Home :: DVD :: Television :: General  

A&E Home Video
BBC
Classic TV
Discovery Channel
Fox TV
General

HBO
History Channel
Miniseries
MTV
National Geographic
Nickelodeon
PBS
Star Trek
TV Series
WGBH Boston
Secret Agent AKA Danger Man, Set 1

Secret Agent AKA Danger Man, Set 1

List Price: $39.95
Your Price: $35.96
Product Info Reviews

<< 1 2 3 >>

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A wish fulfilled
Review: ... I'm the proud owner of set1 of this video which keeps
me glued to the telly whenever the video is played.The theme
music is thrilling and sets the pace for a fast paced episode.
Patrick Mcgoohan aptly fits into the title role.I could only wish
that the full 48 episodes are published and the danger man fans
have a larger collection to play over and over rather than risking damage to their cherished single set.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best of Cult TV
Review: A child during the era of british cult tv, I was a serious addict. As an adult, most of those shows now seem simply corny. Danger Man/Secret Agent is an exception...it's as good as I remember with nicely choreographed action and fight scenes, lots of attention to detail, intelligent acting, editing and directing, artful background music, and of course McGoohan's unique charisma and wit. No one else ever brought a secret agent character to life as well as McGoohan does in this series. I'm keeping fingers crossed that A&E and Carlton will release the remaining episodes!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Absolutely essential Spy TV for smart people
Review: 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.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Absolutely essential Spy TV for smart people
Review: 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.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Espionage Nostalgia
Review: For those who were in their teens in the sixties, this set is just like bringing the old memories back.This series was aired by Pakistan Television in the late sixties alongwith hit series like 'The Fugitive','The Man From U.N.C.L.E','Mission Impossible'etc On the particular evening when 'Danger Man' was aired, the town bore a deserted look.Notes were exchanged about the episode the next morning among the viewers.Only if all the episodes of this series are released, will do justice to the old, faithful fans of 'Secret Agent aka Danger Man'

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A little uneven but very enjoyable
Review: Here at last are a few of the hour-long Danger Man episodes, known as Secret Agent in the U.S. I was pretty young when these aired on TV but I remembered liking them and they're still fun to watch.

The reason I prefer Secret Agent to The Prisoner is that The Prisoner has this subtext that resistance is futile. But unlike #6, John Drake always comes out on top!

The 6 episodes in this set are variable in quality. McGoohan is terrific--and he tinkers with the character. In some episodes Drake is arrogant; in others, amiable. But while Drake is a chameleon, many of the sets and even some footage are recycled through different episodes. At its best, its like A,B and C; at its worst, it can drag a bit (in 1965, an hour program had 6-7 mins of commercials, not the 50/50 ratio we have today).

Video quality is excellent except perhaps the famous Johnny Rivers U.S. intro which looks a little worn. If you like Peter Gunn or Michael Caine's Harry Palmer you'll enjoy these. McGoohan fans should be thrilled.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Too Much Fun!
Review: I have waited for years for someone to release this series on tape and DVD!

Leave the fancy, posh-sounding reviews to the folks in the paper! This collection of episodes shows John Drake at his best, and is just plain FUN to watch.

What's even better is that this show is not like the sex-and-violence-with-too-many-special-effects filed junk currently on the TV and at the movies. It's also relieving to see someone take care of business just by using his wits.

I loved watching them as a kid and I like them even more now. You can bet that I will be among the first in line to get subsequent releases!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The best series ever?
Review: I watched this show when it first appeared. I was fifteen years old , and I thought it the best series I'd ever seen. Well the threat of godless communism has faded, but watching Secret Agent again after 35 years, I still think it the best series ever. A crafty, intelligent, modest, well-spoken, highly educated hero, who uses brains rather than weapons to solve complex problems. Closer to Le Carre than Ian Fleming in tone, the show doesn't need to use sex and childish plot devices to keep the stories moving. If you like The Prisoner, catch No. 6 as John Drake in his native milieu, international intrigue, fighting for the free world. Boy, we could use him today.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Very smart, very believable
Review: I've always loved Patrick McGoohan's work, from the time I crawled into bed with my parents as a child to watch The Prisoner to recently buying Escape From Alcatraz on DVD. So I had high hopes for this series, which I'd heard about both directly and through references, such as in Dangermouse.

I wasn't disappointed. The writing is clever, and the hero is the no-nonsense, wryly cynical sort of man you'd expect in the position of an intelligence operative. While his adventures might not be parallel to what intelligence operatives actually experience, they are certainly believable in that they don't rely upon fantastic gadgets, wacky strained plot devices, or really anything other than intelligent analysis and shrewd execution.

I was very happy with these DVDs, and I hope the entire series (or rather, all of this and the other two series, for you Brits) comes out on DVD soon.

Todd Bob sez check it out.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Not awful, but several notches below The Prisoner
Review: My wife and I are major fans of The Prisoner, owning every episode and having watched them multiple times. I also grew up in the era of Secret Agent and remembered it fondly. Alas, it really hasn't worn too well. By and large, the plots are convoluted and difficult to follow. Not especially clever, mind you, but simply convoluted and difficult to follow. You're definitely required to "suspend disbelief" because some of them have holes in the logic that you could drive a Lotus Seven through. I wouldn't describe these as "unenjoyable" because McGoohan is always a pleasure to watch, but they are primarily of historical interest. You'll be disappointed if you're expecting something as slick or clever as, say, Perry Mason. (They will also remind you how much smoking there used to be on television -- literally everyone in these episodes smokes, which is mildly distracting.) In any event, if you don't already own The Prisoner, spend you're money on it and decide whether you're a major McGoohan fan before purchasing these.


<< 1 2 3 >>

© 2004, ReviewFocus or its affiliates