Disclaimer: I'm not religious, and I'm not really talking biblical angel, more It's A Wonderful Life angel.
I heard this perspective on a film podcast recently and it stuck with me. They were talking about guardian angels in movies, starting with It's A Wonderful Life ('tis the season) and moving on to Wings of Desire which brought them to Peter Falk. The host said "Columbo is like a guardian angel in a way" and it really resonated with me.
Firstly, it always feels to me that Columbo knows what's up right from the start, he just can't prove it. He already knows who's guilty, and he spends his time irritating and unsettling them whilst maintaining the veneer of politeness. To everyone else (especially still living victims) he is genuinely compassionate and often requires limited exculpatory testimony because he knows they didn't do it and it would only be traumatic for them.
Columbo needles and needles the guilty person, perhaps to encourage them to repent and confess (which they sometimes do), perhaps as divine retribution for their evil. In either case, his presence is cosmic and, in most episodes, seems detached from the actual mechanics of police-work; he has seemingly unlimited resources and time, and never seeks career progression. His job is his job; to come down and solve the cases that the criminals would otherwise have gotten away with.
Even angels got to get home to their wives.
“He appears from nowhere and returns to nowhere.”
He knows when you've been naughty...
Others have described him as a Fae . The best line I saw then is Mrs Columbo is in fact the Queen of the fairies!
How about a sci fi version . Columbo is one of the Star Trek God like being who comes from another dimension like Q . It explains all the Star Trek Characters . They have to drop in occasionally to see what he's up to . Spock got the worst role he had to kill Gretchen or the universe ends or something .....
Anyway google Is Columbo a fae ...its fun.
Yes 'fae' is probably closer to what I mean, like Clarence Oddbody.
"Qolombo" is the cross-over TNG episode I never knew I needed.
I found in googleing it there was a discussion here about 8 months ago. I know there have been several. For some reason that one didn't know of Links comments ..He comes from Nowhere he goes nowhere...
Oh yeah I found that thread. People saying "wtf is a fae?!"😂
Watching Murder a Self Portrait. Columbo knows Louise's secret immediately even though he psychologist never does. Right who would think Fae . Columbo could be various rs / Jung High Strangeness UFO Star Trek....
I think that gets to what Falk and Link were sort of debating . Does Mrs Columbo exist? And what do we mean by exist?
I know right!
Argh! I was playing scrabble earlier today and they wouldn’t let me play “fae”. The extensive 2006 Merriam Webster Dictionary did not have it. Glad to see the word here.
I'm still relatively early in the series (just finished season 4) and I think another aspect that fits this idea I'd that Columbo pretty much never uses violence either. He's not getting in chases or gunfights; he uses wit, observation, and human interaction to solve the case. To me, his morality fits an angelic/Cosmic being who is "above" unnecessary human violence.
Yes! Watching 'Playback' last night and he's testing the gunshot in the box of sand, asking van Wick if he wants to plug his ears.
Van Wick: "I can handle it"
Columbo: "I wish I could say the same."
The only thing I disagree with here is that he's only rude and needles the guilty party. there are several cases we've talked about here where he is pretty rude to uninvolved parties that always kind of rub me the wrong way as much as I love the show. those are probably my least favorite moments even over the clunky solves or cases that would never stand up. it just feel so out of character when it happens, because I like to think of him this way myself too.
Most people don't regard Wings of Desire as canon, but.......
The idea that Columbo is a kind of angel is not entirely inaccurate; that is, we know nothing about Columbo's personal life, only that he is married and has no children, but Columbo is the antithesis of the killers. That is, almost all the killers in Columbo are wealthy, arrogant, and have big egos, and Columbo is the antithesis, a humble and simple guy who will ultimately demonstrate his intellectual superiority.
Another hint . When he goes to College he tells them about catching McGoohan in Agenda . This criminology professor knows nothing about a Lt who drives an old Peugeot and just took down a guy who is close to the guy who won the California presidential primary? And Dabney Coleman calls him Columbus? Q has a similar effect ..you know him then you don't....
Check out Passport to Magonia
There are a couple of write-ups about this subject, and a linked interview with William Link. *eta: Plus other posts.
Overall, Columbo's character is a literary archetype that appears in various forms and systems. One such system I recognize, because of how writers of that era derived certain character traits from these blueprints, were deeper into Jungian psychology as people moved away from Freud. It also made writing characters and story structuring easier for film and TV.
Columbo was depicted by 'The Fool' archetype (not what you'd think), and explains his almost mystical, spontaneous appearances, ability to learn on the fly, and why he was always underestimated. He's as much a storytelling device as a character, which gives him his long-lasting appeal because his journey and personality traits resonate universally.
Amazing! Do you have the link to the WIlliam Link interview by any chance? Otherwise I'm sure I can find it, sounds like an interesting read.