(1975)
Dir - Don Weis
Overall: GOOD
Taking the loose concept of a succubus, (basically only adhering to the idea that its form is that of a female), "Demon in Lace" boasts its fair share of recognizable guest stars, including Andrew Prine, Carolyn Jones, and Jackie Vernon. Premise wise, a malevolent entity is connected to an unearthed Mesopotamian tablet, said entity taking the form of recently deceased women so that it can attract and then murder any men who fall under her spell. As far as the internal INS drama is concerned, editor boss Tony Vincenzo is as fed up as always and toys with the idea of edging his newspaper to a more glass half full agenda, which of course clashes with Kolchak's knack for reporting on brutal deaths via supernatural means. Not that his stories ever get printed to the public anyway. Some of the death scenes are creepily staged, (with gnarly makeup appearing when the succubus reveals its true form), Keenan Wyn shows back up as Kolchak's law enforcement nemesis, and our title character gets a little help from an aspiring college reporter, providing him with a would-be sidekick that would have been a fun avenue to explore had the program lasted longer than a lone season.
(1975)
Dir - Don McDougall
Overall: GOOD
Two years before becoming a household name on CHiPs, Erik Estrada popped up in the Kolchak: The Night Stalker episode "Legacy of Terror" as the final victim, (and only willing one), as part of a ritualistic Aztec sacrifice that is performed every fifty-two years, all in purpose of prolonging the power of a mummified priest whose cult is still alive and well. For its "monster of the week" formula, the show would frequently venture into the mythology of various cultures to cherry pick some supernatural opponents for Carl Kolchak to go up against, and this one fulfills the south of the border quota. The death scenes are particularly aggressive here, with feathered cultists bursting at full speed upon their prey while one of them ominously plays the flute. Often times the closing showdown for the program was a highlight and this is no exception, with Darren McGavin slowly creeping around an eerily quiet stadium until he manages to talk Estrada out of his fate, at which point the mummy itself starts swinging a machete until it and his followers mysteriously disappear of course.
(1975)
Dir - Vincent McEveety
Overall: MEH
An animated suit of armor can be creepy in the right context, and there is indeed a sequence in Kolchak: The Night Stalker's "The Knightly Murders" that ranks as a suspenseful one where our medieval-clad pursuer smashes through a bedroom and bathroom door Jack Torrance style after Darren McGavin faintly hears the clanging of its armor coming down the hallway. Prolific character actor John Dehner's police captain is easily the most Kolchak friendly in the entire series, actually sitting down and theorizing with our hero instead of foaming at the mouth, smashing his camera, and threatening to throw him in a cell for asking silly questions that imply impossible otherworldly events. Aside from that, the episode follows the usual pattern for better or worse, with some investigating on Kolchak's part that relies on conman antics, some playful and annoyed banter between he and Tony Vincenzo, and a climax where McGavin once again stands alone against the supernatural force at play, wielding a giant museum piece axe that seems to weigh more than he does.
(1975)
Dir - Don McDougall
Overall: GOOD
For the penultimate Kolchak: The Night Stalker episode "The Youth Killer", our title reporter who never changes his outfit in order for the production to save money on costuming, (presumably), uncovers a mystery where the ancient Greek goddess Hecate is living in a swanky area of Chicago of all places, also running a singles hookup site of all things. It is all part of a scheme of course, one that involves giving new members a ring that they cannot take off, a ring that somehow grants Hecate the power to drain its wearer of youth, thus granting her a few more days to enjoy her human form sans heavy wrinkles under the eyes. This vibrancy-draining premise allows for a few fun set pieces where people are exercising or on their way to a date, only to grow old and drop dead before our eyes. Conveniently, Tony Vincenzo is all about getting healthy himself, happy to have lost five pounds that none of his newspaper staff notices. Also dropping in is Kathleen Freeman who runs a separate dating operation, but the nifty premise and Kolchak trying to get one of the rings off his finger by way of mayonnaise from a cab driver who happens to be an expert on Greek mythology all makes this a cromulent note to almost go out on.
(1975)
Dir - Seymour Robbie
Overall: MEH
Kolchak: The Night Stalker goes full Doctor Who monster with its final episode "The Sentry". Director Seymour Robbie and cinematographer Ronald W. Browne had the good sense to have the title creature smash most light sources when it aggressively bursts into rooms, thus making it possible to shoot the thing in relative darkness and with quick cuts in order to disguise how silly and unconvincing it looks. Despite the fact that an upright reptilian may have been beyond the means of the small screen production, the rest of the program gets by with the usual motifs. For the first time, a woman is in charge of the police force that Darren McGavin butts heads against, played by Kathie Brown as someone who admits to liking our reporter hero in need of a wardrobe change, but she eventually grows just as frustrated with him as all previous law enforcement officials were. Tom Bosley pops up in a few scenes as a guest star, and Simon Oakland gets his prerequisite amount of comic relief moments, but the rest of the INS crew had long been left by the wayside at this point, including Jack Grinnage's Ron Updyke who had practically vanished from the program several installments earlier.
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