Season 1, Episode 13
Date of airing: January 14, 1983 (NBC)
Nielsen ratings information: 13.49 million Households, 16.2 rating/25 share in Households
Written by: Robert Foster
Directed by: Jeffrey Hayden
”Widows and orphans, Michael!”
Robert Foster was now the showrunner of KNIGHT RIDER after Glen A. Larson finished his contract and moved on to different projects, and the first changes he undertook were to change K.I.T.T.'s voice modulator, and to make driving into the mobile headquarters of the Foundation a little more exciting by having the big black truck actually be moving instead of parked at the side of the road. And Foster's first story for the show is all about assault rifles and how they kill people. For at least one episode, KNIGHT RIDER stands the test of time and tells a story about gun and gang violence that is still true to this day. Although the episode could have focused more on the actual gang violence between the Legunas and the new players in town, instead of having Michael be undercover yet again.
The whole backstory of Emil Pavlon, the name Michael used to build his cover with the weapons dealers, seemed like it wasn't needed at all. Here was a background villain who just broke out of a Guatemalan prison, smuggled his way to America, just to identify the guy who said he knew Emil. And all of that in a matter of days. I was hoping that Emil would somehow be involved in the story during the climax, threatening Angie, but the guy just showed up, said he had never seen Michael before, and left again. Plus, if it was that easy for Emil to break out of prison when he needed to be in America, he could have broken out right after he got incarcerated. Silly plot device is silly.
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| 1980s television stunts were of high production value. |
