The Life & Times of Captain Barney Miller

The final squad room door closes on The Life and Times of Captain Barney Miller, and we’re going out with one heck of a sendoff. In this emotional farewell episode, Mike and Chris are joined by returning guests Otto Bruno and Richard Hatem to break down the landmark three-part series finale—aptly titled Landmark. Together, they explore the bittersweet end of one of television’s most quietly ground...

The journey through Barney Miller is nearing its grand finale, and what better way to mark the occasion than with a true legend of the 12th Precinct? This episode welcomes none other than Max Gail, the man behind the beloved, big-hearted, and often exasperated Detective Stanley Wojciehowicz. Max takes us beyond the squad room, sharing insights into his remarkable career, his passionate advocacy fo...

Frank Luger's mail order bride has arrived, much to his consternation, in The Arrival. The detectives help uncover a warehouse full of government chickens in Obituary.  And, finally, Scanlon is back with a new complaint against Wojciehowicz in Inquiry.

As we reach the middle of the final season of Barney Miller we discuss episodes "The Clown", "Hunger Strike," and the two-parter "Chinatown" wherein Harris and Deitrich have to share a room with a potential witness... for some reason.  It's another discussion of how two-parters generally didn't work on the show. 

Hit the streets of the 12th Precinct with this deep dive into three standout episodes of Barney Miller: Homeless, The Tontine, and Examination Day. From navigating the struggles of the unhoused, to the peculiarities of a high-stakes tontine, to the chaos of promotional exams, these episodes showcase the humor and heart that make the series timeless. Join us as we unpack the stories, the social com...

We're back and talking about the final season of Barney Miller: Possession in which Kenneth Tigar returns with another spiritual crisis, Stress Analyzer which wastes some comic potential of Deitrich wearing the titular analyzer, and Games in which we see collusion between the US government and Russia.  The more things change, right? 

We're back to Barney Miller and we're joined by our dear friend Richard Hatem to dive into the first three episodes of Season 8:  Paternity, Advancement, and The Car.  They're three pretty solid episodes of our favorite cop show from the '70s/'80s. 

We've paused between Barney Miller seasons 7 and 8 to take a look at the spin-off show, Fish.  Abe Vigoda is back as Phil Fish and Florence Stanley as Bernice.  Also along for the ride is a cavalcade of kids (some familiar to us, and some new) and Barry Gordon doing his best at a Woody Allen impression. Chris and Mike cover the "highlights" and lowlights of this ill-conceived show. 

We wrap up the seventh season of Barney Miller with special guest Otto Bruno (author of Barney Miller and the Files of the Ol' One-Two) as we discuss the final three episodes with The Vests,  The Rainmaker, Liquidation which ends with Harris's libel lawsuit.  

The word we've used to describe Season 7 of  Barney Miller is "uneven".  These three episodes are great examples of that with the fairly strong episodes "The Doll" and "Lady and the Bomb" in which we get the usual strange people coming to the Old One Two (including the re-appearnce of Fish.  "Riot", however, is a tin-eared "very special episode".

Rachel Miller returns!  Is your pulse racing yet?  Mike and Chris discuss this bizarre episode where Wojo wants to date Barney's daughter. They also dive into the two-parter "Contempt" where Barney goes to the slam due to his principles. 

We continue to plod through the seventh season of Barney Miller with another uneven group of episodes. We meet a grammar Nazi in "The Psychic" and a real Nazi in "The Librarian".  In-between we find out that Carl Levitt can speak American Sign Language in the sublime episode "Stormy Weather" where a deaf prostitute is under arrest. 

Special guest Richard Hatem returns to discuss four episodes of Barney Miller!  Resignation in which Deitrich tries to resign only to manage to insult all of his co-workers.  Field Associate in which we learn that there's a snitch in the precinct.  And the two-parter, Movie, wherein Harris becomes an auteur by creating a heady adult film.

This three episode run of Barney Miller was the beginning, middle, and end of a new Detective in the old One-Two, Det. Sgt. Eric Dorsey (Paul Lieber). Sitting at Nick's desk, Dorsey was a quasi-Dietrich in his humor but couldn't ingratiate himself with his fellow detectives. We chart the introduction and fall of this ill-concieved character as we continue our trek through the uneven 7th season.

Welcome to season seven of Barney Miller where the guys of the old 1-2 are experimenting with new haircuts and toupees as we scream our way into the 1980s. We start off with a two-parter where the precinct shifts to dealing solely with homicides before abruptly shifting back. We follow that up with a story about a delegate to the 1976 democratic convention who's still hanging out in New York and i...

We're wrapping up the super sixth season of Barney Miller with three episodes that discuss topics as diverse as domestic terrorism, hypnosis, and intellectual property. We even discover a window in the 12th precinct that we never knew existed.

On this ultra-woke episode of The Life & Times of Barney Miller we discuss "Guns" wherein Wojo uses a bazooka against Barney, "Uniform Days" where Harris doesn't want to don the old blue threads, and the two-parter "Deitrich's Arrest." We're joined by renown screenwriter Richard Hatem to talk about a quartet of solid episodes from season 6.

Mike and Chris discuss the two-part episode "Vanished" in which Harris investigates the disappearance of several homeless men, forcing him to go undercover. In "The Child Stealers" we see the return of Marty and Mr. Driscoll while discussing parental rights for queer people.

We continue looking at the 6th Season of Barney Miller with three solid episodes wherein we hear about the state of DNA research in 1979, get a visit from an undercover detective, and reunite with a lot of familiar faces.

We continue our look at the solid Season 6 of Barney Miller with three episodes that include Wojo buying a parrot with a short shelf life, Don Calfa as a nearly-catatonic criminal, and the disappearance of Nick's old desk.

We continue our coverage of season 6 with three banger episodes which include discussion of human bondage, spontaneous combustion, and sowing wild oats.

We're back and kicking off Season 6 of Barney Miller with a discussion of the first three episodes: Inquisition, The Photographer, and Vacation. We've got the return of Lt. Scanlon and the re-introduction of the first gay officer working at the 12th Precinct. On this season Noam Pitlik takes the reign of all directing duties.

Richard Hatem joins Mike and Chris to talk about the final episodes of Season 5 of Barney Miller. It was a very strong season and ends with a very poignant episode wherein the members of the "Old One Two" reminisce about Jack Soo, the actor, and Yamana, the character.

On the latest episode of The Life & Times of Captain Barney Miller, we look at three episodes from late in the 5th season: The Counterfeiter, Open House, and Identity. These are three relatively strong episodes that really show how the show looked running on all cylinders.

On this episode we discuss three-four original Barney Miller episodes from the show's fifth season: The Spy, Wojo's Girl, and Voice Analyzer. Wojo's Girl was an attempt at a back-door pilot for a Wojo-centered series that never happened.