Howcatchem
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Howcatchem is a term coined by TV Guide for a murder mystery plot structure in which the audience is made aware right away of the killer's identity, and the mystery becomes how they will eventually be caught. It was popularized by the series of TV movies featuring Detective Columbo, though few other mystery series attempted such a structure, the polar opposite of the more typical "whodunit." Recently the USA series Monk has used the structure in several of its episodes, though the majority of them are still whodunits. Law & Order would be an example of a whodunit, whereas Law & Order: Criminal Intent would be an example of a howcatchem.
With relation to Columbo, a variation of this term is often used: howshegonnacatchem.
