Chances are if a Rockford episode revolves around a sports theme, it'll be a solid one, and this one is no exception. Rob Reiner(All in the Family)makes an entertaining guest appearance as a professional quarterback named Larry "King" Sturtevant, although he looks more like he belongs in a beer league. Reiner seems to have had a blast, as he's out of character from the much more heralded Meathead, and had decent chemistry with James Garner. It turns out that he picked Rockford's name from the phone book, and his plan all along is to pretend that he gave Jim these recorded tapes of mob leaders, who obviously want them returned. Poor Jim knows nothing about the tapes, although he gets his trailer trashed, and gets arrested for a murder he didn't commit, and he's steaming at Larry, understandably so. It boils down to the mob being after both of the men, and once again, Angel(who is great again)gets involved, as long as the price is right. Wayne Tippit is solid as Agent Shore, who bangs heads with Jim, but Rockford usually calls his bluff; Beth has a few good scenes getting Jim out of jail, Dennis is Dennis(good thing), and look for a cameo by hall of famer Dick Butkus at a pool party. Also, look for the famous J-Turn by the Firebird, which is always a treat. After numerous attempts, Larry finally reveals that the important tapes were left with a female friend near the pool party, and even though a few goons with guns follow Jim and Larry, they do make a daring escape, as a portion of one of the tapes is played over a speaker just outside the pool just moments before Dennis and the cops arrest the goons. I would recommend this episode mainly for the quirky performance of Reiner, and how he, Angel, and Rockford work together, although not always on the same page.
Review of The No-Cut Contract
