Customer Reviews

I Spy Box Set #3

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

 

 

I've just completed watching all three boxed sets of this fantastic television series. I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed every episode. This is an incredibly entertaining and ground-breaking show. At the time this series came out, the cold war was in full swing and many of the issues they deal with were very "in the now" at that turbulent time. It's interesting to see that many of these issues have resurfaced in today's world making I Spy less dated than you'd think it might be.

What sets box set #3 apart from the rest are the fascinating audio commentaries by Mr. Culp. They are truly entertaining and I wish there were more. It's wonderful to hear such a terrific actor expound on many of his experiences as well as the life lessons he learned during the filming of the series and throughout his life. The only thing that would have improved this set was if there was also input from Mr. Cosby. I'd love to have seen his side of things as well.

It's a sophisticated show dealing with both entertaining and sometimes pretty serious issues. There's plenty of action, romance, intrigue, and danger. But through it all, it's filled with a wealth of wit and loyalty between Kelly and Scotty. I've enjoyed every minute and I can't wait to start on my second viewing.

This third set of I Spy is just as good as the previous 2. Many will talk of the nature of the show and how it changed the face of TV and they are right. The real thing of this show was just how good it was. I watched these as a kid and thought they were neat. One has to wonder how much was scripted and how much was adlibbed. The banter between Robert Culp and Bill Cosby seems too conversational to haver been written. The on location filming also was highly unusual for its time.
This set includes two disc call the "Robert Culp Collection". These disc are episodes written by Robert Culp and has audio commentaries by him.

How often can a television series lay claim to having helped to change television, and, yes, even the world? I Spy did just that. This was the first series to star a White and a Black together, and I Spy marked the first time a Black actor won an Emmy ... three back-to-back Emmys, no less, for Bill Cosby as Best Lead in a Drama. Racial barriers were pushed aside when I Spy hit the air in September 1965. This was also the first series to shoot around the world and ushered in the technology to make that possible - film making techniques that are still used to this day! And this is where the "buddy picture" began. "Miami Vice, "Starksy & Hutch," "Lethal Weapon" all owe much to I Spy.
To find out how the makers of this series did it, how they accomplished the near impossible, read "I Spy: A History and Episode Guide to the Groundbreaking Series" ... then watch these episodes in a whole new light. They are more historic than you may yet know.
For the three box sets from Image, the DVD transfers are very good; the Robert Culp commentaries are well worth hearing; and you can use the above mentioned book as a guide to the proper order that the episodes were intended to be viewed - which will enhance the viewing experience.
This series should be remembered and cherished. TV was never the same again after it, and, in some ways, either were we.

As a little boy, I loved watching I-Spy. Although I couldn't understand a whole lot of what was going on, it seemed obvious that the two guys were cool, the places they visited were exciting, and it held my interest. Of course, lots of things can seem interesting to a five-year old. When you get older, and watch something that you haven't seen in thirty years, it's painful, but you're almost resigned to be disappointed. Watching I-Spy now is even more enjoyable than it was then because not only can I understand what's going on, it's still a fun, entertaining show.

We have to remember than when this came out in 1965, it was a HUGE DEAL to have black and white co-stars together in a show. And while it was obvious that the show was cautious about Bill Cosby's role in the beginning, it was obvious even in the very first episodes that he would more than hold his own with Robert Culp. Their byplay, born from genuine, offscreen friendship, is still the gold standard for two-person partners and teams in television and films. Their interaction was natural, spontaneous, and genuine, and no duo has come anywhere close in matching it. If Spenser For Hire had lasted longer, perhaps Robert Urich and Avery Brooks may have come the closest, but no one has managed, not Miami Vice, Lethal Weapon, or any other attempt.

The simple concept of having two globe-trotting spies working together in the guise of a world-class tennis player and his trainer seems so basic, but adding the team of Culp and Cosby, exotic locales, and good directing and editing makes all the difference. A complete first season collection would be better, but this is still a treasured momento from a not-so bygone era.

1st Season
1. So Long Patrick Henry
2. A Cup of Kindness
3. Carry Me Back to Old Tsing-Tao
4. Chrysanthemum
5. Dragon's Teeth
6. The Loser
7. Danny Was A Million Laughs
8. A Time of the Knife
9. No Exchange on Damaged Merchandise
10. Tatia *
11. Weight of the World
12. Three Hours on a Sunday Night
13. Tigers of Heaven
14. Affair in T'Sien Cha
15. The Tiger
16. The Barter
17. Always Say Goodbye
18. Court of the Lion
19. Turkish Delight
20. Bet Me A Dollar
21. Return to Glory
22. The Conquest of Maude Murdock
23. A Day Called 4 Jaguar
24. Crusade to Limbo
25. My Mother, The Spy
26. There Was A Little Girl
27. It's All Done With Mirrors
28. One Thousand Fine

2nd Season
29. So Coldly Sweet
30. Lori
31. Sophia
32. Vendetta
33. A Gift from Alexander
34. Trial by Treehouse
35. Sparrowhawk
36. Will the Real Good Guys Please Stand Up?
37. Bridge of Spies
38. One of Our Bombs Is Missing
39. To Florence With Love (Part 1)
40. To Florence With Love (Part 2)
41. Lisa
42. Little Boy Lost
43. Father Abraham
44. Rome Take Away Three
45. Tonia
46. Child Out of Time
47. The Trouble With Temple
48. The War Lord **
49. A Room With A Rack
50. Mainly on the Plains *
51. Get Thee to a Nunnery
52. Blackout
53. Magic Mirror
54. Night Train to Madrid
55. Casanova from Canarsie
56. Cops and Robbers

3rd Season
57. Let's Kill Karlovassi
58. The Beautiful Children
59. Laya
60. The Medarra Block
61. Philotimo
62.The Honorable Assassins
63. Now You See Her, Now You Don't
64. Red Sash of Courage
65. The Seventh Captain
66. Apollo
67. Oedipus at Colonus
68. The Lotus Eater
69. An American Empress
70. Home to Judgment
71. Anyplace I Hang Myself Is Home
72. Tag, You're It
73. A Few Miles West of Nowhere
74. This Guy Smith
75. Turnabout for Traitors
76. Happy Birthday Everybody
77. Shana
78. The Name of the Game
79. Suitable for Framing
80. The Spy Business
81. Carmelita Is One of Us
82. Pinwheel
These are the order of the shows. From reading other reviews the box sets are NOT in order. They have shows from each season. They are not Complete Seasons as one might expect. I can only review the few I've seen. Some seem long and drawn out with no real point, but Robert Culp and Bill Cosby are entertaining. There are several that are well written. It is funny to watch the karate chops and kicks....well executed for that time period. Culp and Cosby are good together and entertaining, and they are what make the show.

This was (is) a great series, although not as great as I remembered. This was Bill Cosby's career launch.