This is one of the greatest episodes of any television show ever. It's the famous 'punk rock' episode and it delivers on every level. From the band Mayhem shouting their anthem "Next Stop, Nowhere" to the talk show that the punk kids appear on, telling the world that they are "fighting boredom." Forget the last episode of M.A.S.H.-this one is far more important. There are classic scenes that take place at a local L.A. punk hangout that include the punk band Mayhem (concocted for the show), where the punk kids sneer and hurl insults at Quincy the likes of "your the problem! Your whole damn sick society is the problem!," and "Besides-who cares man..." The episode itself is a raving advertisement for normality and is laugh out loud fantastic. As Quincy spends the entire episode trying to locate a killer who took an ice pick to some dudes back in a "slam pit" while zonked out on pills, the punk kids are subjected to a total lack of understanding, a masterful touch of suburban propaganda that'll have you giggling for weeks to come.
8 Reviews
The worst episode of "Quincy"....perhaps.
planktonrules2 June 2013
I like "Quincy" but I must admit that the shows were very uneven. Some were great and some were downright cringe-worthy because they were so bad. "Next Stop, Nowhere" is one of these bad episodes....a really, really bad episode! Could it be the worst of the series? Perhaps. You see it and decide.
The show begins at a punk rock show. Kids are dancing and dancing very rough. It's reasonable to expect a few bumps and bruises at such a concert, but this one ends up in a senseless murder. What follows is a long-winded and utterly ridiculous episode with Quincy and his girlfriend (Anita Gillette) crusading against the evils of punk rock. While they have no real evidence that the music kills, they assume that this is what occurred. And, by the end of the show, the audience has been pretty much convinced of the evils of this music....though in reality there is zero proof that punk rock (or any music) causes such insane behaviors.
This might just be among the preachiest episodes ever. It's not really about a crime but about the writer's bias against punk rock. I often listen to The Ramones and hardly ever kill anyone! It also is an episode that is utter claptrap. As a result, it's embarrassing and stupid. Poor in pretty much every way, they really should have been embarrassed to make such an episode.
The show begins at a punk rock show. Kids are dancing and dancing very rough. It's reasonable to expect a few bumps and bruises at such a concert, but this one ends up in a senseless murder. What follows is a long-winded and utterly ridiculous episode with Quincy and his girlfriend (Anita Gillette) crusading against the evils of punk rock. While they have no real evidence that the music kills, they assume that this is what occurred. And, by the end of the show, the audience has been pretty much convinced of the evils of this music....though in reality there is zero proof that punk rock (or any music) causes such insane behaviors.
This might just be among the preachiest episodes ever. It's not really about a crime but about the writer's bias against punk rock. I often listen to The Ramones and hardly ever kill anyone! It also is an episode that is utter claptrap. As a result, it's embarrassing and stupid. Poor in pretty much every way, they really should have been embarrassed to make such an episode.
"This guy's been zapped by the brain police!" Classic camp Quincy!
poolandrews11 July 2007
Warning: Spoilers
Quincy M.E.: Next Stop, Nowhere starts at the Underground Zero nightclub where a punk rock band called Mayhem are playing to a crowd of stoned punks, one such stoned punk named Zack decides to some 'slam dancing' & ends up with an ice pick in the back of his neck & shortly after on L.A. coroner Quincy's (Jack Klugman) autopsy table. It's a clear case of murder & Lt. Monahan (Garry Walberg) already has the murder weapon with prints so catching the culprit shouldn't be too difficult. Then Quincy's woman-friend Dr. Emily Hanover (Anita Gillette) says she knew Zack's girlfriend Abigail Garvin (Melora Hardin) & was counselling her, she also tells Quincy of the depressing & negative punk rock music these kids listen to that preach murder, suicide & hate. Quincy is shocked & puts down punk music as a contributory cause of death on Zack's coroners report which attracts the attention of the local media, Quincy has to defend his opinions & findings or risk his reputation...
Episode 8 from season 8 this Quincy story was directed by Ray Danton & is a true Quincy classic although not necessarily for the right reasons. The whole notion of a 60 plus year old Quincy speaking out against punk music & it's spaced out teenage followers is amusing enough on it's own but the music itself, the lyrics, the dialogue between the punks & Quincy, the story, the talk show sequence, the clothes & make-up the punks wear & the nightclub scenes all add up to make Next Stop, Nowhere one of the funniest so bad it's absolutely hilarious TV experiences I've ever had the undisputed pleasure of viewing. This episode is a complete hoot from start to finish, it's hard to describe & it's one of those episodes where words just can't do it justice. Besides venting much anger & frustration at punk music Quincy actually has a murder to solve in this one as well unlike much of season 8 so everyones a winner, there's the moralistic social message side of the story & a solid crime mystery to go with it. What more do you want? At only 60 odd minutes in length this moves along like a rocket & is great fun to watch in an unintentionally funny in an embarrassing sort of way.
The clothes & make-up the punks wear in this are just hilarious, the nightclub scenes of Mayhem performing & various punks 'slam dancing' are obviously the work of a genius... The whole show is just so camp & over-the-top. This is great & the fact it takes itself so seriously just adds to the entertainment value. Some of the guest stars here are terrible but who cares? The final scene set in Danny's when Quincy & Emily start dancing to some classic ballad music is so syrupy, sugary & sweet it would make a diabetic explode at 20 feet!
Next Stop, Nowhere is classic Quincy & is just about as good as anything in season 8 but not for the right reasons, anyway this is absolutely hilarious TV & it's got Quincy in it making several passionate speeches & getting increasingly angry which makes it even better!
Episode 8 from season 8 this Quincy story was directed by Ray Danton & is a true Quincy classic although not necessarily for the right reasons. The whole notion of a 60 plus year old Quincy speaking out against punk music & it's spaced out teenage followers is amusing enough on it's own but the music itself, the lyrics, the dialogue between the punks & Quincy, the story, the talk show sequence, the clothes & make-up the punks wear & the nightclub scenes all add up to make Next Stop, Nowhere one of the funniest so bad it's absolutely hilarious TV experiences I've ever had the undisputed pleasure of viewing. This episode is a complete hoot from start to finish, it's hard to describe & it's one of those episodes where words just can't do it justice. Besides venting much anger & frustration at punk music Quincy actually has a murder to solve in this one as well unlike much of season 8 so everyones a winner, there's the moralistic social message side of the story & a solid crime mystery to go with it. What more do you want? At only 60 odd minutes in length this moves along like a rocket & is great fun to watch in an unintentionally funny in an embarrassing sort of way.
The clothes & make-up the punks wear in this are just hilarious, the nightclub scenes of Mayhem performing & various punks 'slam dancing' are obviously the work of a genius... The whole show is just so camp & over-the-top. This is great & the fact it takes itself so seriously just adds to the entertainment value. Some of the guest stars here are terrible but who cares? The final scene set in Danny's when Quincy & Emily start dancing to some classic ballad music is so syrupy, sugary & sweet it would make a diabetic explode at 20 feet!
Next Stop, Nowhere is classic Quincy & is just about as good as anything in season 8 but not for the right reasons, anyway this is absolutely hilarious TV & it's got Quincy in it making several passionate speeches & getting increasingly angry which makes it even better!
Possibly the most ridiculous and corny episode of the series
rayoflite2418 January 2016
Next Stop, Nowhere begins at a club where a punk rock band is playing and a bunch of teenagers are thrashing around to the music. When one of them ends up stabbed to death on the dance floor, Quincy (Jack Klugman) conducts the autopsy and lists the lyrics in the music as a contributing cause of death because it motivates the teenagers to commit violent acts. The findings cause debate within the coroner's office and a media frenzy leaving Quincy to defend his position while trying to help the police solve the murder.
As other reviewers perfectly pointed out, this is possibly the most ridiculous and corny episode of the Quincy series which is saying a lot considering some of the nonsense that we've seen in the later seasons. The punk rock club scenes are unintentionally hilarious and then you have Klugman standing up there trying to lecture them later in the story in a "Hey you kids, get off my lawn!" style which is just sad and embarrassing for all involved. Although there is a murder mystery featured, it is so buried among the craziness and silliness of this story that you practically miss it.
While this is an epically bad episode, I still have to recommend watching because this is nothing like anything else you've seen on Quincy or possibly even television in general!
As other reviewers perfectly pointed out, this is possibly the most ridiculous and corny episode of the Quincy series which is saying a lot considering some of the nonsense that we've seen in the later seasons. The punk rock club scenes are unintentionally hilarious and then you have Klugman standing up there trying to lecture them later in the story in a "Hey you kids, get off my lawn!" style which is just sad and embarrassing for all involved. Although there is a murder mystery featured, it is so buried among the craziness and silliness of this story that you practically miss it.
While this is an epically bad episode, I still have to recommend watching because this is nothing like anything else you've seen on Quincy or possibly even television in general!
Unintentional hilarity
magrudzinski22 February 2014
I'm giving this a 10 just on the unintentional comedy this episode displays. It really needs to go down in the pantheon of exploitive nonsense mainstream entertainment tries to foist upon a public that doesn't know any better.
I can only compare this episode of the "squares" dealing with a sub-culture that they don't understand and therefore fear to the infamous Dragnet episode known as "Blue Boy" that deals with hippies and LSD. Both have parallels of middle-aged, square white men addressing youth sub-cultures that they can't and won't be able to understand.
The episode starts with a murder at a fictional concert performed by the fictional punk band Mayhem. The writers, performers and director of the show have absolutely no clue of what the punk scene was about. The episode starts off on a bad foot and never, ever goes beyond a hyped-up, sensationalistic and obviously biased view of what the L.A. punk scene was about. Of course Qunicy learns of the horrific goings-on in the punk rock scene that it obviously written by someone who doesn't know any better.
Ironically, the same time that this episode came out, the L.A. police were very busy busting heads, breaking up any and all punk shows in the greater L.A. metro area. Who were the violent ones?
I can only compare this episode of the "squares" dealing with a sub-culture that they don't understand and therefore fear to the infamous Dragnet episode known as "Blue Boy" that deals with hippies and LSD. Both have parallels of middle-aged, square white men addressing youth sub-cultures that they can't and won't be able to understand.
The episode starts with a murder at a fictional concert performed by the fictional punk band Mayhem. The writers, performers and director of the show have absolutely no clue of what the punk scene was about. The episode starts off on a bad foot and never, ever goes beyond a hyped-up, sensationalistic and obviously biased view of what the L.A. punk scene was about. Of course Qunicy learns of the horrific goings-on in the punk rock scene that it obviously written by someone who doesn't know any better.
Ironically, the same time that this episode came out, the L.A. police were very busy busting heads, breaking up any and all punk shows in the greater L.A. metro area. Who were the violent ones?
I had a hard time rating this one...
AlsExGal7 January 2024
Because on one hand it is just so bad - Medical examiners do not do battle with punk rockers! On the other hand it is a camp classic, so unintentionally bad that it must be seen to be believed.
A punk rock band is playing at a club full of punk rock fans. Some slam dancing ends up with one celebrant getting an ice pick in the neck. He ends up on Quincy's autopsy table, and the cause of death should be easy to determine. But no, Quincy has to put punk rock as contributing to death on the death certificate. Try collecting on life insurance with THAT death certificate! But I digress.
The funniest part has to be when Quincy squares off in a debate with some punk rockers. Just like in some of the 1960s episodes of Dragnet, this debate answers the question - what would teenagers sound like if 50 year olds tried to sound like teenagers?
Ray Danton directed this episode, which outdoes his starring turn in "The George Raft Story" as the worst thing he ever did.
A punk rock band is playing at a club full of punk rock fans. Some slam dancing ends up with one celebrant getting an ice pick in the neck. He ends up on Quincy's autopsy table, and the cause of death should be easy to determine. But no, Quincy has to put punk rock as contributing to death on the death certificate. Try collecting on life insurance with THAT death certificate! But I digress.
The funniest part has to be when Quincy squares off in a debate with some punk rockers. Just like in some of the 1960s episodes of Dragnet, this debate answers the question - what would teenagers sound like if 50 year olds tried to sound like teenagers?
Ray Danton directed this episode, which outdoes his starring turn in "The George Raft Story" as the worst thing he ever did.
The Reefer Madness of Quincy Episodes
dogeatdog728 November 2021
Quincy: "Why would anyone wanna pretend that every day is Halloween?"
A so-bad-it's-good camp Quincy episode about how punk rock music compels listeners to kill. By the eighth season, Quincy had become a soapbox for preaching about social causes, and this episode is the best of them. Not that I'm a fan of punk music, but there's no subtlety here.
A so-bad-it's-good camp Quincy episode about how punk rock music compels listeners to kill. By the eighth season, Quincy had become a soapbox for preaching about social causes, and this episode is the best of them. Not that I'm a fan of punk music, but there's no subtlety here.
Punk Rock Kills!
tiekbane2 January 2023
Ah yes, the infamous Quincy punk rock show. This impending episode caused quite a stir in 1982 in Flipside & Maximum R&R with funny cartoons & outrage. The outrage eased after the airing in December 1982 because the episode was so dumb. Other commenter's have characterized it as high camp & that's exactly what it was:
The killer was portrayed by Karlene Crockette who was concurrently playing the part of Lucy Ewings' squeaky clean friend who never got invited to the kool kids' party's in Dallas. She proved herself to be a versatile actress running the gamut from prissy nerdette to punk rock killer.
The scene of the mosh pit is alone worth the price of admission with the over acting by the 'musicians' & all the fake punching sound effects. And Flys' admonishment," This is the ugliest, scummiest crowd we ever played for.... AND THAT'S SAYIN' SUMPUN!"
Quincys' self righteous speech about hippies changing the world is hilarious. Everybody knows hippies were too strung out on acid to even change their clothes (hence the term "smell like a hippy") and they all became republicans and voted for Ronald Reagan. Twice.
And the poor schmuck who played the victim didn't even get a billing. Dude, whoever you are, you died for punk rock! That's an accomplishment that few can claim.
This episode aired during season 8 (this crummy show was on for 8 years??) & is available on DVD. My fellow punk rockers, hurry up & pirate a copy of this episode before it's out of print. Anarchy rules!
The killer was portrayed by Karlene Crockette who was concurrently playing the part of Lucy Ewings' squeaky clean friend who never got invited to the kool kids' party's in Dallas. She proved herself to be a versatile actress running the gamut from prissy nerdette to punk rock killer.
The scene of the mosh pit is alone worth the price of admission with the over acting by the 'musicians' & all the fake punching sound effects. And Flys' admonishment," This is the ugliest, scummiest crowd we ever played for.... AND THAT'S SAYIN' SUMPUN!"
Quincys' self righteous speech about hippies changing the world is hilarious. Everybody knows hippies were too strung out on acid to even change their clothes (hence the term "smell like a hippy") and they all became republicans and voted for Ronald Reagan. Twice.
And the poor schmuck who played the victim didn't even get a billing. Dude, whoever you are, you died for punk rock! That's an accomplishment that few can claim.
This episode aired during season 8 (this crummy show was on for 8 years??) & is available on DVD. My fellow punk rockers, hurry up & pirate a copy of this episode before it's out of print. Anarchy rules!
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