A crazy jealous man gets a gullible young woman to shoot his wife (Gullible thought there was a camera in the box and didn't know it was a gun?!?). The wife, played by Lois Nettleton, is critically injured and the doctors must amputate her leg. The scene where she learns this is so good - what an accomplished actor she was. The police discover where the man is hiding and because there are two innocent women in the hideout with him, Casey is sent in to lure the culprit out. The psychopathic young man is played by Michael Tolan, another accomplished actor who I have probably seen dozens of times on television over the years and for some reason I actually remember his performances on Perry Mason and Murder She Wrote. I generally dislike shows featuring psychopaths so this wasn't favorite Decoy.
3 Reviews
Strong supporting cast make this a good entry into the series
Paularoc30 July 2012
Warning: Spoilers
Were dealing with a psycho!
kapelusznik1814 November 2013
Warning: Spoilers
***SPOILERS*** Michael Tolan as psycho barber Mike Bergen is the man who loves women in this "Decoy Police Woman" episode by using them to his advantage and then dumping the ladies when their of no longer use to him. When Bergen's wife Lois, Louis Netteton,was going to divorce him Bergen conned love sick Pearl Dillard, Chris Kane, to take a photo of her at the 8th AV subway station as proof that she's in the city. Thats in him claiming that he's an insurance investigator out to prove she didn't skip town on a claim against her. Instead of a camera Bergen put a gun in the box where the camera was supposed to be in and instead of taking a photo of her Pearl pressed a trigger, not shutter, and seriously wounded Lois.
With the police on a tip from fellow barber and on parole ex-convict Mr. Lupo, Amy Freeman, end up tracking Bergen up to the Catskills in Upstate NY where he's now shacked up with his latest girlfriend whom he knows for about three months Maggie and her mom Mrs. Korefskaya,Joan Harvey & Ludmila Toretzka, who think he's a nice guy not the woman hating psycho which he really is.
***SPOILERS*** With the local and state police trying to keep Bergen in the dark that their on to him it's undercover police woman Casey Jones, Beverly Garland, who goes to the Korefskaya home claiming to be lost to get the jump on Bergen and keep him from doing any more damage. his cover blown, by policewoman Jones, the by now totally crazed Bergen tries to make his escape through the woods from the police with a somewhat, she's still madly in love with the jerk, Maggie Korefskaya joining him. When Maggie finally realizes what a 1st class nut case her boyfriend Mike Bergen, who now goes by the name of Frank Smith, is she takes off leaving him stranded and alone in the woods! A Sad ending for Bergen with him finally realizing what a deranged psycho and women hater he really is who brakes down crying like a baby as the police headed by Casey Jones put the cuffs on him before he ends up killing himself!
With the police on a tip from fellow barber and on parole ex-convict Mr. Lupo, Amy Freeman, end up tracking Bergen up to the Catskills in Upstate NY where he's now shacked up with his latest girlfriend whom he knows for about three months Maggie and her mom Mrs. Korefskaya,Joan Harvey & Ludmila Toretzka, who think he's a nice guy not the woman hating psycho which he really is.
***SPOILERS*** With the local and state police trying to keep Bergen in the dark that their on to him it's undercover police woman Casey Jones, Beverly Garland, who goes to the Korefskaya home claiming to be lost to get the jump on Bergen and keep him from doing any more damage. his cover blown, by policewoman Jones, the by now totally crazed Bergen tries to make his escape through the woods from the police with a somewhat, she's still madly in love with the jerk, Maggie Korefskaya joining him. When Maggie finally realizes what a 1st class nut case her boyfriend Mike Bergen, who now goes by the name of Frank Smith, is she takes off leaving him stranded and alone in the woods! A Sad ending for Bergen with him finally realizing what a deranged psycho and women hater he really is who brakes down crying like a baby as the police headed by Casey Jones put the cuffs on him before he ends up killing himself!
Drama on High
dougdoepke5 September 2019
A highly dramatic episode. Each of the three leads-- Tolan, Nettleton, and Harvey-- gets a chance to emotionally shine. Garland's policewoman, of course, keeps a cool guiding head and a good thing too. (Am I mistaken or has Garland been somewhat glamorized, especially the eyebrows.) Plot-wise, nut-case Tolan hates his emotional dependency on women causing them and him terrible distress. He appears one of the more twisted characters in the series itself. Also, the climax amounts to a riveting slice of "what will he do".
All in all, I agree with reviewer paularoc: the boxed gun used to shoot Nettleton is quite a stretch. In fact, in my book, the whole episode appears more contrived than usual. Nonetheless, the compelling characters override plot difficulties while Rosenberg's direction, especially close-ups, remains dynamic. So fans of the series, women especially, should tune in.
All in all, I agree with reviewer paularoc: the boxed gun used to shoot Nettleton is quite a stretch. In fact, in my book, the whole episode appears more contrived than usual. Nonetheless, the compelling characters override plot difficulties while Rosenberg's direction, especially close-ups, remains dynamic. So fans of the series, women especially, should tune in.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
