Customer Reviews

Get Smart: Seasons 1 and 2

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Smart. Maxwell Smart. The dumbest spy in the world, who fights on behalf of the forces of goodness and niceness, and succeeded in making democracy vs. communism a lot more entertaining. And the first two seasons see this classic spy/comedy series blossom from a solid comedy to a brilliant one, even as it adds supervillain nemeses, KAOS masterminds, and the occasional overweight Arab prince.

Don Adams is Agent 86, Maxwell Smart, a not-so-bright spy with an endless arsenal of strange devices and odd sayings. The bumbling spy at a top-secret government agency called Control, which is responsible for keeping the free world free. Backing him up is his beautiful partner/love interest Agent 99 (Barbara Feldon) and his long-suffering Chief (Eward Platt) who puts up with Smart's constant mistakes.

Together with 99 and the Chief (and his faithful dog Fang), Max battles the forces of badness and rottenness -- namely, the anti-Control called KAOS. Among the enemies the Control agents face: the dwarfish "Mr. Big," the fashion forces of evil, a likable killer robot, a Chinese mastermind called the Claw, and explosive paintings. And that's only the first season.

The second season starts off rockily, with KAOS reprogramming Hymie to murder the Chief, and soon they step up their attacks against CONTROL: KAOS's new leader Siegfried (Bernie Kopell) kidnaps the Chief, and Max responds by kidnapping KAOS's top assassin... unfortunately sparking off a bunch of revenge kidnappings, until nobody is left at either organization.

As the season goes on, Max encounters new obstacles and plots against the free world -- he fakes his death, impersonates a safecracker, goes to Casablanca, tries to solve serial killings in the tropics, works in a circus, suffers amnesia, and is pursued by an evil big game hunter, a la "The Most Dangerous Game." What's more, he and 99 have to deal with art thieves, submarines, mummies, beauty pageants, Arab princes, mouthy KAOS parrots, CONTROL being closed down, smiling killers, bronze paint, the Choker, going to jail, and a seductive woman who may be the dismantlement of Hymie.

The first season of "Get Smart" is obviously where it all started (with a black-and-white pilot episode), introducing the main characters and the fight between Control and KAOS (with suitably hilarious Evil Villains and Evil Plots). And the second season is when Mel Brooks and Buck Henry polish everything to perfection, and introduce a nemesis for Max and the perpetually unlucky Agent 13.

Along the way, the entire series is packed with slapstick antics, delightfully weird problems (Max as head of the CONTROL workers' union?), and movie homages ("Goldfinger," "The Most Dangerous Game," "Casablanca"). Not to mention those wonderfully improbable gadgets ("Why hide a tape recorder in a camera and a camera in a tape recorder? Why not just take pictures with the camera, and record with the recorder?" "Because my mind doesn't work that way, that's why!"). And it's smeared with a parody of the political climes of the 1960s, although it gets rather politically incorrect sometimes.

Don Adams is the heart of the series, with his quirky face, nasal voice, odd body language and confident catchphrases ("And loving it!"). Max is not your usual inept spy -- he's confident that he's suave and competant, and somehow this carries him through to the end. Barbara Feldon plays a wonderful straight woman to Max's goofiness, while Edward Platt is just wonderful as the long-suffering Chief.

Furthermore, Kopell is hysterical as "Zigfried," an excitable Germanic KAOS agent who is constantly thwarted by Max, which tends to upset him. David Ketchum is the aptly named Agent 13, an unlucky guy who is always hiding in tiny unpleasant spaces (garbage cans, freezers), and Richard Gautier makes a likable robot sidekick with too literal a mind.

"Get Smart-Seasons 1-2" introduces a hilarious spy-comedy and sees it blossom to its full potential -- with plenty of mad supervillains, totalitarian plots, and the occasional mummy. A glorious antidote to James Bond.

This product was clearly a bootleg copy. I called customer service and told them how upset I was to get a bootleg copy so they shipped another, and guess what...exact same thing...bootleg! I bought this from Amazon direct, not from a reseller. I emailed Amazon to report it and requested someone call me...no one has done so. I guess I'll call HBO next since it's their licensed product that is being bootlegged and resold and Amazon doesn't seem upset about this.

I was excited to find this set of Season 1 & 2 at such a great price. I don't subscribe to cable TV anymore, I watch my DVD's instead. I have many good memories of watching this series but I have a limited budget so I purchased this set. I was very disappointed with the shows. Perhaps it's b/c they are the early shows, I don't know. I agree w/other reviews that say once you've seen one or 2 episodes they all seem the same. Smart's performance seems very mechanical. Perhaps later seasons get more interesting but I didn't keep these, I got rid of them.

If yyou love "Get Smart"yyou simply have to gwt this se3t!Beginning with "Mister Big-the only episode shot in black and white-you'll see Max meet Agent 99 for the first time.Series creators Mel Brooks and Buck Henryyy have recorded commentary for this episode-so you''' watch it over annd over again!In ""A Spy For A Spy"you'll see Max encounttttter Siegfried for thhe first time!YYYou''ll see all the character's debuts-and laughh until you lose control..Whether yyou love the show,spy satire or hyyyyystericqlly funnyyy humor you'll have a ball!

Got all the seasons and really like them. The humor is sometimes sophmoric but I like that and of course the Chief and 99 bring everything back to earth after 86 screws it up.

I love this guy. I remember this TV show when it aired and I really enjoy watching it now all these years later. Would You believe it?

I remember watching these on TV Land when I was a kid, and always loved them. I found out a few years ago that Mel Brooks was one of the creators, and realized why I liked them so much. I bought them as a reward for walking on the treadmill. Great value.

This set of two Get Smart videos was purchased as a Christmas Gift. The recipient does love watching light-hearted old TV series, and I was lucky - he did not have these already. He was leaving for the warm south for the winter and said he would be sure to take them along. I included a bottle of Gray Goose, too, which enhanced the gift!

Purchased Get Smart to watch with my 7 year old daughter. She loves the humor and I do too. Great for the whole family. For entertainment that does not

As far as TV humor is concerned the first couple of Seasons of Get Smart rank up with Green Acres and The Beverly Hillbillys. The episodes present a nice step back in time in Americana.