WORST AVENGERS EPISODES!
L7...@webtv.net
Please list your all time worst Avengers episodes. and why!
Artemis
Uhhhhhh, gee.... Linda "Can't get anyone else to do it" Thorson episodes.
Just take your pick, it doesn't matter they all lack any talent or
imagination... etc... I could go on but I don't want to upset the Linda
Thorson Fan Club...
..you know how that French Guy is!
ARTEMIS
Scotty L10
The Worst Avengers episodes:
1. All Blackman episodes (except a couple because they're FUCKING BORING!)
2. Small Game for Big Hunters: the characters and plot are corny and lame)
3. Quick-Quick Slow Death : Lame lame lame lame lame, and no story.
4. Homicide and Old Lace: everything about that episode sucks
5. K is for Kill: Boring not just regular boring, but slow bad boring the kind
of boring that is in low budget bad films with bad acting and dubbing and
stuff.
and Thorson rules. Those the episodes for the true Avengers fans not for
poseurs. The plots are better than the Riggs.
Phil Schaefer
Shiloh7
<3. Quick-Quick Slow Death : Lame lame lame lame lame, and no story.>
How could this end up on a "Worst of" list? With the dance school's band leader
leading an orchestra of cardboard cutouts? Whodunit it carved on a sausage?
Brilliance in spaces! ;-) Plus you get the fetish shoemaker scene, Diana
dancing & more!
[GO]
Artemis
Shiloh7 <shi...@aol.com> wrote in article
<199806092308...@ladder01.news.aol.com>...
Told you about that one Thorson Fan, he's a bit well... a nutter!
ARTEMIS
costumr
I think by far the worst I saw was "Killer." I'm just guessing, but I
feel the producers were less than happy with Ms. Thorson and possibly
the audience's reaction to her and tried to find a new Emma Peel. The
physical similarity is there, but that's as far as it goes. Jennifer
Croxton's pathetic attempts at witty repartee are positively painful.
This is one that should have been buried along with the Elizabeth
Shepard ep.
Don
Douglas E. Cree
Any Tara episode except Forget-Me-Not, which was
saved by the mere presense of Diana Rigg.
Dick Salomon
Scotty L10 wrote:
> The Worst Avengers episodes:
>
> and Thorson rules. Those the episodes for the true Avengers fans not for
> poseurs. The plots are better than the Riggs.
>
> Phil Schaefer
I assume you wrote this to see what kind of responses you could get. If you
actually believe what you wrote, I feel sorry for you.
Dick
HNK 999C
I'd say that my least favourite episode has to "The Girl from Auntie" - Mrs
Peel is hardly in it! And, any other episode where she was on leave.
As far as the Tara King episodes are concerned i think people are being a bit
harsh. I think the episodes were still very Avengers but granted not exactly
the same without Diana Rigg. Let's face it what is!
Barry
"Always keep your bowler on in times of stress and watch out for diabolical
masterminds"
GIL KAHELE
Any episode without Diana. I am such a huge Rigg fan that I refuse to
see an episode without her in it. Even The Girl From Auntie is worth
watching only if you briefly see her in the beginning and end of the
episode. We should be grateful for all 51 Steed/Peel episodes. She is
and continues to be the only reason that attracted me to the Avengers in
the first place.
Elizabeth A. Anderson
In article <199806110729...@ladder03.news.aol.com>,
HNK 999C <hnk...@aol.com> wrote:
>I'd say that my least favourite episode has to "The Girl from Auntie" - Mrs
>Peel is hardly in it! And, any other episode where she was on leave.
>As far as the Tara King episodes are concerned i think people are being a bit
>harsh. I think the episodes were still very Avengers but granted not exactly
>the same without Diana Rigg. Let's face it what is!
>Barry
I always have rather liked that one, though I was wondering,
Barry and everybody else, if there was some idea of a spin-off
using (argh, can't remember either actress or character's
name!). At the end of the show, if you recall, our amazing duo
are driving in the countryside and are raced by that young woman,
and the barter seems to me to suggest this. Does anybody know?
lki...@ibm.net
My thoughts, exactly! It seems to me, also, that the addition
of Patrick Newell as "Mother" was an abomination. I don't know
why they felt the need to have a visible boss when there had
not been one prior. Add to that Newell's and Thorson's lack
of talent, and the show just went downhill. The best thing
about the episode "Forget-Me-Knot (note: it is KNOT not NOT)
was the arrival of Emma's husband (a.k.a. as actor Patrick
Macnee)!
LK
Chris Krisocki
My least favorite would have to be Pandora, which threatens to put me
to sleep whenever I watch it (which hasn't been since A&E showed it
last...) Even Julian Glover can't improve this one. Also didn't care for
The Rotters.
Suppose I should be fair and mention a Diana Rigg episode - my least
favorite is probably Dial a Deadly Number, though we've actually got
pocket-sized pagers now. Shocking, innit?
Beccy
Elizabeth A. Anderson wrote in message
<6lp247$2...@ds2.acs.ucalgary.ca>...
>In article <199806110729...@ladder03.news.aol.com>,
>HNK 999C <hnk...@aol.com> wrote:
>>I'd say that my least favourite episode has to "The Girl from
Auntie" - Mrs
Is that the one with Mrs Peel in the cage at the end. Surely that last
bit, particularly where she is provoked, compensates for her absence in
the rest of it.
The worst one for me, sorry Thorson fans - for once nothing to do with
Tara but simply because the story is terrible - Thingamajig. Or however
you spell it.
Beccy
Adam Richards
On Mon, 8 Jun 1998 22:46:59 -0700, L7...@webtv.net wrote:
>Please list your all time worst Avengers episodes. and why!
OK. THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED BELOW ARE JUST THAT - OPINIONS....
+ * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * +
1. Pandora - it's SHITE!! "The Perils of Pauline" on acid. This has
got to be the worst episode ever filmed in the original "Avengers"
run. Tara isn't a heroine in this story; she's a helpless wench at the
mercy of men - that sucks, and is **not** "The Avengers" at all...
2. Invasion of the Earthmen - is this meant to be a joke? A whining,
blonde-wigged and Peter-Pan-costumed Tara is trapped in a building
full of people attempting to kill her with a silly b-movie robot.
Absolutely the bottom of the barrel, it looks like the "film"
sequences in Amazon Women Of The Moon (yes, really). It’s a shame that
for all this it couldn’t have been funnier.
3. Legacy of Death - one of the stagiest and most unconvincing
episodes of the entire show. Written by Terry Nation (uh-oh!!), it
ends up as a hollow and soulless homage to The Maltese Falcon, full of
cardboard characters and predictable, cartoon situations. It means
well, but the script is such an abortion that even the superb set
design can’t save it. Pity.
4. Epic - looks like a cross between an inept episode of "Batman" and
a particularly forgettable spoof / stage play / "novel, based on
characters who originally appeared in The Avengers..." written by a
fan who has got the feel, tone, atmosphere and character dynamics of
the show all wrong. About two fun moments in the whole thing don't
save it from the being a weird, dumb, dead, soulless failure.
5. Fog - a Sherlock Holmes pastiche that should have been good but is
merely tedious; a mish-mash which seems glum, sullen and yellow-edged
when it should be extravagant and colourful (compare it to Doctor Who:
The Talons Of Weng Chiang to see how it should’ve been done). I didn’t
believe in or care about this enough to watch it to the end - why is
everyone suddenly going round in opera capes and top hats, just
because of a little fog? What planet are the people from in this
episode? Who gives a toss, anyway?
6. Requiem - what starts out as the standard, boring Thorson “formula”
episode (two panto villains, Tara lets herself get kidnapped again,
blah-blah, yawwwwn) suddenly becomes a (not very good) episode of The
Prisoner, as Tara is brainwashed into thinking Mother is dead and
Steed is in danger of being assassinated, etc. Every punch is pulled
so blatantly; the whole thing is terribly clumsy, predictable and
humourless; and the direction is some of the blandest ever seen in the
series.
7. Who's Who? - yes, it has two interesting performances as MacNee and
Rigg play "Bonnie and Clyde" with nobs-on, but I just don't like it,
sorry. The plot (complete with hokey sci-fi props, that even a bad
"Dr. Who" of the era would have rejected) seems bargain basement, and
it feels written in a rush. Has anyone else noticed also, that the
tag-scene / "Mrs. Peel, we're needed" bits in this one just aren't
funny?
8. Lots of other Tara episodes which, when they were on, were simply
ignored. I mean, "The Avengers" would come on and I'd start watching
it quite intently, but after about ten minutes I'd just get bored and
go and make a cup of coffee. Then, I'd wander back into the TV room
and just change the channel. Some examples of this odd phenomenon:
"They Keep Killing Steed"; "Get-A-Way"; "The Rotters"; "Homicide & Old
Lace"; "Whoever Shot Poor George (etc.)"; "Wish You Were Here". In
fact, I'm not even exactly sure which Tara episodes I have or haven't
seen, because I know that I missed about 4 of them, but there are many
more than 4 titles that mean absolutely nothing to me. Yeah, there
were about five really good Tara episodes, but the rest were dross....
9. A Surfiet of H20 - starts good, ends up a trial to watch, mostly
because of one Mr. Noel Purcell, who overacts in cringe-inducing
fashion. The ending is badly done. The characters are unappealing. The
plot is silly. It doesn't "warm the cockles" in the way that almost
every other MacNee / Rigg episode does. In short, it should have been
binned as a failure.
10. (tie between) "£50,000 Breakfast" / "Small Game For Big Hunters" -
the former for being a boring, straight re-make of a past-it Cathy
Gale episode, given an obscene amount of onscreen budget
disproprtionate to what the material deserved, when they really should
have written something better instead; the latter for its confusing
plot and dull mid-section. Sleeping sickness? I should know what it
feels like mate, I watched the episode!
+ * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * + * +
Judging from the above list, what would people say was the worst thing
about the "Avengers"?
Tara Tara Tara!!!!!
<Ad...@roblang.demon.co.uk>
===================================================
FIND OUT THE SHOCKING TRUTH BEHIND THE "TELETUBBIES":
alien mutants that threatened to devour the earth!!!
http://www.roblang.demon.co.uk/fangrok/gallery/Tubbies.html
Adam Richards
On 09 Jun 1998 23:08:01 GMT, shi...@aol.com (Shiloh7) wrote:
><3. Quick-Quick Slow Death : Lame lame lame lame lame, and no story.>
>
>How could this end up on a "Worst of" list? With the dance school's band leader
>leading an orchestra of cardboard cutouts? Whodunit it carved on a sausage?
>Brilliance in spaces! ;-) Plus you get the fetish shoemaker scene, Diana
>dancing & more!
I really loved the episode - yeah, the "substitution" plot is a bit
creaky, but the humour & characterisation in it are superb - it's a
B&W blueprint for the marvellous colour season five, IMO.
Adam Richards
On 09 Jun 1998 23:01:41 GMT, scot...@aol.com (Scotty L10) wrote:
>Thorson rules. Those the episodes for the true Avengers fans not for
>poseurs. The plots are better than the Riggs.
Pity Tara herself (i.e. the character) was so lame. But, if you like
plots where the girl is always tied up / gassed / knocked out /
captured, or trips up / sprains ankle / screams / winces / is used as
an emotional trigger so Steed can "save" her, thus proving the
superiority of the male / gives away the game to the villains / acts
like a soggy lettuce leaf at the first signs of danger, then OK... :)
Adam Richards
On Tue, 09 Jun 1998 23:07:41 -0400, "Douglas E. Cree" <dec...@ibm.net>
wrote:
>L7...@webtv.net wrote:
>>
>> Please list your all time worst Avengers episodes. and why!
>
>Any Tara episode except Forget-Me-Not, which was
>saved by the mere presense of Diana Rigg.
Inclinded to agree, except in some extreme cases, like "All Done With
Mirrors", "Take Me To Your Leader" and "Look, Stop Me if (etc.)" which
were such good stories and so typically "avengers" that it didn't
matter about Tara. (mind you, watch "All Done With Mirrors" and ask
Brian Clemens, "hey, if Tara could've been this good every week, W H Y
wasn't she????")
Adam Richards
On Thu, 11 Jun 1998 20:48:01 -0400, chr...@webtv.net (Chris Krisocki)
wrote:
> My least favorite would have to be Pandora, which threatens to put me
>to sleep whenever I watch it (which hasn't been since A&E showed it
>last...) Even Julian Glover can't improve this one.
Oh, so correct there! "Pandora" is a truly godawful episode. In fact I
think it is the very worst of all-time.
I'll just re-iterate my opinions on this one, from my online "Thermal
Lance" reviews :
"...Jesus, what a rotten episode! And it’s Linda Thorson’s favourite -
well, she can keep it. Tara is kidnapped again, this week it’s to be
bride to a WWI soldier who’s promised the villains a massive dowry if
he can marry Pandora, the girl of his dreams who, in 1915, looked like
Tara King. The whole plot only works because Tara is so lame and
pathetic! Consider Cathy Gale or Emma Peel in her shoes: they’d
drop-kick the assailants and be outta that door in ten minutes, end of
episode! The production is too brightly lit to be attractive in the
usual Avengers way; the (excellent) cast is wasted, the climax is
risible pantomime, and the episode as a whole says really unsavoury
things about the producers of this show and where they wanted to steer
it (into more stories about women in peril, basically). And more than
any other it illustrates the complete failure of Tara King’s character
- watching this all I can say is, “No wonder it was cancelled.”
Adam’s rating: - (minus sign) 200 out of 10."
>Also didn't care for The Rotters.
Yup, here's my review, again:
"A pair of villains go around killing people and infecting buildings
with dry rot causing them to disintegrate unnaturally quickly. Weird.
I liked the idea of it instantly, but the episode is too silly for its
own good (despite being The Avengers - it still doesn’t work). A
script that wants so much to be both Batman and Monty Python’s Flying
Circus, but succeeds merely in being a particularly forgettable take
on your standard Jerry Lewis film; think Epic and Who’s Who (the only
two colour Emma Peel episodes that I’d call ‘below-average’) and
you’ve got it in a nutshell.
Adam’s rating: 4 out of 10."
> Suppose I should be fair and mention a Diana Rigg episode - my least
>favorite is probably Dial a Deadly Number, though we've actually got
>pocket-sized pagers now. Shocking, innit?
Yeah, but at least that had two really good scenes: the attack on
Steed in the car-park by villains on motorbikes, and the bit where
Steed says "Yes, they made quite a killling" and the camera does this
great jump-cutting towards a statue of some animal biting another to
death on the shelf behind him.... And Peter Bowles is quite pervy in
the usual "Avengers villains" sort of way... But it wasn't excellent,
I'll give you that.
Jackie Lane
Ad...@roblang.demon.co.uk (Adam Richards) wrote:
>On Tue, 09 Jun 1998 23:07:41 -0400, "Douglas E. Cree" <dec...@ibm.net>
>wrote:
>
>>L7...@webtv.net wrote:
>>>
>>> Please list your all time worst Avengers episodes. and why!
>>
>>Any Tara episode except Forget-Me-Not, which was
>>saved by the mere presense of Diana Rigg.
>
>Inclinded to agree, except in some extreme cases, like "All Done With
>Mirrors", "Take Me To Your Leader" and "Look, Stop Me if (etc.)" which
>were such good stories and so typically "avengers" that it didn't
>matter about Tara. (mind you, watch "All Done With Mirrors" and ask
>Brian Clemens, "hey, if Tara could've been this good every week, W H Y
>wasn't she????")
>
Because, except in rare instances like All Done With Mirrors, Thorson
was given the lamest of stories. The problem with the Thorson series
wasn't Linda Thorson, but the material she was given to work with. I
don't see Diana Rigg making half of the Thorson era stories work. It
was bad writing which Clemens has apparently has convinced himelf was
the "high point" the program. <shudder>
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////
Jackie Lane
to reply via e-mail, remove "hash" from the address
Diabolical Masterminds/Extraordinary Agents
http://www.mindspring.com/~jglane/avenger.htm
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
Jackie Lane
eand...@acs.ucalgary.ca (Elizabeth A. Anderson) wrote:
>In article <199806110729...@ladder03.news.aol.com>,
>HNK 999C <hnk...@aol.com> wrote:
>>I'd say that my least favourite episode has to "The Girl from Auntie" - Mrs
>>Peel is hardly in it! And, any other episode where she was on leave.
>>As far as the Tara King episodes are concerned i think people are being a bit
>>harsh. I think the episodes were still very Avengers but granted not exactly
>>the same without Diana Rigg. Let's face it what is!
>>Barry
>
>I always have rather liked that one, though I was wondering,
>Barry and everybody else, if there was some idea of a spin-off
>using (argh, can't remember either actress or character's
>name!). At the end of the show, if you recall, our amazing duo
>are driving in the countryside and are raced by that young woman,
>and the barter seems to me to suggest this. Does anybody know?
Diana Rigg was taking vacation at the time, so the episode was written
to accommodate her leave of absence.
Chris Krisocki
Oh yes, Invasion of the Earthmen! How could I forget that one? Oh,
yes, silly question, it's easy to forget. Is this the episode where Tara
is at her chunkiest? Also, why is it that every print of it I've seen is
slightly washed-out, as though the director of photography were on
holiday that week?
Shiloh7
Must disagree re: "Girl from AUNTIE" being weak. It's in my top 5, even if
Diana Rigg appears sporadically. But think about her scenes: returning from the
fancy dress party (swinging carefree London defined), feeding herself grapes
(more sexiness than 10 Demi Moore films), peering back into the camera lens
during the auction (unexpected hilarity), the final fight scene where she bends
her cage's bars (gasp!)--these are all incredibly compelling and "series
defining moments."
Besides, the episode has the wittiest dialogue (paraphrased):
Steed: "Six bodies in half an hour. What do you think of that?"
Georgie Pryce-Jones: "A good first act."
Steed: "What are they knitting?"
Mr. Arkwright: "A bungalow."
Don't forget Steed's chat with Russian agent Ivanov, admonishing him for
swinging his umbrella too enthusiastically. This is absolutely priceless! The
talent agency run by John, Paul, George and Fred. And, as I've said many times
on these boards, after Steed bashes the villain with the Mona Lisa, his retort
("Very enigmatic!") is my favorite moment in the entire run of the "Avengers."
Period.
Yes, give me "The Girl from AUNTIE."
[GO]
HNK 999C
>Diana Rigg was taking vacation at the time, so the episode was written
>to accommodate her leave of absence.
I realise that. That's why I don't like those episodes so much.
HNK 999C
>Must disagree re: "Girl from AUNTIE" being weak. It's in my top 5, even if
>Diana Rigg appears sporadically. But think about her scenes: returning from
>the
>fancy dress party (swinging carefree London defined), feeding herself grapes
>(more sexiness than 10 Demi Moore films), peering back into the camera lens
>during the auction (unexpected hilarity), the final fight scene where she
>bends
>her cage's bars (gasp!)--these are all incredibly compelling and "series
>defining moments."
I didn't think it was weak it's just one of my least favourites because Diana
is not in very much.
But, with all the things you've pointed out I'm going to watch it now and I
know I'll see it differently.
The things you have pointed out that I can remember I utterly agree. So, maybe
I like the episode more than I thought I did.
Will let you know.
Shiloh7
<I didn't think it was weak it's just one of my least favourites because Diana
is not in very much>
True, she's not in most of "AUNTIE," but I think they worked her in just
enough. Compare it to "The Superlative Seven," where Diana definitely is
missing until the end... Forgot to mention another great, great scene. It's
when Georgy Price-Jones is being attacked in Emma's apartment. She fends off
the attacker by reading Ray Austin's "No Holds Barred." What fun! Also, I must
praise the immediate sequence, when she bites into the apple, just after she's
reading out loud a certain passage like "with a sickening... CRUNCH," I get
kinda chills!
Yes, give AUNTIE another chance.
[GO]
Marlene A Koenig
Girl from Auntie was a vacation ep for Dame Diana
--
and author of Queen Victoria's Descendants,
published by Rosvall Royal Books
Publisher of Royal Book News, the only newsletter for and about
Royal Books
John Azevedo
I agree that the Tara episodes fail to meet the standards of the Emma
Peel episodes. But Linda did a great job playing Tara King, it was the
writers, producers, and directors who should be blamed.
Maurice
Let's put it another way.
What is the best of ALL the series ? GAME.
I agree Tara isn't Emma, but hey, she stars in the best one of
the whole series. period.
M
Kay Cey
Marlene A Koenig wrote:
> Girl from Auntie was a vacation ep for Dame Diana
Do we really know this is true? 26 Avengers would be shot over, say
just over half a year - perhaps a bit more. Surely Dame D would take
her vacation during the part of the year she wasn't working? It just
doesn't happen that an actor takes a vacation in the middle of a
contract. Unless there was some sort of emergency? Be interesting to
find out for sure.
Kay
1930 would...not be the year
Marlene A Koenig
Yes, it is true and it cited in several books --
For example, the episodes where Diana starred with little mention
of Steed was when he took off a week.
rwh...@nr.infi.net
My preference is for "Noon, Doomsday."
--------------------------------------------------------------
"I would predict that there are far greater mistakes waiting
to be made by someone with your obvious talent for it."
Orac to Vila. [City at the Edge of the World.]
-----------------------------------------------
R.W. Hutchinson. | rwh...@nr.infi.net
Jackie Lane
aveng...@webtv.net (John Azevedo) wrote:
Yes, Thorson seems to often come in for a lot of bashing when it was
the material she was given that was the problem--as if it were her
fault that the writers and producers went brain dead in her series.
Someone here has recently made some interesting remarks about
Clemens's viewpoint of women as expressed in the Tara King eps. That
POV seems to show up in The New Avengers, too, where Purdey is put
into dresses and heels to run around after bad guys (lovely wardrobe
in Target and Eagles Nest, but would a spy heroine actually put on
party clothes to climb around buildings and over rocks in? I
think..not)
rwh...@nr.infi.net
>POV seems to show up in The New Avengers, too, where Purdey is put
>into dresses and heels to run around after bad guys (lovely wardrobe
>in Target and Eagles Nest, but would a spy heroine actually put on
>party clothes to climb around buildings and over rocks in? I
>think..not)
There was a Robin Hood episode in the Richard Greene series, in which
Patrick Troughton got to play Maid Marion's "Wicked Cousin Willie" as a variant on
Beau Brummel sent into Sherwood Forest by King John to catch Robin Hood. As I
recall, Richard Greene gets to remark on watching Patrick Troughton elaborately
cover a part of log, to be used as a pillow, with a handkerchief, that he was
"Just too improbable to be a spy." He catches Robin Hood, but the "Merry Men"
manage to rescue him as he is on a boat in the Thames, bound for (the Tower of?)
London. They run Patrick Troughton's boat aground. This was a delightful in-joke,
as in "real life" Patrick Troughton spent W.W.2 as the Captain of a Destroyer
in the Royal Navy.
BIFFPUP
Homicide and Old Lace was WEIRD and stupid and NO OTHER EPISODE comes close to
being as bad. I read that another episode entirely had been incompletely
filmed and then canned. The stars went on vacation at some point (or something
like that), so bits and pieces of the previous canned episode were spliced
together with Mother's explanations to the old ladies expected to tie
everything together. Was THIS The AVENGERS????? Horrible, horrible, horrible!
Sam
I never cared for that one, either... But then I've always disliked
flashback episodes.
John Azevedo
MISSION TO MONTERAL with Jon Rollason as Dr. Martin King must be the
worst ever.
JeffyB138
'Dial a Deadly Number' the worst Rigg episode?!?! What about the excellent wine
tasting "duel"? Quintessential Avengers!
Guess everyone is entitled to their opinion, though. This months
Cinefantastique magazine does an excellent feature on the new Avengers movie
and the original series. They even do a feature on their top 20 Avengers
episodes with "Dial a Deadly Number' rated their highest. Not that this lends
any credence to my opinion, but this episode is my personal favorite and
cemented my allegiance to the show!
Happy viewing
Maurice
Their feature just sucks. In the tara era, they don't mention
GAME, which is THE best AVENGERS episode ever made.
Clearly, the guy who wrote it don't know shit about the series.
If you watch closely, he includes solo episodes of the ladies,
instead of the really best ones.
Anyway, the director says he would slice is own throat if the
movie sucked.
Do anyone think we should already send him razor blades ?
This movie will be cut to ribbons to about 80 mn, i smell,
and will suck bigtime, if you believe the guys who have
already seen it.
M
JeffyB138 wrote:
> This months
> Cinefantastique magazine does an excellent feature on the new Avengers movie
> and the original series. They even do a feature on their top 20 Avengers
> episodes .
JeffyB138
>>Please list your all time worst Avengers episodes. and why!
>
>
My all time worst Avengers episodes (and I haven't seen any of the Thorson
eps):
1) EPIC - Almost all the color episodes forgot what made the B/W Rigg episodes
so delicious - subtlety. This episode's villains, Z.Z. Von Schnerck and Co.,
would have been more at home in a Batman episode. The camp factor was at an all
time high here.
2) A SENSE OF HISTORY - I think the lack of extras and the "unpopulated
England" atmosphere that worked so well in most episodes worked against this
one. It took place on a college campus during a festival and I kept wondering
where everyone was!
3) MISSION: HIGHLY IMPROBABLE - Want to turn me off any episode in any series?
Do a story about people getting shrunk to the size of dolls. As fantastical as
anything the Avengers did - it really stretched my "suspension of disbelief".
4) Who's Who? - Reminded me too much of a Gilligan's Island episode - you know,
the one where an evil scientist mix and matches bodies and personalities.
Another one that pushed the limits of credibility.
5) Escape in Time - I have to admit I have only seen this one twice and it's
been years since I've seen it so I can't remember my reasons for not liking it.
I just know that of the 30+ Avengers I have on tape this epiosde and Epic are
the two I leave in the basement.
I'd say about half the color episodes were pretty high on the ol' camp meter
and while some of you may argue that the B/W episodes were campy at least they
used a lot of restraint which kept the stories quite stylish.
Adam Richards
On 21 Jun 1998 16:55:45 GMT, jeff...@aol.com (JeffyB138) wrote:
>>>Please list your all time worst Avengers episodes. and why!
>>
>>
>
>My all time worst Avengers episodes (and I haven't seen any of the Thorson
>eps):
When you do, I suspect the your list will change quite a bit... :)
>1) EPIC - Almost all the color episodes forgot what made the B/W Rigg episodes
>so delicious - subtlety. This episode's villains, Z.Z. Von Schnerck and Co.,
>would have been more at home in a Batman episode. The camp factor was at an all
>time high here.
Agreed. It wasn't just camp, it was idiotic, in places. Why didn't
Mrs. Peel just high-tail-it out of there? If Steed could sneak in, why
couldn't she get out? And how the hell did that Policeman get there?
His presence in the script was a perfect chance to inject a bit of
reality into the piece, but it was all the same silly, implausible
nonsense. The unreality didn't work, because there was *nothing* real
to compare it with. Also, it was as if Steed and Emma were mere
cyphers in the script. They had very little character, compared with
their exchanges in other episodes.
>2) A SENSE OF HISTORY - I think the lack of extras and the "unpopulated
>England" atmosphere that worked so well in most episodes worked against this
>one. It took place on a college campus during a festival and I kept wondering
>where everyone was!
Nah, I love it. I thought it was boring first time round, then I saw
it again, and fell in love with the characters, the scary situations,
the gorgeous acting, script, direction & camerawork. One of the best,
IMO...
>3) MISSION: HIGHLY IMPROBABLE - Want to turn me off any episode in any series?
>Do a story about people getting shrunk to the size of dolls. As fantastical as
>anything the Avengers did - it really stretched my "suspension of disbelief".
You either love it or you hate it... I can believe in it, because the
SPFX were so good, and the thing was reasonably well-explained. I also
thought the nasty villains leavened out some of the more outrageous
moments of comedy in the piece. But I can agree that it was perhaps
implausible, if not impossible to suspend disbelief.
>4) Who's Who? - Reminded me too much of a Gilligan's Island episode - you know,
>the one where an evil scientist mix and matches bodies and personalities.
Yeah! Or a particularly weak "Lost in Space" episode.
>Another one that pushed the limits of credibility.
We agree totally on that one!
>5) Escape in Time - I have to admit I have only seen this one twice and it's
>been years since I've seen it so I can't remember my reasons for not liking it.
>I just know that of the 30+ Avengers I have on tape this epiosde and Epic are
>the two I leave in the basement.
Disagree again.
>I'd say about half the color episodes were pretty high on the ol' camp meter
>and while some of you may argue that the B/W episodes were campy at least they
>used a lot of restraint which kept the stories quite stylish.
Hmmm. I've never understood why some people don't like things that are
"camp". To me they are fun, as long as they aren't witless (which
makes them just silly), and mixed with sufficient amounts of drama and
/ or danger. "Escape In Time" has loads of wit and danger (as do most
of the other colour Emma Peel episodes). But if you take out the
comedy completely, you end up with something that's totally serious
and "deadpan". I don't think "deadpan" suits The Avengers very well.
If you make a show "deadpan" all the time, look what you get - "SPACE
1999" - ummph!!
(sudden exit of Adam as he disappears from usenet in a fountain of
liquid-diced-carrot and violent, convulsive puking noises.....)
Adam Richards
On Sun, 21 Jun 1998 13:24:47 +0200, Maurice <lamb...@lycosemail.com>
wrote:
>Their feature just sucks. In the tara era, they don't mention
>GAME, which is THE best AVENGERS episode ever made.
Hmm. You're entitled to your opinion, but I don't quite agree with
that.
IMO, "Game" is very good, but is kept off the "classics" list by three
massive howlers:
1. That scene where Tara goes all swoony and pants "He's a
dreeeeeaaam" or whatever. Yuk!! Badly written, badly directed, badly
acted, by all concerned. They should have just cut this out.
2. Steed slapping Tara's backside like she's some dippy, Benny Hill
tart. Double-yuk!
3. Where and when did Bristow (very suddenly) recruit all those
stuntment to fight with Steed and while Tara is being subjected to a
typically demeaning, cliché Batman cliffhanger at the end? Until that
point we'd had a really nice, creepy atmosphere of the villain
planning and scheming away without any outside help, immersed in total
bitterness and solitude, and that scene squashes it all dead.
BTW: Tara's predicament isn't really all that demeaning, but her
reaction to it is. She winces so pathetically in this scene. Picture
Emma here - she could always portray terror without looking like a
scaredy-cat, IMO. There's lots of scenes I can remember in The
Avengers where Emma is tied up, or whatever (From Venus With Love;
Dead Man's Treasure; The Fear Merchants; Murdersville...), and she
does this teeth gritted, pained expression that looks like what she is
experiencing is NOT NICE, but it isn't due to any amount of cowardice
on her part. Tara, on the other hand, puts her hands up over her head
and squints, or winces, looking for all the world like she's suffering
taunts at the hands of a playground bully, and I just wanna say, "Oh,
be brave for once, you little WIMP!!"
Errr, sorry.... That whole paragraph turned into yet another
anti-Tara-rant. I hope you will accept my humble apologies....
>Clearly, the guy who wrote it don't know shit about the series.
>
>If you watch closely, he includes solo episodes of the ladies,
>instead of the really best ones.
Sounds like a weird sort of "fetish" to me....
>Anyway, the director says he would slice is own throat if the
>movie sucked.
>
>Do anyone think we should already send him razor blades ?
My words exactly :)
>This movie will be cut to ribbons to about 80 mn, i smell,
>and will suck bigtime, if you believe the guys who have
>already seen it.
Yup. The movie will probably smell of wee, that's agreed.
Remember kids, just keep shouting at the screen, while other people in
the theatre are trying to watch it: "BOWLER'S TOO BIG!! UMA AIN'T
EMMA!! BOWLER'S TOO BIG!! UMA AIN'T EMMA!!"
You may have already gathered that it's my ambition to start a riot in
the cinema on the film's opening night! A *real* riot - the sort that
makes the papers the next day, with people fighting in the aisles and
lobbing heaps of food at the screen - what fun that would be!
HondaRill
>Please list your all time worst Avengers episodes. and why!
All Linda Thorson, can I say more? Sorry, sad but true.
Bip
It seems we have two different camps here... the ones who started watching
during the Blackman years, and don't enjoy the camp episodes, and the ones
who started watching Diana Rigg, and can see past the camp, even appreciate
it. Personally, I am from the latter camp, and have a hard time finding
fault with any Diana Rigg episode... color or B&W. I can't believe you just
stated the episodes below as being "The Worst".
smegger
JeffyB138 wrote in message
<199806211655...@ladder01.news.aol.com>...
>>>Please list your all time worst Avengers episodes. and why!
>>
>>
>
>My all time worst Avengers episodes (and I haven't seen any of the Thorson
>eps):
>
>1) EPIC - Almost all the color episodes forgot what made the B/W Rigg
episodes
>so delicious - subtlety. This episode's villains, Z.Z. Von Schnerck and
Co.,
>would have been more at home in a Batman episode. The camp factor was at an
all
>time high here.
>
>2) A SENSE OF HISTORY - I think the lack of extras and the "unpopulated
>England" atmosphere that worked so well in most episodes worked against
this
>one. It took place on a college campus during a festival and I kept
wondering
>where everyone was!
>
>3) MISSION: HIGHLY IMPROBABLE - Want to turn me off any episode in any
series?
>Do a story about people getting shrunk to the size of dolls. As fantastical
as
>anything the Avengers did - it really stretched my "suspension of
disbelief".
>
>4) Who's Who? - Reminded me too much of a Gilligan's Island episode - you
know,
>the one where an evil scientist mix and matches bodies and personalities.
>Another one that pushed the limits of credibility.
>
>5) Escape in Time - I have to admit I have only seen this one twice and
it's
>been years since I've seen it so I can't remember my reasons for not liking
it.
>I just know that of the 30+ Avengers I have on tape this epiosde and Epic
are
>the two I leave in the basement.
>
Bip
I have to say that I'm not a big fan of the Thorson era, but I did enjoy a
few. And I enjoyed them more than the Honor Blackman episodes (or the
episodes with the lounge singer). I really went in with an open mind on
those, and they were really boring. Plus, Steed was quite different in the
early episodes. I think The Avengers is a lot like James Bond and Doctor Who
in one respect... whichever Actor/Actress you see first is your favorite.
For me, that would be Diana Rigg, Tom Baker, and Roger Moore (I know I'll
get hammered for this one... but he was MY original).
smegger
HondaRill wrote in message
<199806220156...@ladder03.news.aol.com>...
>>Please list your all time worst Avengers episodes. and why!
bighouse
Oh come on the Linda Thorson episodes weren't that bad. Yes they weren't
Diana Rigg but then the Honor Blackman episodes that I've seen, and I
haven't seen very many, weren't all that great either. Speaking as someone
old enough to have seen the U.S. showings when they originally aired Emma
Peel rocked but I stick by my assessment of the Linda Thorson episodes. I
think the problem is is that none of the episodes with out Diana Rigg
weren't very good. They definitely hit their stride with the Emma Peel
shows. But hey it's just my opinion and open for debate.
HondaRill <hond...@aol.com> wrote in article
RWexler648
>It seems we have two different camps here... the ones who started watching
>during the Blackman years, and don't enjoy the camp episodes, and the ones
>who started watching Diana Rigg, and can see past the camp,...
<<snip>>
> Personally, I am from the latter camp...
Ah ... that would be the "camp" camp, then . :-)
--richard
Adam Richards
On Mon, 22 Jun 1998 00:22:42 -0400, "Bip" <e...@joes.com> wrote:
>I have to say that I'm not a big fan of the Thorson era, but I did enjoy a
>few.
FWIW, I'd agree with that. "Look, Stop Me if You've Heard This One" is
excellent. I think it's actually the funniest episode ever made, and
all the cameos in it are great - John Cleese, Bernard Cribbens,
Talfryn Thomas... And there were others I liked a lot - "Love All";
"Noon Doomsday"; "All Done With Mirrors"; "Take Me To Your Leader",
and "Take Over" especially. "Game" is very good too, but constantly
over-rated, IMO.
>And I enjoyed them more than the Honor Blackman episodes (or the
>episodes with the lounge singer). I really went in with an open mind on
>those, and they were really boring. Plus, Steed was quite different in the
>early episodes.
Oh dear! I agree with you there, too.... I know that sounds like I'm
very anti-Cathy Gale, but I'm not. I liked her, just thought the
episodes were a bit dull. I can take early '60s TV in small doses, but
it has to be really good to cut it. And I found with a lot of the
earliest Avengers I've seen (the ones originally made in black & white
on videotape then transferred onto film later) they weren't as
well-made, generally, as BBC videotaped episodes of the same era, like
Doctor Who.
Yeah, some early Doctor Who is complete rubbish. But I've never seen
any Cathy Gale / Ian Hendry episode of The Avengers that is anywhere
near as good as Doctor Who's "An Unearthly Child", "The Aztecs", "The
Daleks", or "The Crusade". All the Cathy Gale episodes I've seen look
rushed and a bit stilted, like they were dry-runs, but there wasn't
enough budget to give them the finishing touches they needed...
It *needed* to go to film production, I think. The show's premise was
too good for it to remain stuck in the rut of one-take videotaping
forever. It's such a shame that Honor couldn't have done at least one
season on film...
However, if I had to choose between Tara or Cathy, I'd still pick
Cathy. Confused? You will be! :)
>I think The Avengers is a lot like James Bond and Doctor Who
>in one respect... whichever Actor/Actress you see first is your favorite.
>For me, that would be Diana Rigg, Tom Baker, and Roger Moore (I know I'll
>get hammered for this one... but he was MY original).
Very true, IMO.
There was a huge resistance on my part to the Tara episodes, because I
originally saw the show in America when I was about 4 or 5 years old,
and I'd watch it with my parents. We all loved the Emma Peel episodes,
but my mother in particular hated Tara King. I wondered why at the
time, but did notice that the episodes lacked a certain something in
comparison with Emma's.
Then a couple of years ago, Channel 4 showed them (in the meantime I'd
moved to England), and I saw what was wrong with Tara, at last. Except
in a couple of good episodes, she comes across like a whining,
wincing, mini-skirted wimp. And although a lot of the good ingredients
from before are still there (i.e. the show still had the same air of
excitement and "look") it had lost its magic, because it was no longer
about a man and a woman sorting out the villains of the world, it was
about Steed saving Tara from them. Which doesn't turn me on much,
frankly.
So I'd actually rate the Gale era higher than Tara's because although
I have yet to see a Cathy Gale episode that impresses the crap out of
me as much as "Look, Stop Me (etc.)", I love the idea of Cathy Gale
herself, and have yet to see any of her episodes that are as bad as
"Pandora", "Invasion of the Earthmen", or "Requiem".
Noctur...@yahoo.com
I thought the Linda Thorson episodes were just too childish. And tooo far-
fetched. The only Rigg episode that was too far fetched was the Mission
Improbable.
In article <01bd9da2$21aa17a0$608342cf@default>,
-----== Posted via Deja News, The Leader in Internet Discussion ==-----
http://www.dejanews.com/ Now offering spam-free web-based newsreading
BIFFPUP
>Ah ... that would be the "camp" camp, then . :-)
>
>--richard
Richard, are you John Steed in diguise?
Donald L. Bell
It *needed* to go to film production, I think. The show's premise was too good for it to remain stuck in the rut of one-take videotaping forever. It's such a shame that Honor couldn't have done at least one season on film...
Don
Mike
In article <359494cd...@news.demon.co.uk>, Adam Richards
<Ad...@roblang.demon.co.uk> writes
>>>
>>>
>>
>>eps):
>
>
>>so delicious - subtlety. This episode's villains, Z.Z. Von Schnerck and Co.,
>>would have been more at home in a Batman episode. The camp factor was at an all
>>time high here.
>
>Mrs. Peel just high-tail-it out of there? If Steed could sneak in, why
>couldn't she get out? And how the hell did that Policeman get there?
He's not a policeman, he's an actor, and its a film studio. (Shut down,
I know). There is the implication in the script that he has been asked
to act out a death scene. All the stuff about how people expire on
screen etc etc.
Worst episode for me is Homicide and Old Lace - the worst Emma Peel
episode is The £50 000 Breakfast which is a poor remake of a good Cathy
Gale segment.
--
Mike
Skisand
In retrospect, it seems incredibly stupid that
a bunch of middle-aged men would cast a 21 yr old as the female lead of an
established
series opposite an attractive but much older actor.
. The relationship between Macnee and Rigg was based on equal and mature
interaction. Diana Rigg left impossibly big leather boots to fill.
Under the circumstances, LindaThorson did a credible, sometimes charming
job of rising above mostly substandard material.
Some episodes of the series made me absolutely wince..Invasion of the
Earthmen, You'll Catch Your Death,( The sight of Steed sliding out of a huge
nose! Ahhh) Homicide and Old Lace, -wait they all seemed to suck.
What was my point?...Oh yes, Linda Thorson
was only a baby...Everyone else involved was
old to know better!
JeffyB138
>When you do, I suspect the your list will change quite a bit... :)
I gather that from most of what I've read. Almost makes me afraid to watch any
of them....almost. If I get the chance I will be seeing them.
>Agreed. It wasn't just camp, it was idiotic, in places. Why didn't
>Mrs. Peel just high-tail-it out of there? If Steed could sneak in, why
>couldn't she get out? And how the hell did that Policeman get there?
>His presence in the script was a perfect chance to inject a bit of
>reality into the piece, but it was all the same silly, implausible
>nonsense. The unreality didn't work, because there was *nothing* real
>to compare it with. Also, it was as if Steed and Emma were mere
>cyphers in the script. They had very little character, compared with
>their exchanges in other episodes.
EXACTLY!! Put your finger right on it.
>
>Nah, I love it. I thought it was boring first time round, then I saw
>it again, and fell in love with the characters, the scary situations,
>the gorgeous acting, script, direction & camerawork. One of the best,
>IMO...
>
>
OK, OK. I gave this one and ESCAPE IN TIME another viewing. Not as bad as I
remember but still not personal favorites.
>Hmmm. I've never understood why some people don't like things that are
>"camp". To me they are fun, as long as they aren't witless (which
>makes them just silly), and mixed with sufficient amounts of drama and
>/ or danger.
See above. However, you are correct. I don't mind camp when it is still done
with some panache. However, my favorite episode is DIAL A DEADLY NUMBER so you
can see I preferred my stories a little more down to earth, although I do enjoy
the episodes with fantasy elements as well.
Good feedback sir.
JeffyB
BIFFPUP
>>Agreed. It wasn't just camp, it was idiotic, in places. Why didn't
>>Mrs. Peel just high-tail-it out of there? If Steed could sneak in, why
>>couldn't she get out? And how the hell did that Policeman get there?
>>His presence in the script was a perfect chance to inject a bit of
>>reality into the piece, but it was all the same silly, implausible
>>nonsense. The unreality didn't work, because there was *nothing* real
>>to compare it with. Also, it was as if Steed and Emma were mere
>>cyphers in the script. They had very little character, compared with
>>their exchanges in other episodes.
>
>EXACTLY!! Put your finger right on it.
>
>>
>>Nah, I love it. I thought it was boring first time round, then I saw
>>it again, and fell in love with the characters, the scary situations,
>>the gorgeous acting, script, direction & camerawork. One of the best,
>>Hmmm. I've never understood why some people don't like things that are
>>"camp". To me they are fun, as long as they aren't witless (which
>>makes them just silly), and mixed with sufficient amounts of drama and
>>/ or danger.
>
>See above. However, you are correct. I don't mind camp when it is still done
>with some panache. However, my favorite episode is DIAL A DEADLY NUMBER so
>you
>can see I preferred my stories a little more down to earth, although I do
>enjoy
>the episodes with fantasy elements as well.
>
>Good feedback sir.
>
>JeffyB
EPIC wasn't one of my favorites, because, as I've said before, my favorites are
NOT those that focus of just one of the two main characters. But Epic has the
best,..I MEAN THE BEST...TAG SCENE OF THE ENTIRE SERIES!
Emma is reading descriptions of movies they might go see; one involves,
"unbridled passion." Steed's eyes widen and his eyebrows arch, and when Emma
says the movie has already closed, he say, "Why don't we just stay home?"
Then...she raises a leg, puts a foot against the wall of what looks like her
apartment, but which, it becomes obvious, is part of the set, and pushes it
down. They walk off through the studio.
Absolutely amazing. Do you guys call this "camp?" If so, I guess I love it.
If anyone can convince me there's a better tag scene..well, never mind..you
can't. But you're welcome to try.
BIFFPUP
>In retrospect, it seems incredibly stupid that
>a bunch of middle-aged men would cast a 21 yr old as the female lead of an
>established
>series opposite an attractive but much older actor.
Sounds exactly like what a bunch of middle-aged men would do.
JeffyB138
>Then...she raises a leg, puts a foot against the wall of what looks like her
>apartment, but which, it becomes obvious, is part of the set, and pushes it
>down. They walk off through the studio.
>
>Absolutely amazing. Do you guys call this "camp?" If so, I guess I love it.
>
>If anyone can convince me there's a better tag scene..well, never mind..you
>can't. But you're welcome to try.
First, let's define "CAMP".
Websters defines it as:
"pretentious in style esp. when amusing or consciously contrived".
Given this, many of my favorite shows indulge in this form every now and again.
By saying these episodes were campy does not mean they were without merit just
that they did not work for me. And I'm probably using the word incorrectly.
Shall we say I felt some episodes were "over the top" - didn't work for me,
worked quite well for others.
In the end, if I had to put together a collection of 6 episodes to introduce a
friend to The Avengers, the ones I mentioned wouldn't be on it.
JeffyB
Shiloh7
C'mon folks. Can't we be a bit more honest here? Sure, the Rigg episodes had
better wit, were less "dated," produced sharper repartee...
But c'mon! Diana Rigg's fights with the villains were far, far more exciting,
arousing an emotional reaction in me like nothing else I'd ever seen on screen.
Take the fight scene in "Death at Bargain Prices" where she intimidates (with
those scary finger snaps) then dismantles her opponent. This is chilling! This
is sexier than 10 Demi Moore projects, 50 Xena cartoons. Compare Rigg's actions
to Thorson swinging a purse to knock out someone--lame as limp pasta. Please!
Take Rigg's all-out fight scene in a river in an episode in the color season,
after which she says, "Lead me to your taker"--I had those images in my mind a
full decade, waiting for the series to be repeated. Take her repeated
decimation of Kirby in "Epic." Shew. C'mon.
Part of the everlasting appeal of the Avengers for me is this animalistic,
primal feeling Rigg gives me, like an explosion. And others no doubt. We can go
on and on about plots and scripts and directors (and by the way, "Epic" was
directed by one of the greatest directors from the Ealing School of Classic
English Comedy, don't forget, all you who poo-poo the episode), guest stars,
etc., when debating Top 10s. I just think we need to see the whole picture.
[GO]
HNK 999C
>Epic has the
>best,..I MEAN THE BEST...TAG SCENE OF THE ENTIRE SERIES!
Well, I can't quite put my finger on why it is not a likeable episode even
though it's based on Emma, I must agree the tag scene is fab as well as the
"roaring lion" scene, and the slow motion scene in the graveyard (very Ken
Russell).
Barry
"Always keep your bowler on in times of stress and watch out for diabolical
masterminds"
HNK 999C
Those finger snaps indeed!
My friends who haven't even seen The Avengers know this scene and what a scene!
"Give me the gun...GIVE me the gun!" etc etc. This is TV history alright!
Skisand
You're absolutely right! But why cast her then criticize her for lacking
expertise and depth? Just seems slightly unfair.
The series aired while I was in grade
school, only now in my own middle-age, do
I fully appreciate her extreme youth at
the time of filming.
Bartstew
>1) EPIC - Almost all the color episodes forgot what made the B/W Rigg
>so delicious - subtlety. This episode's villains, Z.Z. Von Schnerck and
>would have been more at home in a Batman episode. The camp factor was at an
>time high here.<BR>
><BR>
Hmmm. Two votes so far for Epic being a crummy episode, and isn't it part of
the tape package that A&E is releasing?
Bip
Adam Richards wrote in message <358e52a8...@news.demon.co.uk>...
>Yeah, some early Doctor Who is complete rubbish. But I've never seen
>any Cathy Gale / Ian Hendry episode of The Avengers that is anywhere
>near as good as Doctor Who's "An Unearthly Child", "The Aztecs", "The
>Daleks", or "The Crusade". All the Cathy Gale episodes I've seen look
>rushed and a bit stilted, like they were dry-runs, but there wasn't
>enough budget to give them the finishing touches they needed...
I just finished reading Patrick Macnee's book and he explains that those
early taped episodes were done live! (I'm assuming it was done live on tape
and not broadcasted live, but you never know.) At the end of a scene, the
cameraman would zoom in on an object on the set to give the actors time to
run backstage and change costumes for the next scene. No wonder they looked
like dry-runs.
smegger
Nova191919
>>1) EPIC -
Jeez! Everytime this thread (or one like it) pops up, I get stuck feeling
like an utter goof.
I LIKE "EPIC!!!"
Otherwise Known As:
Nova191919
Artemis
: I LIKE "EPIC!!!"
RIGHT ON NOVA!!! ME TOO!!!!
ARTEMIS
Artemis
: I just finished reading Patrick Macnee's book and he explains that those
: early taped episodes were done live! (I'm assuming it was done live on
tape
: and not broadcasted live, but you never know.) At the end of a scene, the
: cameraman would zoom in on an object on the set to give the actors time
to
: run backstage and change costumes for the next scene. No wonder they
looked
: like dry-runs.
Well most of Doctor Who was live too. Meaning no room for error, one take
only. Infact they did a whole episode in the first season that was being
written while they were filming! I like the Gale episodes, I like the Emma
episodes. I didn't like the Thorson's due to writing, direction, and her.
Even Pat looked bored and he was at least getting paid! :)
ARTEMIS
Chris Krisocki
Erm, no episode of Doctor Who was ever broadcast live, whereas,
judging from the list in the back of The Complete Avengers, seven Ian
Hendry and two Honor Blackman episodes were indeed broadcast in this
way.
DW episodes were allocated about 90 minutes to 2 hours of recording
time each back then IIRC... This "live" business is a common
misconception about the early years of Doctor Who :)
Nova191919
>: I LIKE "EPIC!!!"
...
>RIGHT ON NOVA!!! ME TOO!!!!
Ok, it's decided: This has been the very first meeting of the "EPIC Fan Club!"
(Current membership: 2)
Otherwise Known As:
Nova191919
Chris Johnson
In article <199806261759...@ladder03.news.aol.com>, Nova191919
<nova1...@aol.com> writes
>>: I LIKE "EPIC!!!"
>...
>>RIGHT ON NOVA!!! ME TOO!!!!
>
(Current membership: 3)
CHRIS JOHNSON
Mike
In article <qKXCjDAF...@tv-memorabilia.demon.co.uk>, Chris Johnson
<ch...@tv-memorabilia.demon.co.uk> writes
and say not only do I like 'Epic', but it and 'Who's Who?' are two of my
favourite episodes.
--
Mike (#4)
avengers site - http://www.nipperland.demon.co.uk/avengers/noondoom.html
Nova191919
>not only do I like 'Epic', but it and 'Who's Who?' are two of my
>favourite episodes.
YES! YES! YES!! I think everyone takes The Avengers MUCH too seriously
sometimes...
I call to order this meeting of the "Who's Who?" Fan Club!
(Current Membership: 2)
Otherwise Known As:
Nova191919
Shiloh7
I like "Epic," too! Diana gets too many great lines... Plus how can you not
feel a little voyeuristic when the director is showing footage of her to his
two stars?
[GO]
John Azevedo
EPIC GREAT EPISODE.
Adam Richards
>IMO, "Game" is very good, but is kept off the "classics" list by three
>massive howlers:
>1. That scene where Tara goes all swoony and pants "He's a
>dreeeeeaaam" or whatever. Yuk!! Badly written, badly directed, badly
>acted, by all concerned. They should have just cut this out.
Sheesh!
I must say sorry to everyone in the whole world, but I got that
COMPLETELY wrong....
I have just re-watched the episode, and what actually happens is, Tara
visits the jigsaw puzzle guy; he proceeds to impress her by finishing
a puzzle ludicrously quickly (with the aid of speeded-up film, natch!)
and then the following conversation ensues:
TARA (so impressed she appears almost drunk): "My... What do you do on
cold, dark nights...?"
PUZZLE GUY: "I ride a bicycle"
TARA (still swooning): "What else?" (TARA exits shot, looking like
she's about to faint)
This is, still, without doubt one of the most cringe-inducing scenes
in the whole Avengers canon. I find everything about it embarrassing:
the lines, the delivery, the camerawork, but especially Ms. Thorson's
performance, which is dead-weird, because I think this is the only
example I can find where her acting is actually *bad*, in the
dozen-or-so episodes I've seen.
But above all, what the hell is it supposed to *mean*???
I still think "Game" is a good episode, but this one sequence in it
has to be watched to be believed....
Just so sorry I got that quote wrong. I mean, it's the sort of thing
that's so bad, I *really* ought to have remembered it line for line!
<Ad...@roblang.demon.co.uk>
===================================================
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davidav...@sbcglobal.net
Take the comments about GAME (which is also my all time favorite episode out of ALL the series) Yeah the Tara scene where she gets Quickly slapped on the tush is a bit weak(Though the whole episode is mostly fab), but that’s like me saying Emma Peel’s fighting in Death at Bargin Prices was both fabulous & ridiculous at the same time. Snapping her fingers, asking for the gun, and kicking it out of the assailant’s hand was fab. Her Karate hands up in the air like she’s signaling a successful field goal is utterly RIDICULOUS! Sometimes EP would look fantastic & sometimes I’d be trying to convince myself that it didn’t look too bad. Back when it aired,maybe you could get away with it, like some of the bad special effect movies of the day, but now...let’s just say those type of Emma Peel fighting displays have not all aged well. And as for the comment about Tara swooning over the Puzzle Master In GAME, that was obvious sarcasm.
For me, I like all the eras. I appreciate the dark noir feel of the early episodes (Mr Teddy Bear being one of my all time favs). As a whole the EP seasons were better, but I still find myself watching the TK episodes more often than the others. And while the TK banter was not as consistently great as the EP banter, it was still fun, and did have lots of great moments of which some were just as great as the best EP moments. And I must admit, that After having purchased all the Blu Ray additions, the Tara King season seems to have aged the best among all the seasons.
Now for my worst episodes list:
Homicide & Lace
Killer
Surfeit of H2O
The Hidden Tiger
The 50,000 Breakfast
Pandora (rewatched it on Blu Ray and I actually enjoyed it. I should probably take it off the list, but I can see where someone else could find it boring)
Bizzare
The Decapod
I know there are way more from Cathy Gale era, but I’d have to rewatch to remember the episode names. Probably a few more from both the b/w & color EP era but I’d have to rewatch to confirm.
Invasion of the Earthmen should really be on this list, but it’s one of my guilty pleasures. I really like it. Before restored Blu Ray episodes, I probably would have also included Thingamajig. But I just saw it and it was better than I remembered. So while not a great episode, it was still enjoyable. And lastly, I’m so glad the Avengers series 6 was done with such remarkable quality. Done with as much love and care as was put into the Blu rays Editions of previous seasons. I think I’ll watch “They Keep Killing Steed” or possibly “False Witness” both of which are in my top 10 of all time. Actually, probably both in my top 5 😏👍