm not sure how Kolchak figured out how Markoff was the ghost that was connected to Bond, Ryder Bond. When Kolchak was entering the church with Bond, Ryder Bond to get some sleep, the narration said something about Bond, Ryder Bond interfering with a funeral, but I didn't understand it quite well. Conveniently, I'll wait for Simian Jack or brimfin to explain that to me, because they write down every single detail.

The ending was really creepy, with Kolchak unearthing Markoff's body. And as usual, all proof Kolchak had was lost in a fire, so, once again, he couldn't have his story printed.

Some observations about the cast:

Once again, a Kolchak episode brings us many familiar faces from shows from the 1970s. Fred Beir, who played Bond, Ryder Bond was in a bunch of shows at the time. Philip Carey was in just abut every western I remember watching in my childhood (The Virginain, Daniel Boone, Laredo, Custer, Cimarron Strip, Gunsmoke, McCloud, Little House on the Prairie, among so many cop and detective shows as well). David Doyle, will always be Charlie's Angels' Bosley. And Madlyn Rhue has a small part as a gipsy lady who fills Kolchak in with information about superstitions and threatens him with a gipsy curse if he doesn't pay. I immediately recognize her as Khan's love interest in Star Trek's Space Seed. But again, Kolchak was unable to notice the beautiful woman standing right in front of him.

An entertaining episode, and I'm not tired of the show's formulaic style yet. Firefall gets 7 highly flammable plastic Christmas trees.

An interesting episode this week. Last week we had a fairly straight forward "creature" in a werewolf but this time we get a load of horror concepts thrown in. Doppelgangers, lost spirits trying to return and pyrokinesis all thrown together by cases of seemingly spontaneous human combustion.

We get a lot of important story points early. The murder of Victor Markoff, the fact that he is an arsonists and then Ryder Bond cutting up the funeral procession on his way to work. For most of the episode the significance of these scenes is not made clear.

The first half of the story convincing builds that Ryder Bond was the villain. His apparition appearing with his friends closely followed by their deaths. He is not very engaging when he first meets Kolchak, trying to get rid of him quickly. Then it ramps up when Kolchak has his meeting with the doppelganger, nearly dying in a burning room. Fade to black and Kolchak is after a villainous conductor who can project his appearance and can cause people to burst into flames.

In the post half way point voice over, Kolchak tells us experts jokingly suggested he had seen a doppelganger. From this point that is the line he pursues gaining more information from Maria the gypsy medium. This in retrospect seems like a bit of a shift, but the more I think about it I jumped to the conclusion it was projection and pyrokinesis because I've seen that shown before. In the shoes of Kolchak all you have is the burning, Ryder Bond at each scene but always with an alibi. These are facts he can't explain so when someone offers a tentative but ridiculous explanation that is the one he pursues. Kolchak has seen strange before so he is open to these concepts.

Maria was a good addition. We've seen Kolchak consult experts before like the Monk but they come and they go. I would like to Maria become a recurring character. It would make sense she would have more information about strange thing and has a knowledgeable bunion encrusted grandmother. She was funny and sarcastic but showing a real concern for Kolchak. You really feel how much pressure he is under when he admits he is too terrified to sleep.

After the meeting with Maria we have the terrifying concept that if Kolchak goes to sleep he will die. I wonder if this influence a certain burned, be-gloved, elm street resident botherer a decade later. It's fortunate that Ryder remembers cutting into the funeral procession or Kolchaks investigation would have reached a dead end.

I was happy to see we have the bathroom filing system back. I found it amusing that Updyke has his own filing system. It probably seems totally clear to him but a nightmare for anyone else. From here Kolchak finds out who's funeral procession it was and he's on the case.

I really got a kick out of seeing a Zoltan machine (one of the influences of the Zoltar from Big) On a personal level I had only just read an article about Canadians inventing their own currency by cutting a bill in half, so seeing Kolchak do this (to ensure he got his info) amused me.

Darren McGavin was in top form this episode. His increasing weariness and desperation brilliantly shown through the episode. There was real tension when he was about to fall asleep in Vicenzo's office.

The scenes in the church were fantastic. Bond appearing at different windows with this mischievous almost hungry look were terrifying. He was just waiting for his opportunity. Madp is right about goatee=villain, I kept thinking about a man with a goatee dressed in a red outfit with horns and a pitchfork. The ending with Kolchak demonstrating to the doppleganger/Markoff that he was dead was a nice way to conclude things.

So once again Kolchak ends with him in a legally dodgy situation facing arson charges this time. He must have a great lawyer.

One final note. I do think that showing the passage of time between each episode is intentional. If this is September as Madp says then 9 months have passed between this and the last episode (assuming they are chronological). This does help to explain how Kolchak keeps his job. These stories are occurring every now and again. I assume in between Kolchak is writing and publishing regular stories and keep Vicenzo happy. I'm buying more and more into what has been suggested by others that these are Kolchak looking back on a strange stories from his career, ones he wasn't able to print at the time.

Really enjoyed this weeks episode 9 wasted coins trying to get wishes out of a Zoltan machine out of 10

Firefall

People in the life of celebrated composer Ryder Bond keep dying.  The circumstances are suspicious, with Bond himself spotted on the scene each time despite having alibis.  The police can find no hint of foul play - the victims died of fire, seemingly accidentally.  A cigarette, the police say, dropped on a mattress when the smoker fell asleep.  What no one can explain is how the bodies could be incinerated so quickly yet leave only minimal damage to surroundings, including the furniture on which the remains were found lying.

While I don't really remember the entire episode from childhood - I think most of it went over my head - I vividly recall two scenes as particularly frightening. 

Maybe the reason it didn't entirely connect is because it took a creepy concept - spontaneous combustion - and tried to adapt it to a show about monsters.  SC freaked me out as a kid, the one supernatural thing that disturbed me more (almost) than I wanted to hear about.  A person falls asleep, then the body consumes itself from the inside out in unimaginable heat but without causing a fire around it.  That's pretty damn scary.  Problem is, it's a phenomenon without an agenda.  It doesn't stalk people, it just...happens.  In a show like this you have to have a cause that can be investigated, and the investigation has to lead somewhere dramatic.  You need a villain.  In this case, the solution to the mystery strays so far from SC that it kinda lost me along the way.  Ghosts and SC don't share a connection. Not just any ghost,  Firefall's premise focuses on a doppleganger.  In folklore a doppleganger was not the same as a ghost.  Though a wraith, they were inextricably linked to a living person as if an integral part of themselves: their evil twin in spirit form.  Firefall takes liberties with the doppleganger, as one of Kolchak's resources informs him that it is the ghost of one who envied the target in life and wishes to torment him with the eventual aim of becoming him.  Rider Bond inspired such feeling in one Franky Markoff, an arsonist recently executed gang-style.  Franky loved music and dreamed of being a conductor.  Now an undead spirit, he's bent on getting his wish.  Bond's musicians begin  to die...then his girlfriend, his manager...  Ryder Bond is beside himself.  Literally.

Firefall, I believe, is one of the finest episodes of the series with one of the best scripts.  Kolchak overhears a juicy lead on his police scanner, and soon thinks he may have a story implicating the composer  in a murder or two.  He doesn't know what going on, and for once neither do we.  Nor does Bond, played by Fred Beir with a nuanced restraint: initially cold and imperious with the arrogance of fame, then rattled, ultimately reaching exhausted submission to the reporter trying to save him. Kolchak is on display having to work for his story.  The story unfolds at a steady pace, keeping us intrigued without boring us  or making wild leaps.  Office byplay is more credible than usual, the humor organic to the situation rather than overt or forced - no Abbott & Costellos routines with Vincenzo.  Uptight acts like a schoolboy tattler, justifying Kolchak's abuse of him earlier, yet still displays the genuine concern of a fellow colleague later when Carl reaches a point of collapse.  Monique Marmelstein is used sparingly, trying to be quite helpful as usual without her initial grating armor of defensiveness.  Among many interviews, Kolchak meets the family of the deceased Markoff, where the arsonist's son promises to continue his father's sickness.  It's amusing in a sick, chilly, nasty way.  Each character comes across as fully dimensional - the gypsy friend Carl consults, the police sergeant who does not bluster over Kolchak but reasonably finds him aggravating (as does a witness's dog), Ron Updyke, Monique, Ryder, and even Carl himself in his earnest concern for the life of a man he had set out to expose as a murderer.

The scares are also top shelf, I think, again organic to the premise.  For example, there's a shuddery moement of realization when Kolchak meets with the conductor and after several minutes of talking realizes he was conversing with the spirit instead.   In another scene, the unseen ghost is offended and attacks a piano - the piano seems to go mad all on it's own. Firefall's best setpiece is not the usual stalk-and-trap we've seen before nor even the finale (the finale is plenty chilling and full of fever-dream menace), but a scene of deep panic and pathos as a nearly broken Ryder Bond seeks refuge on sanctified ground as advised by one of kolchak's sources.  He's in a church,  to be exact, desperate for sleep.  If he sleeps, the doppleganger will take him.  The threat is a complicated one - he's in the greatest danger from  people who want very much to help him, thinking he is having a breakdown, they wish to remove him from the church and give a sedative.  They do not see what only Bond and Kolchak can: Bond's diabolical doubled leering in through an open window impossibly high in the church wall.  As they look on, the doppleganger multiplies to become many Bonds tormenting, taunting, rapping at the windows.  It's a hellish spectacle and frightened the crap outta me as a child.  I was not raised in any faith, but I knew the church was supposed to mean sanctuary...here was  a demon that could reach you even there. 

Nor is sleep a refuge, in Firefall.  That also frightened me though the scene at the INS office is played for humor (understated, as I said).  Remember, this originally aired just before my bedtime.  What better evening sendoff that a story in which falling asleep is what kills you?

10 pieces of dubious pet care advice from a non-veterinarian.

Like this episode a lot. When I first saw it I reached for a dictionary because I thought Doppelganger meant something else. But the show was spot on with the way it was used here. I thought the police sergeant's attitude to Kolchak was a bit OTT, no matter how often Kolchak is right they never take him seriously. The FX were poor but but an enjoyable way to spend fifty minutes 8/10

Remember the concept of spontaneous human combustion? These deaths looked like a portrayal of the spectacularized reports of the phenomenon. What gets me is that Kolchak not only got wise to the doppelganger, but then identified the spirit, whose body was dug up just as fresh as the day he had been murdered. Talk about advanced embalming!

Still, 9 days late I give it 7 blazing bodies. (Sorry about the delay. The reason I would rather sit out the remainder of this series and join in on the next one when I can get a copy in advance of the start of the series.)

(I posted this on the IMDB site months ago, but it wasn't picked up on the imdbarchive.com website. It must have archived before my message posted.)

Something different this week – a doppelganger, a ghost that looks like a person and gains possession of his body when he sleeps. Since the ghost is that of an arsonist, we have the extra added attraction of spontaneous human combustion if you happen to be a friend or try to help the intended victim of the doppelganger.

In some ways, it’s a formula story. Creature kills, Kolchak discovers, seeks, finds way to kill it. No help from the police, as usual. But we do have some interesting other elements as well. Carl is initially off the mark – He at first thinks the conductor is responsible for his friends’ death, especially when he apparently sees the man in a car with the last victims moments before his death. He even goes to apologize to Bond, only to end up apologizing to the doppelganger.

Kolchak is in danger, not just from confronting the monster – Carl realizes that if he falls asleep, he will burst into flames like the other victims. He has to find ways to stay awake like caffeine pills or trying to sleep in a church. He has a scene at the INS where his co-workers try to get him to sleep, not knowing the danger and he is saved by the phone ringing. He also has a chance to do material where he is sleep-deprived, similar to doing a drunk scene.

The authority figure of the week – a police sergeant – is sane and sober compared to previous entries in the series. Kolchak actually does interfere with the investigation, asking questions of witnesses before the sergeant has a chance to finish his interview. So the sergeant has a right to be ticked off at him.

We see more of Kolchak interviewing witnesses and weaving the web of the story in a timely and interesting to follow manner. We still have a lot of colorful characters along the way, the most fun being the gypsy Maria, played by Madlyn Rhue. (I’ve always liked her anyway) Her disappearing phony accent is part of the fun, plus she had a past bad run-in with Kolchak. I do like that after she told her customers subtly that Carl had used a quote in the paper that brought the police to her door that he reminded her that he helped her square thing with the cops, and she agrees. It shows that Kolchak takes some responsibility for his actions and doesn’t leave everyone flapping in the breeze like it sometimes seems.

It was interesting to see Fred Beir front and center as the conductor Ryder Bond. In my experience, he usually the second or third banana when he guests – like third banana in “Death Ship” on the TWILIGHT ZONE, or second alien invader in “Visitors from Beyond the Stars” on the THE TIME TUNNEL (in short, the guy who has all the boring lines). Plus the addition of the beard makes him look very distinguished and he easily seems like he could be a world-famous conductor.

Finally, some good “fire” works, particularly the scene at the end in the pinball parlor and the scene where the doppelganger tries to take him out. In the latter, he is saved by his famous straw hat which he uses to open the door and escape.

Very few weak points: Initially, we only see flashes of the doppelganger making it seem strange that other people report seeing him clearly walking around or even taking a message at the orchestra house. But that is remedied by the scene where Kolchak confronts him in the apartment. The ghost never speaks, and we see him close the front door without ever really touching it (apparently he can move things with his mind.)

Overall, I was intrigued even though this was my third time around watching it. I’m giving this one 9 dangerous car moves of cutting in front of a funeral procession – which can be fatal to both you and your friends.

Random thoughts: When I watched this with my wife years back, I was momentarily distracted and missed the scene with the limousine cutting in front of the funeral procession. Not wanting to interrupt the flow of the story, I just kept watching and had to go back later on and see what I missed. This time around I was ready for it – boy, that scene happens fast.