Mimi Rogers steals the show here as a psychotic young woman besotted with Jonathan after a chance encounter. Initial infatuation quickly descends into obsession as she begins bombarding his office with phone calls, gifts and dogging his footsteps in full stalker mode.
Anyone who happens to get in the way or inadvertently frustrate Rogers' pursuit becomes a target and this of course makes Jennifer her enemy number one. As the bodies begin to mount, Jonathan suspects what might be happening and teams up with the police to self-investigate by arranging a date with his deadly admirer.
While the episode appeared a few years ahead of Fatal Attraction, it still bears a heavy influence from Play Misty For Me which covered the same theme just over a decade earlier. Wisely, the episode is devoid of the goofy humour that frequently characterizes the show and this enables the suspense to build without obstruction and there are several tense, standout moments.
We do end up with the familiar Jennifer-in-peril scenario toward the end (and I'm not sure why anyone who has barricaded themselves from danger would then choose to un-barricade themself) but even this is redeemed largely by the final moment, which is both unexpected, sad, yet very moving and provides as good a wrap-up to the story as anyone could expect.
Rogers is terrific here. Seductive and clearly unhinged, her scarlet lipstick, fingernails and garments are a clever backdrop to her knife-wielding antics. There is also a child-like innocence to her on occasion - even apologising to a victim at one point.
This one is definitely a change of pace for the series and could have ended up a complete misfire if handled in the familiar style of the show. As it stands, it is one of the must-see episodes.
Anyone who happens to get in the way or inadvertently frustrate Rogers' pursuit becomes a target and this of course makes Jennifer her enemy number one. As the bodies begin to mount, Jonathan suspects what might be happening and teams up with the police to self-investigate by arranging a date with his deadly admirer.
While the episode appeared a few years ahead of Fatal Attraction, it still bears a heavy influence from Play Misty For Me which covered the same theme just over a decade earlier. Wisely, the episode is devoid of the goofy humour that frequently characterizes the show and this enables the suspense to build without obstruction and there are several tense, standout moments.
We do end up with the familiar Jennifer-in-peril scenario toward the end (and I'm not sure why anyone who has barricaded themselves from danger would then choose to un-barricade themself) but even this is redeemed largely by the final moment, which is both unexpected, sad, yet very moving and provides as good a wrap-up to the story as anyone could expect.
Rogers is terrific here. Seductive and clearly unhinged, her scarlet lipstick, fingernails and garments are a clever backdrop to her knife-wielding antics. There is also a child-like innocence to her on occasion - even apologising to a victim at one point.
This one is definitely a change of pace for the series and could have ended up a complete misfire if handled in the familiar style of the show. As it stands, it is one of the must-see episodes.
