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Now You See Him (1976) - Columbo Spoilers! #559

·1 hr 34 min·5 clips

The boss uses Santini's SS past as leverage, and Santini says, 'I was merely a boy.'

1. Spoilers! discusses Columbo's 'Now You See Him' and spends part of the episode comparing it to themed restaurants and stage tricks. 2. Josh, Pap, Stevie, and Brett frame the episode around Jack Cassidy's return as a different character, the magician Great Santini, while calling out how much Columbo depends on the weekly villain. 3. The episode's main question is how Santini's performance, blackmail problem, and murder setup fit together inside one elaborate act. 4. The hosts describe Santini's restaurant act at a place with steaks, stews, lobster, and lounge music before the magician starts his routine. 5. They say the show includes a nine-and-a-half-minute segment, a locked box underwater, and Santini appearing in a waiter outfit while the audience thinks he is elsewhere. 6. They also note that Santini's daughter dances with a ribbon and contributes birds coming out of balloons during the performance. 7. The blackmail scene centers on a man behind the desk who knows Santini's SS past and says, 'there's no boys in the SS.' 8. Santini answers, 'I was merely a boy,' while the hosts discuss a 50% to 5% money split and the threat to tell the Israeli government. 9. The episode keeps emphasizing how much planning goes into the setup, including microphones, stage positioning, and the waiter disguise. 10. The hosts also focus on the murder mechanics, including the use of a gun, a letter in the middle of being written, and papers burned in a sink. 11. One standout detail is the number 'four' trick, where a waiter guesses a number and Santini reveals it by lifting a skull. 12. Another memorable point is the magician anecdote about planting 50 numbers around an Airbnb yard before a friend arrives. 13. The hosts compare Santini's precise timing to that story and say every move in the act is pre-planned to the second. 14. Columbo's arrival becomes its own topic, because the hosts say he looks dripped out in a fitted suit and a new coat. 15. They say the coat makes him look uncomfortable, almost too polished, and they keep contrasting it with his usual disheveled look. 16. The forensics discussion returns to the lock, which the team says is impossible to pick and therefore central to Columbo's suspicion. 17. The episode keeps a casual, jokey pace, with the hosts interrupting themselves to talk about restaurants, coats, magic, and old TV references. 18. Their style mixes recap, speculation, and riffing, with repeated callbacks to themed dining, magician trickery, and Columbo's wardrobe. 19. People who like Columbo recaps, magic tricks, and 1970s TV details will get the most out of this. 20. People who want a tight spoiler-free crime recap without side conversations may skip this.

As heard by us

A spooky Columbo episode with coat jokes, scene-chewing, and a crisp Peter Falk.

"Now You See Him" lands in the Columbo mode this show does best: damp weather, spooky surfaces, and a murder mystery that leaves room for jokes.

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Why you'd press play

You want a Columbo re-entry with fall vibes, spooky-season energy, and a villain who chews every scene.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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