Mojo

As we learn in this Kojak episode, heisting a shipment of pure morphine is an unusual situation because we're a little stricter and less corrupt than other countries and facilities for turning the stuff into heroine are few and far between. Therefore reasons Telly Savalas this stuff is being ransomed and the morphine which is a legal shipment to a pharmaceutical outfit is insured.

Which brings us to a tangled mystery involving an inside man in Dennis Patrick's company. This also involves Kojak going undercover as a chemist to see if they're really buying back the real deal.

What gives it all away is a telltale wheeze from the asthmatic inside man who wheezes while Kojak is blindfolded and playing the chemist. It's when Savalas recognizes the wheeze that it all comes together.

Nicely done and pay particular attention to Ed Lauter who is the country good old boy mastermind of the heist.

A haul of rare, unrefined morphine is hi-jacked. Why? Even on the underworld drugs market no one would dare to sell the stuff. Kojak goes undercover here, disguised as a chemist. The bad guys allow him to verify the goods - it's a big risk for kojak as they know he's a cop, but luckily they play along. A brisk pace and some neat plotting as well as a nasty villain in Ed Lautner makes this one very watchable. The end could've had a longer shootout. Ed Lautner plays such a nasty villain he deserved to be put through the wringer.