The Checklist: The Master (S1 Ep11) “Failure to Communicate”
There really is no better time to put an episode of The Master to The Checklist test than on Ninja Week!
This time around I am going to be looking back at Episode 11 of the short-lived ninja themed series, titled “Failure to Communicate”. It originally aired on NBC on May 4, 1984.
#1. Were there any notable guest stars?
As the show opens, Max Keller (Timothy Van Patten, Zone Troopers) and John Peter McAllister (Lee Van Cleef, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly) are on their way back to Max’s hometown, so Max can check in on his estranged father.
But on the way there, they spot a woman being chased through a cemetery by some goons. That woman is Kathy Hunter. Kathy was played by Ashley Ferrare of Revenge of the Ninja fame. Max and McAllister jump in to make the save… including McAllister using a shuriken to prevent one of the goons from using his gun.
The head goon is a nasty looking guy named Straker. Straker was played by Marc Alaimo, who I most recently saw during my Donato and Daughter rewatch. Alaimo is probably known for his work in Tango & Cash and Total Recall.
After rescuing Kathy, Max stops at his father’s office, while McAllister drives Kathy home. When Max gets inside, his dad isn’t there, BUT his dad’s secretary Laura Crane is there. Laura went blind a few years back after a car accident, which has enhanced all of her other senses… although I bet it makes it tough to type and file things. Fun fact, Laura was played by Rebecca Holden of Knight Rider fame.
And last but not least is Kathy’s father, Jason Hunter, played by J.D. Cannon. I recognized J.D. as the New York District Attorney from Death Wish II. 1/1
#2. Was the bar fight rule adhered to?
When Max insists on seeing his father, Laura tells him that he is probably at the local bar. Laura accompanies Max and who does Max bump into moments after arriving at the watering hole!? Straker and his two goon pals and that means bar fight!
Straker was there talking to Max’s father, Patrick Keller played by Doug McClure. Not to be confused with Troy McClure, but you may remember Doug from such films as Omega Syndrome and 52 Pick Up. It’s obvious that Patrick has gotten himself in too deep on something he shouldn’t have and it involves Kathy and her father.
McAllister meets Patrick Keller the same way he met his son Max, after he is defenestrated through a bar window. 2/2
#3. Was this a Shô Kosugi episode?
There was someone else of note at the bar, enjoying a drink and all the chaos caused by Max Keller. That certain someone else was none other than the man who has vowed to kill his former sensei, John Peter McAllister, Okasa (aka the main reason anyone watched this show, Shô Kosugi!)
We get two Okasa vs. McAllister battles in this episode and the more Kosugi action the better! 3/3
#4. Were there any obvious stunt doubles?
The cemetery at the start of the show may have been foggy, but not foggy enough for me to believe that Lee Van Cleef did a series of flips… The bald wig stunt double was back for the first Okasa vs. McAllister battle on the waterfront… The ninja rematch later in the program on a boat, had “McAllister” in full ninja garb, which always makes suspending of disbelief a little easier. 4/4
#5. Does the show have a happy ending?
Patrick Keller has quite a redemption arc in this episode. It is established early on that he is an alcoholic, who has found himself mixed up with some unsavory characters. Patrick all but delivers Kathy Hunter to Straker and his boys on her wedding day no less, so they can extort money from Kathy’s bank owning father.
Max and McAllister manage to rescue Kathy, but the baddies respond by kidnapping Patrick’s loyal secretary/friend Laura… this is where Patrick starts to make things right, as he joins his son and McAllister on the mission to rescue Laura and he proves to have a pretty good punch for a lawyer!
At the end, with all the women safe. And all the bad guys in police custody. Patrick pours his booze into the ocean and hugs his boy, Max. It don’t get much happier than that! 5/5
- Final Score = 5/5 (100%) Revisiting this episode really bummed me out, not because it was bad, quite the opposite… The Kosugi content was high, there were plenty of familiar faces, it gave us a little more Max lore… but the harsh reality is there were only two more episodes of the series after this one. And “Failure to Communicate” was a good one as the score indicates… did NBC pull the plug too soon?!?!
