Customer Reviews

The Avengers - The Complete Emma Peel Megaset (2006 Collector's Edition)

5 star:		(73)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

<The Avengers> The immensely popular ABC series called "The Avengers" has long since achieved legendary status since it appeared back in January 1961. Since then there have been 161 episodes, which break into four major sections. We have the early episodes (1-26) with Patrick Macnee as John Steed and Ian Hendry as Dr. Keel. Then the "Cathy Gail" series (27-78) with Honor Blackman as Cathy Gale, the man-tossing, leather-covered intellectual who broke new ground for female characters on television. Even more popular was the black and white series (79-104) with Diana Rigg and Emma Peel (read "M[en] appeal "), which led not unexpectedly to the color series with Rigg (105-129). Then the final section with Linda Thorson as Tara King (129-- in which she co-starred with Rigg-161).
As of this writing, the early episodes in the Gale series and all of the King series are not yet available. However, A&E has just released all of the Rigg entries, both the black and whites and the color, in a wonderful boxed set called "The Avengers: the Complete Emma Peel Mega-Set." And Mega, I suppose, is as good as any adjective to describe the enjoyment value of the contents therein. We have here all the Rigg episodes, including the transition entry in which Tara takes over for Emma, on 16 DVDs, each holding 3 episodes with an occasional 4th as a "bonus."
Those who have never seen them before will want, of course, to watch them in order. Others will want to jump to their favorite episodes, which is pretty easy on DVD. You will notice that the black and whites were less studio-bound and the sets in general more realistic. With the first color episode, the series took a strong science fiction bent; and the sets, as the producers admitted, were more a view of England as the Americans would like to think it is.
You will also have a lot of fun spotting stars-to-be. There is Donald Sutherland, Brian Blessed and Charlotte Rampling in "The Superlative Seven," Peter Bowles in "Dial a Deadly Number" and "Escape in Time," Geoffrey Palmer in "A Surfeit of H2O," and Christopher Lee in "Never, Never Say Die." It was a policy that no actor could appear more than once a season, so Bowles and Lee, for example, would have to wait for the King series to play other characters. In fact, the only characters as such to reappear in the color Rigg series from the black and whites is the bumbling Brodny (Warren Mitchell) who can be found in "Two's a Crowd" and "The See-Through Man" and the evil assistant (Frederick Jaeger) to the Cybernaut-master.

And for more fun, see how many actors from "Are You Being Served?" you can spot? There are three in all.
The most frequent repeat actor seems to be comedian Roy Kinnear, who also has the honor of being in the very last King episode in the role of Bagpipes Happychap. And then we have rotund Patrick Newell who was murdered in the very first Rigg entry, drugged in a color one, and wound up as Mother in the King series.
But all in all, it is the interplay between Macnee and Rigg that really made this program work. Unlike Cathy Gale, who seemed actively to dislike Steed when she was not merely tolerating him, Mrs. Peel had a genuine fondness for him and was not averse to stirring his tea (anticlockwise, as he preferred it). And as for the question of Peel and Steed being lovers, recall that they are fictional characters and have no life off the screen.
The dialogue was light hearted, and you seldom if ever saw blood after a mere trickle in their third episode. You also never saw a policeman, an element that for some reason the producers thought would be a jarring note. (You figure out why; I cannot.)

The best episodes? There is no question that "The House That Jack Built" leads the pack. This is the one in which Emma finds herself in a house designed to drive her mad and Steed appears only at the start and end. The worst? Possibly "Silent Dust." The silliest? That has to be "Epic." The most serious? "Murdersville." So what if the package costs a small fortune? You could purchase them separately, of course; but think of what you would be missing.

Previously released by A&E on DVD, "The Avengers Emma Peel Megaset" brings the episodes featuring Diana Rigg and Patrick MacNee as John Steed altogether in one complete smaller set with extras. You get all the episodes that Diana Rigg appeared in packed into 16 discs with 3 or 4 episodes per DVD. The DVDs are packaged in slimline cases making it a bit easier for storage purposes particularly if you have a lot of DVDs.

The big attraction for fans is the disc of "Lost Episodes" featuring 2 and 1/2 of the earliest episodes when the show first aired. Featuring Dr. Keel (Ian Hendry "Journey to the Far Side of the Sun") and John Steed fighting the bad guys. Hendry becomes involved with Steed and becomes an "Avenger" when his fiance is murdered. Unfortunately the rest of the first season episodes have vanished and these 2 1/2 episodes are all that remain of the first season. The first season tone is more serious than later ones. It would take another season before the show would finally hit its stride with the introduction of Dr Cathy Gale (Honor Blackman-Pussy Galore from "Goldfinger"). As mentioned elsewhere this 17th disc is available separately so don't feel compelled to purchase the whole set again if you bought it in 2001.

Image quality is extremely good throughout. There is quite a bit of analog speckles and spots on some episodes but the blacks are rock solid and the colors despite a bit of fading looks extremely good as well on the later episodes. The image quality is a bit softer in the color episodes when compared to the earlier black and white episodes. Sound is solid throughout the set.

We also get "Avenging The Avengers" a short doucmentary on the series featuring Macnee, Honor Blackman and Diana Rigg. "The Strange Case of the Missing Corpse" is a promotional short made to promote the show's move from black and white to color. We also get the alternate version of the opening of the show shot for America where the characters are on a chessboard. Finally we get The New Avengers "episode K is for the Kill: The Tiger Awakes". The reason we get it is a cameo by Diana Rigg. It's actually a scene from the 1967 season intercut with footage of Patrick Macnee speaking with Mrs. Peel on the phone. It's a bizarre and contrived cameo that came about when Diana Rigg turned down a request to appear on an episode of the show.

I was never a fan of "The New Avengers" the show just didn't have the wit of the previous one and was far more predictable. We only get the first half of this two part episode which is kind of a problem if you're interested in how it ends and don't want to go out and buy the set it's a part of.

While the earlier episodes are fine they can't match the later ones with Rigg for me simply because I grew up watching them and the writing on the show hit its stride. Mrs. Peel passes the mantel to Tara King in the last episode of the 16th disc. Linda Thorson did an admirable job in her role as Tara. Brian Clemens notes that he feels the writing was best in the last season of the show featuring Tara and Steed. While I would disagree the last season held it's own with the Rigg and Blackman years.

The image quality is to notch with occasional bits of flecking but is free of dirt. The episodes look terrific overall (although there is the occasional bit of damage to the original prints, etc. that crop up). The blacks look rock solid. The color episodes also look quite good although not quite as sharp. The colors pop (and have the dayglo look of pop art).

By the way other retailers are selling this set for significantly less than amazon.com so shop around. Costco has the set for $99.99 a big savings in the US!

I can still recall the first time I saw Diana Rigg as Mrs. Emma Peel. This was a breath of fresh air for female stars of this period. Honor Blackman's Kathy Gale had opened by eyes, a woman dressed in leather and pants(!) and could hold her own, was intelligent, and did not always need the male to ride to her rescue, WOW! This was totally missing from the women role models on telly in that era. Diana Rigg took that foundation and really made it her own, so everyone quickly forgot about the woman who came before Mrs. Peel. Young girls of today cannot begin to understand what reinforcing role model this was to the "new image" of women. They have no idea how it was frowned upon for women to wear pants. I recall being in the US at a restaurant in the late 60s and it has a sign up behind the register "women in pants will not be served"! Hard to believe, but yes that was the attitude for women's dress of that day. So Emma was the new wave for the independent woman. And what a role model! She was charming, beautiful, but depended upon her mind more than her body. She dressed in Carnaby street stylish jumpsuits, boots, drove like a demon and fought like a man. The whole time with a twinkle in the eye! She was gorgeous, but in a very real way, and wow, did I want to be Emma Peel when I grew up!

I have many of these episodes on tape, but to have them in pristine condition on DVD, it's just a thrill. She and Patrick Macnee, created sparks, though they romance was kept at a distance, and more importantly, they respected each other. So this was a series that was ahead of it's time and with two classy actors, that took the world - and my heart and imagination - by storm.

I still wanna be Emma Peel!!

I have had this precious set since it was first issued.

Informatively, I had the pleasure of seeing Diana Rigg in London, in the play, "Lady Macbeth," many years ago.

I recall staying in a London Hotel when the Avengers were shown on television. In those days one had to rent a TV, as it was not stnndard equipment. I made it a point that where ever I was in the City to hail a taxi and return to the hotel as quickly as possible in order to see the scheduled Avengers program. This procedure lasted as long as it was scheduled.

Not long ago on BBC America, Diana Rigg was interviewed by Parkinson, a popular talk show host. Diana must have been in her Sixties. On her appearance she received a thunderous applause.
I was glued to the set. At her stage in life, she was most charming in addition to her intelligent and beautiful personna.
Every word she uttered was like music. One realizes how musical the English language is when spoken by Diana.Her interview was most interesting and sadly I do not possess a copy, but am checking the internet to locate a video of her interview.

Now to business: Every episode in the collection is a treasure.
In every episode Diana Rigg assumes the appropriate role. At the same time one is aware of the complete Diana Rigg persona.

Diana Rigg as Emma Peel does her own stunts, whereas her most compatable partner, Patrick Macnee uses a stunt man.

Being retired, and living a rather semi reclusive life, I have a daily routine that rarely varies. After looking at the evening news 6PM to 7PM, I must confess that I cannot help but be depressed. In my mid 80's, as you can guess, I have seen much of the world abd was part of the events of the day. When I started this daily routine, at the completion of the news, I would sit quietly and ponder what was shown on the news. Realizing that at my time of life there was nothing I could do but just witness the terrible things that were going on in the world in general.
One day, out of the blue, as they say, I chose an Avenger DVD,
of the Emma Peel collection. What a delightful surprize.
I was shielded from the outside world, and for a too brief period, I was completely mesmerized. So, I made this a daily event for a number of years, and have enjoyed each episode, many times, with the same pleasure as my first viewing. At writing, I am looking forward to choose a DVD for this very evening.

As an aside, the other day on the Larry King Show featuring the memory of Marlyn Monroe, with a few beauties of the 50's and 60's,I could not help but compare them with Diana Rigg who is close to 67. Looking at them and hearing them speak plus a clip showing Monroe gyrating and speaking in her manufactured little girl voice, they paled compared to the charm, dignity and vocal expression of Diana Rigg. In my opinion she is the epitome of femininity and a grace to the human race.

Finally, if I were to be stranded on a desert island, completely on my own and was offered only one consolation prize, I would choose a DVD player with the complete Emma Peel (Avengers) set.

To those who are not acquainted with the Avengers, I heartily recommend the entire set. I guarantee it will give you hours of
pleasure no matter how many times you view repeats.

Robert Lyons
Reno, Nevada

What a fabulous set. All of Di Rigg's Avengers episodes are here, and the quality is pretty darn good. The Black and White episodes aren't perfect quality, but that's the fault of the original source material. However, the B&W episodes on these DVDs still look better than any broadcast that I've seen. The color episodes are nearly perfect quality and colors are brilliant.
I can't say that there is one episode that I really dislike in the whole of the Emma Peel run. Good quality stuff and well worth the price. This set is a terrific value, as the cost to buy the 8 2-disc sets separately would run about double the cost of this set. Extras are a bit thin, just production stills. However, there probably isn't a lot of behind the scenes material for these episodes. If you want to learn about The Avengers, get 'The Avengers & Me' by Patrick Macnee & Dave Rogers which is Patrick Macnee's personal memoir of his years on The Avengers. Also, Dave Rogers' 'The Complete Avengers' is the definitive guide to the series.
Sit back, relax, and escape into the stylish, wonderful, witty world of The Avengers.

Are there any words that can adequately express just how downright quirkily good the original Avengers show is? For someone who grew up watching a couple of episodes of the Joanna Lumley NEW AVENGERS and whose most recent brush with the series was the truly terrible 1998 movie, the COMPLETE EMMA PEEL MEGASET is a revelation.
Yes, I had never seen these episodes and (driven by an adoration of Diana Rigg) I went straight for the Megaset, it could have been a disaster but thankfully it wasn't and now holds an honored spot in my DVD collection.
One of my passions is the James Bond movie series as many people here on Amazon know. Of all the leading ladies in the series Diana Rigg is one of the best, and surely the only actress whose beauty and charm could have melted 007's heart enough for the superspy to propose marriage.
However five years before she made her mark on one superspy series as Tracy, Diana Rigg was making her mark on another superspy franchise on the small screen as the daring, intelligent first true kicka** action chick- Mrs. Emma Peel.
I think it's telling that Emma Peel/Diana Rigg is the only AVENGERS character/star to yet get her own Megaset. At a recent poll held on commanderbond.net she was a runaway landslide winner and it's not hard to see why.
From the opening minutes of the first episode when a man walks out of the sea in a giant ziplock bag you know you are in for a treat.
It is a show that is miles ahead of its time and this is no more apparent than in the initial appearance of the cybernauts (who would return in later episodes (including in THE NEW AVENGERS). Here we have a mad wheelchair bound eccentric scientist who uses robots to eliminate competitors seeking to woo a Japanese tech company. Some of the gadgets and gizmo's demonstrated by the scientist were obviously in the realm of science fiction in 1964, but today they are science fact.
The thing I love most about these shows (apart from Ms. Rigg) is their quirky offbeat plots. Stretching the envelope in a way that no show before (or since) the AVENGERS feature some really unique and original storylines that leave the viewer guessing.
Take the episode THE HOUR THAT NEVER WAS for example. Steed and Emma Peel are on their way to a party to mark the closing of Steed's old World War II airbase. Attempting to avoid hitting a dog Steed swerves and crashes into a tree at 11 a.m. Walking the half mile further to the base they find the place deserted and every clock at 11 a.m. What could have caused this? Where is everyone and just what is happening? The viewer is left to wonder until the closing minutes. Add to that, the mystery only deepens when Steed is regains consciousness later on in his car, once again at 11 a.m. to find the military place teaming with service people, but no sign of Emma Peel. Classic Avengers and great entertainment.
Digitally remastered and showing it I was hard pressed to spot any signs of aging, even on the black and white episodes that were so clean and crisp that they could have been shot yesterday rather than 40 years ago.
Audio is also first rate, there is a slight imbalance in the opening seconds that may have you reaching for the remote to up the sound a little, but then this is often the case for movies made in 2004. The dialogue is clear and the music as fresh and appealing as it no doubt appeared to audiences tuning in back in 1964.
Only around half of the episodes in this set are in black and white, with the rest in color and I Iove both equally. One previous reviewer complained about some cheap production values on the show, but I noticed only a couple of instances where this was apparent (and they did nothing to diminish my enjoyment of the show). In fact I read that review here on Amazon wondering if we were talking about the same DVD set, his views and observations were so far from my own.
There are over 50 episodes spread over 16 discs with the only special feature to speak of being stills galleries for each episode. I also enjoyed some of the trivia that appeared on the keepcase packaging such as the fact that the first episode of the Peel era had to be totally reshot when the producers realized the first actress - Elizabeth Shepherd - was not right for the part. How lucky for us fans of Diana Rigg that they realized their mistake!
Compulsive viewing - I pretty watched AVENGERS nonstop upon receiving the set - this show is everything and more than I expected. The plots, storyline and acting is all first rate. I am sure I will pick up DVDs from the other eras but for now I am in awe of the worlds first action chick, over a decade before Wonder Woman and almost 40 years before ALIAS' Sydney Bristow - Emma Peel.

I first watched the Avengers when I was in grade school in the mid-sixties, and I fell in love with both the show and Steed and Mrs. Peel. I felt compelled to respond to the Viewer from Ohio, and anyone uninitiated into the Avengers Fan Club. First, the Avengers never proclaimed to be "realistic." Its tongue-in-cheek send-up of the burgeoning secret agent genre made it far more enjoyable than any of the other offerings of the time. What makes these episodes (and I admit to being partial only to the Mrs. Peel years) is the marvelous, seductive yet unstated sexual energy and outstanding chemistry between Steed/Macnee and Rigg/Peel. Their double-entendre delivery is worth the price of this spectacular set. The character of Mrs. Peel offered the young American girl the first real feminist hero on television---smart, strong, brave, yet with no doubt about her femininity and sexual identity. As for Patrick Macnee: I'm sorry, Viewer from Ohio: he presented a charming and very attractive character, and the relationship between the 2 leads fueled the fantasies of many peri-pubescent girls (I'll let the boys speak for themselves). And, I've met Mr. Macnee: he's a very nice man indeed.
For fans of the series, this set is a must. For newcomers, I still believe it is the most enjoyable series I've ever seen and I recommend it to everyone, but know what the show is about before spending a couple of bills on 16 DVDs! But if you DO know, then this is a set worth owning. I'd rather watch this (and do!) than almost anything on TV in THIS century!

Here in the UK, it has taken me close to eight years to collect all the Emma Peels episodes on video, due to two aborted runs. This boxsed set - DVD! - does the job in one mighty swoop. The quality is good, though not as high as I expected. Several episodes are jerky motion wise, something not experienced with the video versions, which can be offputting at first, but the viewer actually gets used to it quite quickly and the stagger is no longer that noticeable. I'm a black and white man myself; the monochrome section ranks as my all-time favourite Avengers stories, especially the more gothic dramas 'A Touch of Brimstone' (the Hellfire Club), 'Castle De'Ath' (supernatural shenanigans) and 'Too Many Christmas Trees' (Dickensian nightmares). Fantastic! Witty, entertaining, exciting, inventive and original... the Avengers is a classic without peer to this day.

To understand why this TV series worked so well requires a bit of historical perspective. Britain in the early/mid-1960s was a culture in which long-accepted norms were threatened by powerful social forces. The youth movement was forever redefining attitudes toward authority and government, Britain was birthing a type of music that would soon sweep the world, and, particularly important to The Avengers, the women's rights movement saw many a woman demand more from her future than a lifetime of housewifedom.

When Diana Rigg's character of Emma Peel was first introduced to The Avengers in 1965, the show had already been going for several years. The character of John Steed was well-established as a conservative, stiff upper lipped, tea drinking, bowler hatted, ex-military, prime example of upper crust middle-aged traditional British masculinity. Then along came his new partner Emma Peel: young, irreverent and outspoken, sexually aggressive, dressed in provocative mod fashion AND possessed of four doctorates. Bear in mind, at this time in Britain it was almost unheard of for a woman to be a doctor at all. Not only did Emma Peel defy that convention, she did it times four.

To John Steed, exemplar of the-way-things-are-and-should-be, Emma Peel was the living embodiment of forces threatening to destroy everything he held dear, everything to which he'd devoted his life, his duty, his sacred honor. To Peel, Steed was the sort of hidebound reactionary she'd been fighting against her entire life in order to be the sort of woman, the sort of whole person her sense of individuality demanded. The great thing about the John Steed/Emma Peel Avengers episodes was watching these two very different people, each representing social forces the other had every reason to despise, over time learn to value and respect what the other had to offer, eventually even to love each other. An endless source of debate among Avengers TV fans is whether or not Steed and Peel's relationship ever became sexual or was simply platonic. Whichever opinion you embrace, there can be no doubt the love and respect were there.

The Avengers TV show was profoundly fortunate in its casting of John Steed and Emma Peel. Patrick Macnee perfectly portrayed the somewhat stuffy, exceedingly proper man of action. The heart of a noble knight in a three-piece suit and bowler hat. But as good as Macnee was, Diana Rigg's casting as Emma Peel was the masterstroke. For Emma Peel to accomplish everything she had in life before ever meeting John Steed, she must have been a high-level genius. Fortunately for the show, in real life Diana Rigg has an IQ that looks like a zip code, as well as immense class, polish, sex appeal, a strong will, and the thespic skills of a successful Shakespearean actress. When Diana Rigg played a high-level genius with multiple doctorates it was believable. I can't imagine anyone else who could have portrayed Emma Peel so well.

I was a big fan of The Avengers as a kid and excited to see it available on DVD. Watching the show again brings back great memories. I don't often buy tv shows on DVD, but I consider the Complete Emma Peel Megaset (Collector's Edition) a good purchase--worth the money. Here are a few reasons why...

Sophisticated, witty writing makes this show a classic. As an adult, I've often been disappointed when I watch a show I loved as a kid. A lot of the time what was once fun and entertaining becomes stale and dated, or cheap special effects and poor execution become a distraction. Not true with The Avengers. Yes, special effects have come a long way, and the fight scenes are pretty silly, but the writing and acting is timeless and classic.

Digitally remastered. It's like watching the show for the first time. Again, great job A&E.

This is a great set! I must commend A&E for the way it produced the series for DVD distribution. Smart move. Like many, I was so happy to see a set that included, but was also limited to, all the episodes with Diana Rigg as Patrick Macnee's co-star. I was only interested in the shows with Diana Rigg. And, the set is organized by each show's original release date. (Whoever was responsible for producing the Space 1999 series for DVD release should have taken notes. Check out the product information and you'll see what I mean.)The Complete Emma Peel Megaset (Collector's Edition) also includes lots of extras.

Great price! At Amazon's 50% off the regular price (at least as of 5/08/06) the $89 seems like a bargain.