Crackle of Death

"Crackle of Death" (retitled for IMDB "Kolchak: Crackle of Death") was the first of two compilation features culled from the regrettably short lived yet beloved cult series KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER, in which Darren McGavin repeated his role on a weekly basis as intrepid reporter Carl Kolchak from the TV movies "The Night Stalker" and "The Night Strangler." While those previous titles boasted such 19th century menaces as a vampire and a 144 year old alchemist, both in search of human blood to survive, this third volume touches upon more obscure horrors, the deadly poltergeist of "Firefall" and the Native American 'bear god' identified as Matchemanedo of "The Energy Eater." The entirety of the superior "Firefall" comes first, only interrupted at the 18 minute mark by a short sequence establishing a troubled lakefront hospital, occasional new voiceovers by McGavin smoothing over any rough patches. It must be said that the terrifying ordeal of spontaneous combustion caused by supernatural forces is far more gripping than a series of unexplainable deaths by electrical means, and the invisible god Matchemonedo cannot produce a finale worth waiting for, definitely one of the show's weakest episodes. The second telefilm that emerged, "Demon and the Mummy," was comprised of later entries "Demon in Lace" and "Legacy of Terror," an interesting match considering the youthful victims involved (the new material was completed in two days, March 27-28, 1976).