Each episode of "Police Story" played like a short movie--cramming a lot of show into the one-hour time slot. However, "Countdown" really IS like a movie, as it's a double-length show--the first in the series.
The show starts with a strong-armed robbery of a cashiers office at a bottling plant. The police learn about this and are standing by-- waiting for the perpetrators to strike. When they do, Sgt. LaFrieda (Vic Morrow) is forced to fire and kills one of the robbers--the rest of the gang gets away. However, when LaFrieda looks at the corpse, he recognizes him--he's the younger brother of a mobster from Chicago! Things heat up when the dead man's brother, Johnny Landres (Ray Danton) makes it very clear that he has revenge on his mind. Knowing the mob, LaFrieda's life might no longer be worth a nickel! Whether or not he's a dead man is pretty obvious by the end of part 1 when a bomb goes off. This one wasn't meant for LaFrieda but someone else connected with the case. Who's next?
Like all the episodes of the series, this is a well written and acted program. It's tense, interesting and will keep your interest.
