Adam-12 (TV Series) Log 105: Elegy for a Pig (1970) User Reviews

A gut punch

[kenstallings-65346 · 10/10 · 12 February 2020]

In the era we live in, when so many wish to denigrate people because they are police officers, this episode drives home salient truths. Police are people, and people have value. It's really just that simple, and yet, what this episode does is break things down to the human level, in an intense thirty minute episode.

Producer Jack Webb wanted to present the lives of police officers in as matter-of-fact manner as possible, and so the series did just that. But, in this episode, the facts are much less than the description of the effect.

Anyone who questions the poignant risks that professionals like police carry, just watch this episode and realize that every cop you meet has a personal story similar in many ways to the story presented in this episode. Then, appreciate perhaps a bit better the significance of these people who take these risks every single day on the job.

A very unusual episode of "Adam-12"

[planktonrules · 9/10 · 15 June 2016]

I normally wouldn't bother reviewing an individual episode of "Adam-12", as most shows are essentially the same--an episodic view of Officers Reid and Malloy during a day's work. For the most part, the shows are very similar. This is NOT a complaint...the show was well made and enjoyable. However, it is nothing like the others...nothing.

The show begins with a cop being senselessly murdered by a thug...and soon the other cops apprehend the killer. But one of these cops is Malloy...and the dead cop he discovers is his friend, Tom Porter (Mark Goddard). Then, in documentary style, Malloy narrates an overview of Porter's life and service to the community.

This is an excellent program and shows Jack Webb's sincere appreciation of the police force. It's well made and effective...and a nice change of pace for the show.

The saddest episode, hands down

[tforbes-2 · 10/10 · 13 June 2020]

"Log 105: Elegy for a Pig" is, hands down, the saddest episode of the entire series, and the starkest. I first saw it when it originally aired on 21 November 1970, a day before the seventh anniversary of John F. Kennedy's assassination, so as an 11-year-old, this show hit really hard.

Looking at this now, during this time of great unrest, it's good to see a more human side of police life. Mark Goddard, who had been on Lost In Space as well as the 1959-1962 NBC series The Detectives, plays a police officer who loses his life in the line of duty. We get to see how he and Pete Malloy went through police academy and then police service together.

It's a very sad episode, but also very striking in its semi-documentary style of storytelling. And it is clearly one of the very best episodes!

A never to be forgotten episode

[praisercheri · 10/10 · 7 October 2021]

This episode left such an impression on me that I think of it often when I watch Adam-12 or learn of an officer's death.

It is a well written & poignant episode. It always moves me to tears.

It should be required viewing in schools for older children so they will learn to support our officers.

Elegy For An Officer Of The Law

[chashans · 10/10 · 20 April 2023]

An unfortunate title is the only negative to this incredibly powerful episode of Adam-12. Hopefully the reason for the usage of the word "pig" in the title will be lost to a young audience of beyond the year, 2023. The word was well known to Police Officers of the 1960s and 70s.

Simply a stand-out episode of not only this series, but of all televisual offerings - ever. It is quite striking that the viewer can be so moved by a character who has never been seen on the show prior. Martin Milner does an incredible job of narration. So good is he, and so good are the words he is given to say, that it may not even be noticed by the viewer that not one word is ever spoken by any of the characters. Everything is communicated in actions and facial expressions.

That this episode won no Emmy Awards nor was even nominated is unexcusable. Unless the producer/production declined any nominations. In a search, it seems Adam-12 was only ever nominated for an Emmy once, for Music Composition in 1971.

It is curious that the production was able to secure the usage of film material from an actual Police Officer funeral procession and cemetery service. The material is edited in flawlessly.

On a lighter note, the Gold Mustang convertible makes yet another appearance, though this time not in "possible stalker" mode. Here, it's Malloy's personal vehicle. It fits his character. (Reed, married with child, would most likely own a much more "family-friendly" car.) We also get a good look at a nice Cadillac Limousine of the era.

Best Episide in The Series

[irv24 · 10/10 · 9 October 2021]

Wow, Not for the weak hearted. This episode really shows the heartbreaking reality when a Police Officer gets killed in the line of duty. The effects it has on his family, Co workers and friends. Narrarated by Officer Malloy. Just as effective today, 50 years.later. Emmy material .

Narra.

The side you never see

[horvath-54974 · 10/10 · 4 February 2022]

This episode was written excellently. It really tells alot of truth in the life of a police officer. It speaks volumes how officers live everyday. More people should respect the officers tgat protect us everyday.