The Case of the Perjured Parrot

Casual for a Perry Mason but entertaining. Another reviewer mentioned he didn't see Robert Young. When the neighbor stood up in the courtroom audience to answer a question Robert Young was to his right.

There is almost too much plot in this episode, with too little thought involved. To explain much more would spoil it, which would be a shame because it's still an enjoyable episode in spite of itself.

For openers, good lord there is so much about this story that doesn't make any sense. To take just one example, why Sabin's secretary would devote what must have been months to train a parrot to deliver a half dozen lines in English, when he was ultimately prepared to confess to forging those checks anyway, boggles the mind. Although I suppose he could have gone in business as a parrot trainer at that point.

Others have pointed out the truly awful acting of Pamela Branch, who delivers the worst line readings I can remember in the entire "Perry Mason" series. Not that the lines themselves distinguish themselves in this episode.

On the plus side, Edgar Buchanan's brusque yet charming demeanor is a delight. And as convoluted and silly as the story is, the episode is never dull.

This episode may have been the funniest Perry Mason, but it was hard to take it seriously. First of all we have Uncle Joe from Petticoat Junction sort of conducting an inquest but not doing too good of a job. We then have good ole Mr. Wilson from Dennis The Menace trying to be a crime expert who ended up being just as inept as Mr. Wilson was at dealing with Dennis. The whole story was crazy and Mel Blanc topped it off as the voice of a parrot that didn't move his mouth half the time. I'll say this, it was entertaining.

The ending of The Perjured Parrot seemed anti-climactic compared to other Perry Mason episodes. And, supposedly Robert Young appeared in this episode as an uncredited townsperson-I sure did not find his appearance-did anyone else see him?

This is an episode that would fit well in a teenage mystery collection. A parrot becomes a witness in a murder case, identifying the killer. There are so many plot mishaps here, it's ridiculous. It does get Perry out in the sticks, defending his client against some less sophisticated arbitors.