Bad Dude

Looking back at the early-to-mid '70s, you can't help but cringe or laugh at the crazy time period, as this episode demonstrates. In here, it's the dress and the expressions of the day among blacks, but the same can be said for white people. The long hair and outrageous outfits might have been "cool" back then, but not now.

Ex-football star Rosey Grier is among the guest stars. Rosey should have stuck to football because he isn't much of an actor, although he's fun to watch as "Salathiel Harms," a bounty hunter from Los Angeles.

The wildest dude in this episode was crime kingpin (and "Harms" target) "Sylk," played by Bill Duke. You have to see this guy and hear him speak to believe it! Other characters included "Willie 'Shotgun' Baine" (Charles Weldson) and "Delia May" (Dee Timberlake).

The story can be a bit confusing at times but the odd characters in here make it worth watching.

When the episode begins, Crocker is returning his date to her apartment. However, out of the blue, someone with a shotgun is discharging it and Crocker responds...only to arrive too late. However, instead of finding a body or a shooter, he finds a watermelon and pillows in a bad...arranged to look like a person sleeping. Apparently, the would-be killer thought it was his intended victim and blasted the decoy! So, Kojak and his team spend much of the episode trying to identify the shooter and the intended victim...and the intended victim is a HUGE man (ex-footballer Rosey Grier).

I think the most enjoyable aspect of this episode is seeing all the funky 1970s black characters...with their giant hats, huge lapels and Cadillacs. It certainly is an interesting look at a bygone era in fashion! It also looks a bit like a blacksploitation film as a result. It also features some amazing overacting...particularly by Bill Duke!

This is an enjoyable episode (even with Duke's overdoing it) but it makes you wonder WHY the victim didn't cooperate with the police. Still, it's a bizarre and interesting look into a weird bygone age...one I actually do remember.