The Avengers '68 Set 1
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Diana Rigg, Honor Blackman, Ian Hendry, Linda Thorson, Patrick MacneeCinematographer: Gerald Gibbs
Cinematographer: Walter J. Harvey
Editor: Frank P. Keller
Editor: John Glen
Writer: Sydney Newman
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Box set, Color, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 312 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2001-10-30
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: A&E Home Video
Movie Reviews of The Avengers '68 Set 1
Movie Review: Thorson follows Rigg with a unique flair... details
Summary: 5 Stars
Prior to 1967, "The Avengers" was yielded in black-and-white. Going to color was a definite improvement; however in 1968 there were three additional significant changes:
1. Mrs. Peel (Diana Rigg) was traded out for Steed's new partner, Tara King (Linda Thorson).
2. The producers asserted that the 1968 episodes were more [paraphrasing] "believable" -- in fact, just the opposite is true. The '68 episodes are more bizarre than ever, but still very good.
3. There is more involvement by Steed's boss, "Mother" (a wheelchair-bound chubby guy who shows up in very strange places to discuss Steed's progress on respective cases).
This DVD package, (2 DVDs, individually cased and further packaged in an attractive cardboard box, this "Set No. 1" color-coded BLUE), is the first of FIVE sets for the 1968 episodes. The marketing of "The Avengers" can be quite confusing so I wanted to get that information out up front. This is also the BEST way to buy the DVDs (by the "set" rather than by the "volume") for any season, from 1963 through 1968.
Patrick Macnee shrewdly plays John Steed, England's gentleman undercover agent. Linda Thorson is one of several of a line of Steed's voluptuous sidekicks. In the U.S., most of us didn't even know about Honor Blackman and Macnee's other (earlier) partners until years later when these episodes finally emerged on VHS tape. Diana Rigg can probably claim about 60% of the credit for the vast number of U.S. audience members who were glued to their TVs when "The Avengers" finally hit here. The other 40% (not forgetting Macnee's fine performances) had to do with the presentation of this excellent series.
Starting in 1965, with Rigg, the filmscore was notably updated and played more prominently throughout the story, enhancing the action and suspense. Also, the action itself was boosted. There was never a dull moment with Steed and Mrs. Peel. And these episodes were all FUN -- one embraced a sense that Macnee and Rigg were having a great time in making these films. Now that I've seen episodes from "The Avengers'" earlier years, ('63 and '64), I can see that they dragged quite a bit during that earlier era and were much more soap opera-ish. The fun continued throughout the final year, 1968, even though Linda Thorson was simply never quite as dynamic or as sexy as Diana Rigg. The '68 filmscore and title scenes at the beginning and the conclusion of each episode were spiffed up a bit too.
Each of these 52-minute episodes is futuristic (at least for the period) and on the cutting edge of excellent television productions. I know of no series, "The Original Star Trek Series" excepted, which has remained as timeless as "The Avengers". You'll encounter, in the 1968 episodes, every nemesis ranging from Eastern spies posing as murderous British Army officers to equally murderous hotel desk clerks.
In the 1968 Set No. 1 (which includes Vols. 1 and 2), we're talking about six very enjoyable, action-packed, color episodes:
Volume 1:
"Game" - Steed finds he has something in common with a bunch of men who have been found dead playing games.
"Super Secret Cypher Snatch" - Cypher HQ springs a leak. Steed and Tara mop up.
"You'll Catch Your Death" - Empty envelopes mailed to ear, nose, and throat specialists worldwide bring a delivery of death... Steed requests a return receipt.
Volume 2:
"Split" - `Inside job' takes on an entirely new meaning when Steed investigates murders at the Ministry of Top Secret Information.
"Whoever Shot Poor George Oblique Stroke XR40" - Tara goes undercover as the niece of an American scientist to find out who `murdered' a supercomputer.
"False Witness" - When Lord Edgefield is accused of blackmail the witnesses seem incapable of keeping their stories straight.
The storylines of the various "The Avengers" episodes seem absurd to varying degrees as we view them today - but 1968 continued to escalate the absurdity beyond the previous years' entries. This did not diminish my enthusiasm for the "The Avengers" because the overall series always manifested a "Batman" (TV series) tongue-and-cheekness about it. I mention this only to prepare viewers for this actuality. I do want to mention, for this set in particular, that Linda Thorson was shrewd enough not to try to emulate Diana Rigg - she has a unique flair of her own.
The casting in all episodes is spot-on, punctuated with the very best sets and scenic locations. And Linda Thorson's astounding beauty (tenoned with her great figure!) really accentuates the `60s look in her mod attire.
I'll be reviewing all of the 1968 sets, (as I mentioned earlier, there are five in all, with 2 "volumes" per set), so be on the watch for my comments regarding the other sets at their appropriate sites on Amazon. In the meantime, while not exactly as marvelous as the 1967 episodes, this particular set still garners my highest recommendation!
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