La Femme Nikita: The Complete Fifth Season (1997) Review

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(More customer reviews)This final season contains 8 episodes. Like when Highlander disappeared. USA Network showed these episodes without any fanfare. It took me over a year to catch all the episodes but it was worth it. And now anyone who did not get to see all the episodes can see them in one sitting!!!!!
These episodes are more like a miniseries as they answer the questions of how Nikita was "recruited." It reveals who is behind section.
Each episode adds onto the previous upto the conclusion of the series. Although there is a cliffhanger, everything is tied up in a tidy knot and it is very satifying for devotees of the show.
Peta Wilson and Roy DuPuis again shine as the spy and lovers. Alberta Walker again gives her ice cold performance as second in command, Madeline. This seasonette, Edward Woodward makes an appearance and shows that he still has it.
A complete detailed review of this will be written when the DVD is released.

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LA FEMME NIKITA:FIFTH SEASON - DVD Movie

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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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Secret Agent (aka Danger Man) - The Complete Collection Megaset 2007 (1965) Review

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(More customer reviews)Don't get the other megaset confused with this one - this is the real deal. Every episode of the series is on the DVD set, not just half! The quality is great and rather compact since they used the thin cases.

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Now, all 86 episodes from John Drake's entire crime-solving career are available together on DVD. Each episode of this exciting spy thriller is presented in the original broadcast order, from the original season that aired only in the U.K. as Danger Man to the 47 episodes of Secret Agent that were seen internationally, including the two color episodes that provided a vivid finale to the long-running suspense thriller.

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Mission: Impossible - The Fifth TV Season Review

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(More customer reviews)Good evening. This is the fifth season (1970-1971) of "Mission: Impossible" which is fully produced by Bruce Lansbury from season 4 and supervised by top writer Laurence Heath who, nevertheless, produces six episodes. Here is a complete revision of the series because of its ideological shift through a leaning towards the thematics of the youth movement (for instance: students' agitators and radicals in "Takeover", NLF guerrillas in "The Rebel", far left terrorists in "The Hostage" and subversive revolutionaries in "Blast").
You will find some deep changes: a new-hip-younger "regular" leading lady named Dana Lambert (played by Lesley Ann Warren) introduced in "Flip Side" (in which she performs two folk songs), a replacement of Willy in twelve episodes out of twenty three via a young physician named Doug Robert and also named Doug Lang (played by Sam Elliott), a faster-harder-urgent urban main theme music (moreover, four episodes contain the original main theme music), no more multi-part episodes, a recursive portable gadget used to stun that can be described as a "golden needle ring" (created by writer Ken Pettus in a season 4 episode of "The Wild Wild West" and introduced in a late MISSION season 4 entitled "The Crane", and over-used by producer Bruce Lansbury), no dossier scenes, a dramatic prologue-teaser followed directly by the tape scene before the opening credits, downbeat and realistic kind of narratives with accidents and failures, assignments in progress, improvisations, and caught up agents. The fashion design of the team is also renewed and reflects the trend (casual or outrageous) of the 1970's: pay attention to Jim's outfits (suits and sunglasses) during the tape scenes which will blossom from season 6.
Anyway, two of the series' main ingredients remain: a master of disguises (Paris) and foreign intrigues (around sixteen). Actor Leonard Nimoy shines again in these offerings: brainwashed Fred Stark in "My Friend, My Enemy", Kabuki performer Nakamura Taizo in "Butterfly", abducted business man Walter A. Phelan in "The Hostage", criminal Alfredo Sanchez/old convict Martin Sanchez in "The Catafalque", professional gambler Harry Kroll in "The Merchant". You'll still discover top episodes: the masterpiece "The Killer" (guest starring Robert Conrad), "The Innocent" (a controversial plot re-written by Laurence Heath that calls into question the methods of the IMFers who blackmail a young "hippie" scientist so that he works with them), "Flight" (guest starring John Colicos), "The Catafalque" (written by scripts genius Paul Playdon and guest starring John Vernon) and good ones: "My Friend, My Enemy" (guest starring Peter Mark Richman), "The Merchant" (guest starring George Sanders), "The Hostage" (guest starring Lou Antonio), "The Amateur" (guest starring Anthony Zerbe), "The Missile" (guest starring David Sheiner), "The Party", "The Field". As in season 4, intimistic stories centered around IMFers return: Paris ("My Friend, My Enemy" in which we learn his past as a magician), Jim ("Homecoming" in which we get a glimpse of his hometown and his family background), Barney ("Cat's Paw" in which we meet his brother). The music scores are powerful: "The Killer and "Takeover" by Lalo Schifrin and "The Rebel" by Hugo Montenegro.

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The hit series Mission: Impossible™ returns to DVD, featuring all 23 Season Five episodes! By the fifth season, the show's changing times meant changing crimes, as the emerging drug culture forced the IMF to spend more time in America, battling organized crime and drug czars. But the winning formula stayed the same: Jim Phelps (Peter Graves) gets his assignment, Barney Collier (Greg Morris) makes the required special effects, and Willy Armitage (Peter Lupus) supplies the muscle. And while Paris (Leonard Nimoy) has the makeup skills to become any character required, it's the team's newest member - the gorgeous Dana Lambert (Lesley Ann Warren) - who gives this season an added boost, and makes this set of Mission: Impossible™ the most thrilling DVD experience yet!

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The Wild Wild West: The Complete Series Review

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(More customer reviews)"The Wild Wild West" was a terrific show. CBS/Paramount has released the series in this entire season format. The show looks extremely good and the extras (only on season one except for the "bonus disc" but we'll get to that in a moment)are good as well. The big issue is the packaging. The box is certainly attractive look but it's basically the size of a board game box. When you open the inside the 27 discs are split into seasons 1 & 2 and 3 & 4 in what appears to be 2 cardboard "saddle bags" where they slide into it and are held in place with tiny cardboard inserts. The discs could be pretty easily scratched in this cheap packaging. Whoever designed this should be sent back to design 101--it's clever IF the quality of the materials were good but they're not--and it is a pain if you want to store this with some of your other DVD season sets. The saddle bags are sunk into a plastic older again making it look a bit like a board game (which is perhaps the purpose). There is a strip reprsenting the pix from the opening along the top. There is also a booklet that notes what episodes are on each disc.
The "bonus" disc has the two TV movies which should have been included as an extra on the fourth season box set (but was withheld so fans would have to double dip to get the two TV movies). Although the box claims they have been digitally restored, they look like simply transfers and while they don't necessarily look bad, they could have used the clean up given to the season sets. There are lots of white streaks and splotches that appear on the first TV movie and the openining 10 or 15 minutes for the 1980 sequel looks WORSE with the image a bit muddy and image quality darker than the 1979 TV movie. I was never a huge fan of the TV movies as they are more in line with "Support Your Local Sheriff" the movie starring James Garner. That's because both TV movies were written and directed by the same team who did that movie and "Support Your Local Gunfighter". It's nice to see both Robert Conrad and Ross Martin in their roles again but both movies while they have the humor that was characteristic of the series, certainly lack something. The producers must have gotten a bargain on stock footage for nuclear bombs exploding as it appears several times in both TV movies.
The first TV movie "The Wild Wild West Revisited" features Dr. Loveless' son (played by Paul Williams)planning to take over the world with replicas of the leaders of every major nation in the world. Both West and Gordon are called back retirement to prevent Loveless from using an atomic bomb (or something similar)that he has created planeted in the major nations of each country where he has replaced the leaders.
The second TV movie "More Wild Wild West" features the duo pulled out of retirement again to prevent Albert Paradine II (Jonathan Winters) from using his invisibility device from taking over the world.
Both films have nice supporting casts, some clever gags and nice interplay between Conrad and Martin but are a bit uninspired failing to capture the flavor of the original series at all.
I think it stinks that CBS/Paramount chose to release the TV movies only in the "The Complete Series" as they rightfully should have been included as part of the second, third or fourth season sets as an extra there. Regardless, my advice is to burn a copy when you're watching it on TV vs. ponying up additional cash for a package that while it looks nice isn't very sturdy.
If you haven't purchaed the other season sets this is an affordable one stop shop but the box itself is cumbersome and the materials a bit shoddy in my opinion (although it looks quite nice).

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James West and Artemus Gordon are two agents of President Grant who take their splendidly appointed private train through the west to fight evil. Half science fiction and half western, the Artemus designs a series of interesting gadgets for James that would make Inspector Gadget proud. A light hearted adventure series that was a fan favorite.

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Alias - The Complete Collection (Seasons 1-5 + Rambaldi artifact box) (2001) Review

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(More customer reviews)Other reviewers have mentioned this, but it's worth repeating: THE PACKAGING FOR THIS SET IS ILL-CONCEIVED AND WILL ALMOST CERTAINLY DAMAGE EVERY DISC. Each season's discs are packaged in beautifully detailed cardboard sleeves that are constructed so that corners and edges meet where the bottom of the disc rests. This means that each disc brushes up against four pointed corners each time it moves in the sleeve. Almost all of my discs were scratched upon delivery, and my older DVD player would not read some of them because of the depth of the scratches (my newer player didn't have any trouble, fortunately). I'd ask for a replacement set, but it would arrive in the same condition because this is a design flaw, not a manufacturing error. I'm thinking about contacting Buena Vista or its manufacturer to complain. For the price of this set, the discs ought to be protected better.
Packaging flaws aside, this is an excellent collection. The Rambaldi box itself is a great piece of eye candy and has magnetic sides and top so it closes easily; it's almost a toy itself. The bottom compartment is lined with felt and holds a bonus disc exclusive to this set. You also get a small book detailing some of the series' secrets, which is a nice bonus but not beefy enough to be a selling point.
I won't critique the content itself, other than to say that Alias is a shining example of dramatic television. It's one of my all-time favorite TV series and this collection contains every minute of every episode along with every bonus feature you could ask for.
Concerning the show alone, this product would easily merit a five-star rating, but the packaging is a real bummer. I'm as big of an Alias fan as there is, but even I have to knock off a star for the scratched discs. I'd recommend to anyone who already has two or three of the season sets to just buy the remaining seasons separately. You won't have to rely on scratched discs that way.

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From J.J. Abrams, the creator of LOST, comes the culmination of one of the most thrilling series ever -- ALIAS. Bring home the ultimate fan box set with ALIAS: THE COMPLETE COLLECTION, including all five complete seasons of ALIAS on DVD. This special collector's set is a must-own for all true fans and allows you to become part of the ALIAS phenomenon. Immerse yourself in hours of all-new exclusive bonus features with a special DVD packed with never-before-seen footage that you can only find in this set, including an emotional reunion with all your favorite stars from the series!

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The Wild Wild West - The Fourth Season Review

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(More customer reviews)Witness if you will the fourth (1968-1969) and final season of "The Wild Wild West", still produced by Bruce Lansbury and that continues his updated and rugged treatment of the series with the paranoid political tales: "The Night of the Doomsday Formula" (guest starring Kevin McCarthy as the fanatical General Kroll) and "The Night of the Pistoleros" showing a future nations' conflict triggered by Mexican look-alikes of American military officers.
You will meet James West's new partners because Artemus Gordon is sent to Washington: secret agent/master of disguises Jeremy Pike (played by Charles Aidman) in four episodes ("The Night of the Camera", "The Night of Miguelito's Revenge" that is the last Dr. Loveless' offering, "The Night of the Pelican", "The Night of the Janus" that is Charles Aidman's best performance as Baron Klaus Esterhauser and in which we catch a glimpse of James West's training academy), secret agent/master of disguises Frank Harper (played by William Schallert) in the two parter "The Night of the Winged Terror", and chemist/agent Ned Brown (played by Alan Hale Jr) in the gloomy "The Night of the Sabatini Death".
Moreover, we will again foray into the off-centered and the macabre fantasies as the Hammer Productions-like "The Night of the Sedgewick Curse" dealing with the theme of the fountain of youth, the tribute to the classic "The Phantom of the Opera" in "The Night of the Diva" (Robert Conrad even sings "Buffalo Gals" with his friends Richard Cangey and Red West) and a veiled reference to Conan Doyle's "The Hound of the Baskervilles" in "The Night of the Bleak Island", and two Jules Verne-oriented ones in "The Night of the Kraken" (which highlights a Captain Nemo type of character) and "The Night of the Winged Terror, Part I & II" (describing a secret organization of subversive mad scientists ruled by a hypercephalic mastermind).
One episode, directed in late season 3, depicts Robert Conrad's tragic fall while performing his stunt: "The Night of the Fugitives" (guest starring Simon Oakland).

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James West and Artemus Gordon are two agents of President Grant who take their splendidly appointed private train through the west to fight evil. Half science fiction and half western, the Artemus designs a series of interesting gadgets for James that would make Inspector Gadget proud. A light hearted adventure series.

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