Elliot Grey has come to see his sweetie Enid.  We know they did not meet via a personal ad because her name is Enid . . . too risky.  She is ready to go out on the town, but Elliot wants to stay in and they can drink the wine he brought.

He is getting angry that Enid does not want to stay in.  He says, “Come on Enid, for the 2 months we’ve known each other, we’ve rushed around like every show was going to close and every restaurant was going to run out of food.”  So I guess they met in January 2020.  Elliot also confronts her on why he can’t see her on Saturday nights.  Enid confesses that there is another man.  His name is Cyril Hardeen and she describes him as very kind and gentle as if Elliot might want to be pals with the guy himself.  She also reveals that he is 54, which sounds entirely appropriate to me since Enid is 24.

Elliot is understandably angry that Enid has been jerking him around, but not off.  She accuses him, “You’re not even trying to understand!”  Well, I’m trying, and I don’t get it either.  The sap is willing to listen to her side of the story, so he is clearly no Alpha Man.  Maybe not even a Beta Man.  He gets about as much action as Omega Man.  

Enid says she met Cyril 4 years ago.  When she met Elliot, she tried to break it off with Cyril, but just couldn’t.  She says if Elliot could see how Cyril treated her, he would understand.  Elliot finally shows some spine and says, “It’s him or me!”

Enid: Say the magic words.  You know what they are.

Elliot:  Alright, I love you.  Is that what you want to hear?

Enid:  The words are alright, but the tone’s not so hot.

That was pretty good.  He relents and gives her a real I Love You and a kiss.  She says she will dump Cyril.  After the dumping, Cyril invites Elliot to his palatial home.   This episode was so tedious and unbelievable, that I was ready to bail at the half-way mark.

However, it gets interesting again when Cyril describes himself as the titular throwback and says it is necessary for he and Elliot to literally fight it out for Enid.  Because of the age difference, like Louis XIV, Cyril is going to engage another man’s services.  Unlike Louis XIV, it will not be a Pi Man.  He describes how historical dicks like Louis XIV and Napoleon used surrogates to fight their duals the same way rich Medieval Catholics used Indulgences, US Civil War Draftees used the Enrollment Act, and John Kerry uses Carbon Offsets. ^[1]

Fortuitously, Cyril has a surrogate standing by.  He calls Joseph in to join them.  Holy crap — this guy is the American Oddjob! ^[2]  

Elliot can read the writing on the wall, or could if there was a big sign on the wall that said, “You’re going to get your ass kicked.”  As he excuses himself to leave, Joseph socks him in the jaw.  Elliot gets in a couple of shots, but Joseph gives him a good beat down.  After Elliot leaves, Cyril and Joseph put on boxing gloves.

At home, as Elliot is tending to his wounds, two cops show up.  They take him to Cyril’s house.  Elliot sees Cyril battered from Joseph’s punches.  Enid is by his side.  She accuses Elliot of using this stunt to prove he was younger and stronger than Cyril.  She refuses to believe he was framed.  

Like every episode of Columbo, this case would have probably unraveled in court.  Cyril’s mistake was wimping out and using boxing gloves for his own beating.  

The twist was fun, but it was a slog getting there.  Scott Marlowe as Elliot had no presence at all.  Joyce Meadows as Enid was barely adequate.  She certainly did not seem likely to inspire men to fight over her.  My beef with Murray Matheson as Cyril is stated below.

So, not a great week, but at least it wasn’t The Throwback.

Other Stuff:

• [1] Could also have mentioned corrupt politicians of both parties sending young people into endless bullshit wars.
• [2] Yes, of course, an American could be of Korean or other POC heritage, but this was 1950’s TV.  Also, Oddjob was already a Korean character played by a Japanese actor, so let’s not be pedantic.
• AHP Deathwatch:  Joyce Meadows, who I always think was on the Honeymooners, is still with us.  Among the dead:  Bert Remsen who I confuse with Fred Rumsen from Mad Men, and Murray Matheson who I am always disappointed is not Murray Hamilton.  Maybe 54 is pretty old.
• Cheers for Elliot pronouncing the word PAY-tronizing instead of PATT-ronizing.  I have never once heard the PATT version in real life, but you never hear the PAY version on TV.  OK, I think I remember once on, ironically, the TV show Cheers.  God, the amount of my brain cells wasted on TV.
• Jeers for Cyril saying Louis Quatorze rather than Louis the Fourteenth.  
• As always, a more coherent recap and background can be found at bare*bones e-zine.