Originally aired on November 6, 1979
Directed by Bruce Bilson
Written by Everybody (See entry for
Part 1)
Note: Again, my copy of this episode is a wavy, washed-out mess. Unfortunately, I could not find this episode online. I promise you that Part Three looks better and will have screenshots. I decided not to litter this review with images that you won't be able to make out without very descriptive captions. Instead, Pictures of Lobo and the Gang!
The giant crossover continues with the first episode of
The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo that I've watched since around 1981. Now, because the same batch of people wrote and directed this episode and Part 1, there's no real distinction between Part 1 and Part 2. This doesn't feel any different than the
B.J. and the Bear episode it's linked to. The whole thing is one giant free-for-all in and around the casinos of Las Vegas. We still have Lobo and his contingent, Wiley & The Fox, Cain and his sidekick, plus B.J. McKay and his best friend Bear. Along for the ride is Deborah Shelton as an F.B.I. agent. Plus, Glen Campbell!
As you can see, this episode has it all. And, oddly enough for having so many writers involved, everyone gets something to do... and the plot moves along at a decent pace... and everyone gets something to do within the reference points of their characters.
B.J. gets arrested for supposedly pulling the big heist in the casino involving nerve gas and casino ladies and a jerk. (Again, see Part 1.) He is let out on bail by Glen Campbell. (Yeah, I know.) He immediately begins tracking down the hitchhiker/ dealer from Part 1.
Lobo completely believes that B.J. did it. So, he and Perkins spend the episode following B.J. around.
Wiley saw the crooks stash the money in a suitcase in the Unclaimed Luggage room, which is locked. He wants to return the money and get a big reward. But, The Fox says "Let's just take all the money." So, they spend the episode trying to get into the room.
Cain does the smartest thing and studies the surveillance footage. That means that by the midway point in the episode he knows the two women were involved. (Although, the episode reveals this and then forgets it until the end. Hey, nobody's perfect.)
Because there are so many different threads roaming at once, things never slow down. Which is good because apart from the theft at the start and the twist at the end... it is all about delaying the next portion of the story. All the running around and chicanery doesn't really come to all that much. But, that's OK. The point of the episode is not an airtight plot about a heist. It's about all these wacky characters getting out there and doing their thing.
Does that thing involve Perkins winning a giant Wile E. Coyote stuffed animal? Yes. Does he have trouble getting into taxis with it? Yes... Is there a shootout in the desert where said stuffed animal becomes involved? You got it. Mills Watson gives it his all, again. And, it isn't the funniest stuff around, again. However, this is a
Lobo episode so they can goof on their home turf as much as they want.
Run For The Money Part 2 shows off a very confident show. Willing to throw in a ton of characters and willing to risk (occasionally) almost losing the plot. For example, one of the thief women (the hang glider, not the hitchhiker) switches the money from one bag to another late in the episode. Doing that causes the end of the episode, with a big close-up on Wiley's face and a "TO BE CONTINUED" as he discovers that the bag that once contained the money now contains towels. But, for the life of me, I couldn't remember why she moved the money around, especially when you see the next part. But, regardless, this isn't at an
A Man Called Smart-level of 3-part television but it is a lot of fun. What joys and pleasures and desert roads will Part 3 bring? Only the next episode of
Lobo will tell us that.
