Episode 38: The Big Ripoff
08/26/18 • 83 min
Nathan and Eppy discuss S1E7 The Big Ripoff. Jim goes on a European jaunt to track down the truth about a widow who received a big insurance payout, but his client doesn't buy his conclusion that the husband is still alive. Trying to figure out a way to get paid for his work, Jim goes to the insurance company, leading him to yet another town in California to prove that Steve Nelson is still alive. We felt a very strong "back to basics" vibe with this episode, which features a fantastically tight script by series creator Roy Huggins, good humor, Jim pulling quick-thinking cons, and a fun mystery that keeps the energy moving with each reveal of the NEXT thing that's going on.
In our second half, we talk about our a new approach to the show, where we don't get so into the nitty gritty of each episode in favor of talking about how the overall story is structured. We break down this episode and how it transitions from one "act" to another, how to use plot holes as part of storytelling, and the ways in which the writing in this one always is serving more than one purpose, even the stuff that seemed like a throwaway gag when you first view it.
Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!
Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:
- Richard Hatem
- Victor DiSanto
- Jim Crocker - keep an eye out for Jim selling our games east of the Mississippi!
- Shane Liebling's Roll For Your Party dieroller app
- Lowell Francis's Age of Ravens gaming blog
- Kevin Lovecraft and the Wednesday Evening Podcast Allstars
- Mike Gillis and the Radio vs. The Martians Podcast
- And thank you to Dael Norwood, Dylan Winslow, Bill Anderson, Adam Alexander, Chris, Dave Y and Dave P!
Thanks to:
- zencastr.com for helping us record
- fireside.fm for hosting us
- thatericalper.com for the answering machine audio clips
- spoileralerts.org for the adding machine audio clip
- Freesound.org for the other audio clips
Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. We are exploring the intensely weird and interesting world of the 70s TV detective show The Rockford Files. Half celebration and half analysis, we break down episodes of the show and then analyze how and why they work as great pieces of narrative and character-building. In each episode of Two Hundred a Day, we watch an episode, recap and review it as fans of the show, and then tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.
Nathan and Eppy discuss S1E7 The Big Ripoff. Jim goes on a European jaunt to track down the truth about a widow who received a big insurance payout, but his client doesn't buy his conclusion that the husband is still alive. Trying to figure out a way to get paid for his work, Jim goes to the insurance company, leading him to yet another town in California to prove that Steve Nelson is still alive. We felt a very strong "back to basics" vibe with this episode, which features a fantastically tight script by series creator Roy Huggins, good humor, Jim pulling quick-thinking cons, and a fun mystery that keeps the energy moving with each reveal of the NEXT thing that's going on.
In our second half, we talk about our a new approach to the show, where we don't get so into the nitty gritty of each episode in favor of talking about how the overall story is structured. We break down this episode and how it transitions from one "act" to another, how to use plot holes as part of storytelling, and the ways in which the writing in this one always is serving more than one purpose, even the stuff that seemed like a throwaway gag when you first view it.
Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!
Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:
- Richard Hatem
- Victor DiSanto
- Jim Crocker - keep an eye out for Jim selling our games east of the Mississippi!
- Shane Liebling's Roll For Your Party dieroller app
- Lowell Francis's Age of Ravens gaming blog
- Kevin Lovecraft and the Wednesday Evening Podcast Allstars
- Mike Gillis and the Radio vs. The Martians Podcast
- And thank you to Dael Norwood, Dylan Winslow, Bill Anderson, Adam Alexander, Chris, Dave Y and Dave P!
Thanks to:
- zencastr.com for helping us record
- fireside.fm for hosting us
- thatericalper.com for the answering machine audio clips
- spoileralerts.org for the adding machine audio clip
- Freesound.org for the other audio clips
Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. We are exploring the intensely weird and interesting world of the 70s TV detective show The Rockford Files. Half celebration and half analysis, we break down episodes of the show and then analyze how and why they work as great pieces of narrative and character-building. In each episode of Two Hundred a Day, we watch an episode, recap and review it as fans of the show, and then tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.
Previous Episode
Episode 37: The Attractive Nuisance
Nathan and Eppy discuss S4E14 The Attractive Nuisance. Rocky has started a road-side restaurant, but a mysterious figure keeps prowling around the place. Simultaneously, Jim is being threatened by a lawsuit from a guy who climbed onto his trailer to look at the interesting telescope that was up there. In trying to keep Rocky out of trouble and also track down why his roof was REALLY so interesting, both Rockfords are caught up in a knotty situation with roots in the Prohibition era mob/FBI conflict. Thankfully, a smooth Cannell script keeps watching this mess unfold entertaining and rewarding. Maybe an episode that actually is better the second time you watch it, but it has a lot of fun, noir-inspired characters, witty dialogue, and a strong set of motifs throughout that keep this messy mystery engaging.
In our second half, we discuss how expertly this episode uses motifs in order to keep everything coherant and feeling like it's part of a single piece, even while the storylines don't all end up with neat endings. We also talk about the use of characters that feel like they're from a different story, and how integrating them into a narrative works to create and then resolve tension.
Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!
Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:
- Richard Hatem
- Victor DiSanto
- Jim Crocker - keep an eye out for Jim selling our games east of the Mississippi!
- Shane Liebling's Roll For Your Party dieroller app
- Lowell Francis's Age of Ravens gaming blog
- Kevin Lovecraft and the Wednesday Evening Podcast Allstars
- Mike Gillis and the Radio vs. The Martians Podcast
- And thank you to Dael Norwood, Dylan Winslow, Bill Anderson, Chris, Dave Y and Dave P!
Thanks to:
- zencastr.com for helping us record
- fireside.fm for hosting us
- thatericalper.com for the answering machine audio clips
- spoileralerts.org for the adding machine audio clip
- Freesound.org for the other audio clips
Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. We are exploring the intensely weird and interesting world of the 70s TV detective show The Rockford Files. Half celebration and half analysis, we break down episodes of the show and then analyze how and why they work as great pieces of narrative and character-building. In each episode of Two Hundred a Day, we watch an episode, recap and review it as fans of the show, and then tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.
Next Episode
Episode 39: Dirty Money, Black Light
Nathan and Eppy discuss S3E22 Dirty Money, Black Light. Rocky finally gets a break and wins a vacation in Hawaii - but once he's gone, starts receiving thousands of dollars in cash in the mail. Jim, worried that he's been tricked into a scam, has to hustle to figure out what's going on and why in this episode full to the brim with crooks, loan sharks, feds, Angel, Dennis AND Beth! One of the Stuart Margolin-directed episodes, there's so much packed into this episode that some of the threads are hard to follow, but many of the specific bits are really well done.
In our second half, we talk about the elements that contribute to the "overstuffed" feeling of this episode, including techniques for juggling a bunch of moving parts in a piece of fiction and our thoughts on ways to figure out when you have too much going on.
Want more Rockford Files trivia, notes and ephemera? Check out the Two Hundred a Day Rockford Files Files!
Support the podcast by subscribing at patreon.com/twohundredaday. Big thanks to our Gumshoe patrons! Check them out:
- Richard Hatem
- Victor DiSanto
- Jim Crocker - keep an eye out for Jim selling our games east of the Mississippi!
- Shane Liebling's Roll For Your Party dieroller app
- Lowell Francis's Age of Ravens gaming blog
- Kevin Lovecraft and the Wednesday Evening Podcast Allstars
- Mike Gillis and the Radio vs. The Martians Podcast
- And thank you to Dael Norwood, Dylan Winslow, Bill Anderson, Adam Alexander, Chris, and Dave P!
Thanks to:
- zencastr.com for helping us record
- fireside.fm for hosting us
- thatericalper.com for the answering machine audio clips
- spoileralerts.org for the adding machine audio clip
- Freesound.org for the other audio clips
Two Hundred a Day is a podcast by Nathan D. Paoletta and Epidiah Ravachol. We are exploring the intensely weird and interesting world of the 70s TV detective show The Rockford Files. Half celebration and half analysis, we break down episodes of the show and then analyze how and why they work as great pieces of narrative and character-building. In each episode of Two Hundred a Day, we watch an episode, recap and review it as fans of the show, and then tease out specific elements from that episode that hold lessons for writers, gamers and anyone else interested in making better narratives.
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