Secret Agent Aka Danger Man, Set 1 (1965) Review

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(More customer reviews)Despite the superfluity of attention lavished on THE PRISONER, you get much the best of John Drake and Patrick McGoohan in the original series, DANGER MAN (shown in the US as SECRET AGENT). Originally written as a spy for NATO, Drake eventually became a British agent in the Bond tradition, but with a decidedly sardonic working-class flavor that meshed neatly with McGoohan's Brooklyn upbringing.
There is something for everyone in the one-hour SECRET AGENT teleplays. The writing and character-acting (featuring the cream of the British TV troupe of the time) are superb, so that your intellect is diverted regardless of the subject matter. Although the location budget was limited, the producers managed to convey a genuinely exotic flavor week after week in luminous black-and-white. Noticeable wisps of LA DOLCE VITA suffuse the wardrobe and coiffure of these swinging-60's episodes. The music is exquisite, often using a single harpsichord or spare brass and drums to convey a wide range of moods. And has been noted, Drake takes on assignment after assignment using his own brains and a certain amount of brawn, often under his own name, and often in the face of local (including British) authorities. Towards the end of the series, when McGoohan's celebrity value had maxed and the limitations of the DANGER MAN formula were evident, a remarkably freewheeling style emerged, one that made THE PRISONER a logical next step or perhaps a reaction.
I have watched these shows for years with fierce affection. To develop a taste for DANGER MAN is to partake of some of the very best British TV of the 20th century. Their release on DVD is an occasion of great joy, and I intend to collect everything issued.

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Before there was The Prisoner, there was Secret Agent. American audiences welcomed handsome secret agent John Drake (Patrick McGoohan) into their homes when CBS ran the unique spy series known as Secret Agent (originally titled Danger Man in the U.K.) in 1965. The show was the epitome of cool, with its now famous theme song ("Secret Agent Man," sung by the indomitable Johnny Rivers) reaching No. 3 on the Pop Charts. Enjoy the first 6 hour-long episodes as broadcast in the U.S. of this exciting international spy thriller, digitally restored and uncut. Episodes: The Battle of the Cameras, A Room in the Basement, Fair Exchange, Fish on the Hook, No Marks for Servility, Yesterday's Enemies.

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