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"Where have all the martlets gone?" That's the not particularlyintriguing mystery that gentleman spy John Steed (Patrick Macnee) and his partner,Mrs. Emma Peel (Diana Rigg), root out in "Silent Dust," one of threeepisodes on this DVD from the 1966 season of The Avengers. It has something to do with a fertilizer that "went wrong" and a plot to defoliate all of England "if necessary." A highlight is a wounded Steed's delirious fantasy in which a mustachioed Mrs. Peel, garbed in Old West duds and clutching a jug of Red Eye, removes a bullet. The climactic chase has horsebacked bad guys tallyhoing after Mrs. Peel, giving new meaning to the phrase "fox hunt." "Room Without a View" is better, as Steed and Mrs. Peel check out a hotel in which seven guests--all physicists--have mysteriously disappeared from room 612. Steed gets the episode's best line. He informsMrs. Peel that a by-the-book bureaucrat requires everything in triplicate. Regarding his ravishing partner, he smiles, "I wonder what he'll think of you." In "Small Game for Big Hunters," Steed and Mrs. Peel do the voodoo that they do so well. Local farmers are in comas. Is it "the curse that follows one across continents"? Why has the Kalayan jungle been re-created in the English countryside? And what's with those incessant and infernal tribal drums? James Villers makes a diabolical villain as hunter Simon "That's not all I've shot" Trent. All three episodes are in black and white. --Donald Liebenson ... Read more

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Worth the price of purchase alone is this volume's bonus episode, "TooMany Christmas Trees," which one Avengers-appreciation Web site ranks as the best Emma Peel episode of all time. This "fascinating exercise" (to quote one devilish character) concerns a psychic experiment that gives John Steed deadly nightmares that are coming true. Among the many highlights is the girl of our dreams, Mrs. Peel, helping Steed open his Christmas cards ("Who is Boofums?"). Listen for the in-joke reference to Rigg's predecessor, Honor Blackman, who left the series to star in Goldfinger. Regarding the card from Mrs. Gale, Blackman's character, Steed ponders, "What can she be doing in Fort Knox?" And the sight ofMrs. Peel costumed as Oliver Twist may also cause some sleepless nights!

This volume also contains "The Man-Eater of Surrey Green," a bit of straight-faced silliness about, yes, a man-eating plant from outer space. More down-to-earth is "Two's a Crowd," in which "king of the spies" Colonel Pesev (pronounced "Zev") comes to town. Patrick Macnee does extra duty as Steed and his double, a fashion model ("wearing slacks built for action") named Webster, who is recruited by the Russians to infiltrate a vital meeting of the defense chiefs. Will the unwitting Mrs. Peel be able to tell the difference between the two? In "Dial a Deadly Number," six "dynamic, indispensable" company chairmen have suddenly keeled over. Who ya gonna call? Steed and Mrs. Peel, who make a connection between the untimely deaths, a "bleeper" (pager) pocket pen, and Fitch, a sinister "backroom boy" and mechanical genius. The umbrella-toting Steed actually fires a gun in this episode. The most taut suspense is reserved for the scene in which Steed engages in a duel of palates at a wine tasting. To paraphrase one character, do not deprive yourself of this DVD's company. --Donald Liebenson ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Too Many Christmas Trees
Ahead of its time? 'The Avengers" was a popular 1960's British fantasy-adventure series that focused on the exploits of a male-female duo in the service of the British government. The series underwent several changes of its female lead but its one constant male lead was John Steed always portrayed by the debonair Patrick Macnee (Originally the John Steed had two male partners but that format eventually changed). Kathy Gale portrayed by Honor Blackman became Steed's first female partner. However, when Honor Blackman departed the series and Diana Rigg entered as Mrs. Emma Peel, the show became an international sensation. Rigg brought sophistication, wit, charm and beauty, which hid her lethal and highly visual judo and karate abilities. Macnee and Rigg complemented each other beautifully with their carefree witty and charming exchange of dialogue. The show distinguished itself with bizarre and futuristic villains and fantastic plots. Popular at the height of the James Bond craze, the show was able to distinguish itself with its simply over-the-top visual style. Laurie Johnson's catchy and sophisticated main title theme matched the visuals of the show and still conjures up an image of the series when listened to today. When Diana Rigg left the series, Linda Thorson entered as John Steed's new partner Tara King. The series soon went off the air in the United States. It was a shame because the episodes with Tara King were quite good. The King episodes seemed to be a little more down to earth and contained some very good writing and intricate plotting. In any event series definitely left its mark amongst the finest. These DVD copies are gorgeous and very welcome.

Steel Champaign and an Umbrella
If you relish a series like "77 Sunset Strip," "T.H.E. Cat," or "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE" you no doubt know about the content of what you are getting. You are more likely concerned about the quality of the product. Like John might say to Emma, "You scratch my back and I'll scratch your back. Just watch the hat please." John and Emma are back and are here to stay via DVD technology. Being on DVD, the aesthetics about the actual episodes are not in question here. More appropriately one may ask how they look. Thank Mother because they are much better than the Sean Connery film. They look good, very good.

You may find this offer a Peeling
You can look up the individual reviews. This collection will either bring back old memories or create some new old memories. However you will have friends and relatives that will want to remember Mother (Patrick Newell.) A single case makes the movies easier to keep track of and look better on your video storage wall. Being DVDs this is a one-time investment. Buying them individually can add up in shipping and handling. So as Emma says "Always keep your bowler on in time of stress, and watch out for diabolical masterminds." And buy the collection. Also available is Avengers '67 Set 1 Vol 02 (1966). ... Read more

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Philip Levene wrote the first show on this volume, "Never, Never SayDie," in which computerized duplicates of brainy scientists and others are causing some havoc. The best part of the show is the setup, in which a corpse walks out of a mortuary and--despite being shot, hit by a car, and electrocuted--keeps on with its rampage. "Epic" is a spooky episode in which Mrs. Emma Peel (Diana Rigg) is kidnapped by a mad director whoholds her prisoner in a studio while filming The Destruction of Mrs. Peel. Series coproducer Brian Clemens wrote the inventive script, which finds poor Mrs. Peel in a movie-cliché nightmare, being shot at in aWestern saloon, in a World War I setting, and by Indians and Chicago gangsters. Clemens was also behind "The Superlative Seven," which features some familiar faces (Donald Sutherland, Brian Blessed, Charlotte Rampling) in an Agatha Christie-like tale of seven people brought to an island, where one of their numbers is killing off the others. The slightly conventional plot is spruced up by an international conspiracy element, a surprise ending, and the dramatic arrival of Mrs. Peel onto the island--by parachute! --Tom Keogh ... Read more

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The glory years of The Avengers, the stylish British television series starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg as intelligence operatives, are in full bloom in this three-episode volume. First up is "The £50,000 Breakfast," a typically quirky mystery that begins with a Zurich-bound ventriloquist crashing his car and ending up in a hospital--only to be discovered carrying a stash of diamonds in his stomach. The strange circumstance leads John Steed (Macnee) and Mrs. Emma Peel (Rigg) into an investigation of a wealthy financier who may be considering taking his fortune out of England. But that's only the beginning: soon Steed andMrs. Peel are up to their knees in murder plots and borzoi dogs, all endingin a gift of a Dalmatian-spotted tie. "Dead Man's Treasure" is probably best remembered for a harrowing scene in which poor Mrs. Peel is forced to "drive" a racing car simulator that gives powerful electric shocks when she veers off a virtual road. The simulator is one of the kookier gimmicks in a story about a fellow agent who plants a dispatch box in a car enthusiast's mansion, then arranges for Steed and Mrs. Peel to participate in a treasurehunt for the missing item. Saboteurs abound, but the episode's highlight is the hunt, which finds contestants and their autos subjected to spikes in the road, sugar in their petrol tanks, and misarranged road signs. The action is crisp, the humor cheeky, and our heroic duo sexy and sharp. The final episode begins with one of the most enjoyable stories from the series. "You Have Just Been Murdered" is a clever mystery in which wealthy men are being mock-assassinated by stalkers who shoot, stab, and otherwise "murder" them with toy weapons. The reason is simple: blackmail. If the hidden, insidious mastermind behind this plot can get that close to his victims, he can certainly put them in the grave for good. Enter Steed and Mrs.Peel into the fray, who fail to get much cooperation from the terrified millionaires and have to find their way to the villain's lair on their own. The show ends delightfully with one of the series' best tags: Steed counting his fortune in halfpennies and finding he's just short of a certain goal.... --Tom Keogh ... Read more