Customer Reviews

Mission: Impossible - The Fifth TV Season

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Good evening. This is the fifth season (1970-1971) of "Mission: Impossible" which is fully produced by Bruce Lansbury from season 4 and supervised by top writer Laurence Heath who, nevertheless, produces six episodes. Here is a complete revision of the series because of its ideological shift through a leaning towards the thematics of the youth movement (for instance: students' agitators and radicals in "Takeover", NLF guerrillas in "The Rebel", far left terrorists in "The Hostage" and subversive revolutionaries in "Blast").

You will find some deep changes: a new-hip-younger "regular" leading lady named Dana Lambert (played by Lesley Ann Warren) introduced in "Flip Side" (in which she performs two folk songs), a replacement of Willy in twelve episodes out of twenty three via a young physician named Doug Robert and also named Doug Lang (played by Sam Elliott), a faster-harder-urgent urban main theme music (moreover, four episodes contain the original main theme music), no more multi-part episodes, a recursive portable gadget used to stun that can be described as a "golden needle ring" (created by writer Ken Pettus in a season 4 episode of "The Wild Wild West" and introduced in a late MISSION season 4 entitled "The Crane", and over-used by producer Bruce Lansbury), no dossier scenes, a dramatic prologue-teaser followed directly by the tape scene before the opening credits, downbeat and realistic kind of narratives with accidents and failures, assignments in progress, improvisations, and caught up agents. The fashion design of the team is also renewed and reflects the trend (casual or outrageous) of the 1970's: pay attention to Jim's outfits (suits and sunglasses) during the tape scenes which will blossom from season 6.

Anyway, two of the series' main ingredients remain: a master of disguises (Paris) and foreign intrigues (around sixteen). Actor Leonard Nimoy shines again in these offerings: brainwashed Fred Stark in "My Friend, My Enemy", Kabuki performer Nakamura Taizo in "Butterfly", abducted business man Walter A. Phelan in "The Hostage", criminal Alfredo Sanchez/old convict Martin Sanchez in "The Catafalque", professional gambler Harry Kroll in "The Merchant". You'll still discover top episodes: the masterpiece "The Killer" (guest starring Robert Conrad), "The Innocent" (a controversial plot re-written by Laurence Heath that calls into question the methods of the IMFers who blackmail a young "hippie" scientist so that he works with them), "Flight" (guest starring John Colicos), "The Catafalque" (written by scripts genius Paul Playdon and guest starring John Vernon) and good ones: "My Friend, My Enemy" (guest starring Peter Mark Richman), "The Merchant" (guest starring George Sanders), "The Hostage" (guest starring Lou Antonio), "The Amateur" (guest starring Anthony Zerbe), "The Missile" (guest starring David Sheiner), "The Party", "The Field". As in season 4, intimistic stories centered around IMFers return: Paris ("My Friend, My Enemy" in which we learn his past as a magician), Jim ("Homecoming" in which we get a glimpse of his hometown and his family background), Barney ("Cat's Paw" in which we meet his brother). The music scores are powerful: "The Killer and "Takeover" by Lalo Schifrin and "The Rebel" by Hugo Montenegro.

Mission:Impossible is my favorite TV show ever, and I own all of the first five seasons on DVD. In my view Season 5 represents the nadir of the original Mission:Impossible series.

In my opinion the mistake that the producers made at this juncture of the series (which coincided with the dismissal of the show's creator Bruce Geller) was to make the episodes character-driven instead of plot-driven. Mission:Impossible was conceived as a show based on a complex, intricate and perfectly executed plan. While the characters were important in terms of the various skills they possessed in order to carry out the plan, the story was never about the characters. This changed in Season 5, as is evidenced by the episode "Homecoming" which features a very weak plot and a lot of rather sappy references to Jim Phelps' personal history. Gone is the meticulously constructed plot; in its place is a very pedestrian crime drama. (One exception to this trend in Season 5 is the episode "The Killer," probably the best show in an otherwise poor collection.)

Thankfully the producers came to their senses and in Season 6 restored many of the elements which made the series great.

To sum up, Season 5 is only for die-hard fans of Mission:Impossible. Casual fans and/or those who want to see only the best episodes would be better off acquiring seaons 2-4.

Mission: Impossible 5th season set

Well, to my fellow CBS/Paramount skeptics, I'm glad to report that this 5th season of Mission: Impossible is okay, and has not been bastardized by any tampering from the CBS/Paramount music-changing service labs.

I waited until I had heard from another reviewer before even ordering this set, and still kept my fingers crossed. I've watched a few episodes, and I'm happy with the set. No music has been removed, and, more importantly, none has been injected in.

The video and audio quality is fine, the same as the earlier Mission sets -- but, of course, this is the set where the 1970s "hipness" begins. Dated, yeah, but, at least it's the way it was originally aired.

After the awful and unforgiveable debacle with what CBS/Paramount did to The Fugitive Season 2 Vol. 1, we're all scrutinously skeptical of anything they put to DVD. Let's hope they decide to make good for how they've disappointed us all with The Fugitive. Maybe they'll re-do that set right. Or maybe they'll drop the whole rest of that excellent series. If so, it's their loss as well as ours.

The 5th season of Mission:Impossible was good but far inferior to the previous 4 seasons. The main problem is Lesley Warren, who is cute but way too young and unsophisticated for the IMF. She would be replaced the following year by Lynda Day George who fit in much better with the men of the IMF. Also a problem was the lack of use of Leonard Nimoy who, in many episodes, had little to do at all. Nimoy has related in various books how disappointed he was with the show and how he couldn't wait to get off Mission after this season.
As others have previously said, the best episode of this set is "The Killer" guest starring Robert Conrad, a terrific episode.
As usual I continue to be amazed by the CBS/Paramount lack of retrospectives or commentaries on any of the Mission DVD sets. This is one of the few classics of the 1960s with the majority of the cast still alive: how they can continue to release these sets with nothing extra is beyond me.

Peter Graves, Greg Morris, Peter Lupus and Leonard Nimoy return for yet another season of this series~ NO FULL TIME FEMALE LEAD has been seen since Barbara Bain left at the end of Season Three~ along comes Leslie Ann Warren~ unfortunabely she is bit of a bore~

what makes up for anything else is the WRITING IS BACK ~AND SOME GREAT GUEST STARS~ SEVERAL OF THE BEST ARE~

The Killer has Robert Conrad as a Hired Killer who changes his plans EVERYTIME HE MOVES ABOUT~ so to trap him is even more difficult~ his natural ability to "blend" is fantasic and the team sets up very detailed surveilance and one of the most fun clever plot twists we have not seen since season one~

Homecoming~ Jim Phelps travels back to his home town where a serial killer suddenly emerges~ a Vietnam Vet is the primary suspect but the team moves in to help solve this well written and acted epiode~ one of the BEST~

DECOY is fun~ watch the team help a brother and sister escape under the eyes their many guardS with a mini racer in the back of a hearse~ WELL WRITTEN AND SOME CLEVER GADGETS~

NOW BACK TO LESLIE~ she was "very" young when she made this series~~ and HER BACK GROUND WAS SINGING/DANCING~ suddenly she attempts acting~ I LOVED HER IN VICTOR / VICTORIA SHE IS GREAT BUT IN THIS SERIES SHE ALWAYS FALLS SHORT~ SHE ONLY LASTED ONE SEASON ...THANK GOODNESS~ lol but THE CLEVER PLOTS AND GREAT WRITING PULL THIS SEASON BACK UP WHERE WE LOVE IT~ I GIVE IT A SOLID 9 OUT OF 10 FOR WRITING IN MOST OF THE EPISODES~

I will always give a five-star rating to each of the 5 seasons of the original MI series, but, unfortunately, it was in season 5 that the show lost much of the luster it had in its first four seasons. (Please note-even a "poor" MI episode is heads and shoulder above almost everything else on television). Creator Bruce Geller was forced out of having anything to do with making the show, which led to changes the irrevocably changed the nature of the series. One was to make the show more attractive to a younger audience. This involved bringing Leslie Warren in as the regular female member of the team. Most of her performances were lackluster, with one notable exception. In addition, the theme song was made more "modern" and less gripping, in my opinion. Secondly, a number of experiments were made with the basic premise of the show, most of which were not successful. Among them was a scene in the episode "Blast" which is played for pure comedy (a house belonging to a well-to-do couple is taken over by terrorists, including IMF people pretending to go along with them, and the IMF people are forced to promise not to damage the furniture and to take good care of their dog!), another is an especially uninteresting episode where Jim goes back to his home town and gets involved in solving a murder which is a total waste of the IMF's talents and in which Paris quotes the the stupidest line ever from the series: "I dig old home towns!". On the positive side, there is a very good episode ("The Innocent") where Barney is injured and the IMF is forced to bring in a reluctant outsider to help them and in which the morality of what the team does is questioned.
It must be said there are numerous fine episodes that dealt with what were then current events such as nuclear weapons proliferation ("The Field"), apartheid in South Africa ("Kitara"), another episode in which Barney is injured in a white-ruled country in Africa which was a thinly disguised version of Rhodesia, and the famous hotel-switch episode with Robert Conrad ("The Killer").
As I noted above, Leslie Warren was just not the best person to take Barbara Bain's place on the team, being too young and not "serious" enough, however, she did put in a fine performance in "Flight" in which she is captured and at first seems to break down and cry claiming she was a fringe person innocently recruited into an intelligence operation without really knowing what is going on, then, she quickly changes persona, becomes cool as a cucumber and tells her interrogators that yes, she is working for American intelligence. However, this brief moment of glory for her and her character didn't last.
I happen to think Sam Elliott was a fine addition to the series, but I guess they didn't figure there was room for both him and Peter Lupus in the show. His best performance was in "Kitara" where he plays an Afrikaner army officer (he had the accent down pretty well) who is an expert in rooting out blacks pretending to be whites. Again, like Leslie Warren, he wasn't really given any other challenging roles.
This season was Leonard Nimoy's second as Paris, and he was very disappointed in the show and decided to leave it. He was not given that much to do, but he also put in some fine performances (although, on the whole, he is not the actor Martin Landau is), among them, "The Field" where he plays an American traitor who is arrested and accused of murder, which was not part of the original mission.
Finally, it was in this season that the decision was made to de-emphasize the episodes about international intrigue due to the unpopularity of the War in Vietnam, however there are still some good ones, particularly, "The Amateur" with Anthony Zerbe, one of MI best villains. After this season, these type of episodes were completely phased out with the Missions changed to battling organized crime, which quickly lead to the writers running out of ideas.

Having said all this, any fan of series will still enjoy these season 5 episodes.

For a Mission Impossible fanatic, it's passable, but that's all. I've watched the first four seasons, and they are mostly very, very good. This 5th season is not nearly so. The sets are very artificial-looking. Many of the plots are weak, and the acting thin. Leslie Warren is awful in the beginning but steadily improves as the season progresses. Unclear why Sam Elliot alternates with Peter Lupus, who actually develops a personality after four seasons of blah. I did not like that the introduction of each episode is inconsistent one to the next. Some of the character actors utilized throughout are excellent, such as George Sanders. This is Leonard Nimoy's second season, and he is not as good as in the first, but this may be due to the weak plotlines. Peter Graves and Greg Morris are the stabalizers; very good each time out.
I hope the final two seasons will improve.

The addition of 24 year old Lesley Warren to the cast of Mission Impossible in season five (1970-71), brought some stability, focus, and youth, to a program with a history of issues in the production department, and turbulent cast upheavals. The series continues to evolve away from missions with a cold war flavor set in fictional foreign lands, and include adventures related to crime and illegal activities.

A traumatic season four, featured the departure of Martin Landau and Barbara Bain, and the introduction of Leonard Nimoy (Star Trek) as Paris the Great. An assortment of actresses appeared as IMF (Impossible Missions Force) agents during the fourth season, but none of them was selected as a permanent replacement for the fifth season. Instead, the role went to the relatively unknown Warren, who joined a veteran cast of middle aged males.

Most of the core of the show remained intact, with Peter Graves as IMF leader Jim Phelps, Greg Morris as electronics wizard Barney Collier, and Peter Lupus as operative Willy Armitage, returning to perform their familiar roles. Paris seems to have a less prominent role, after being a featured player the previous season. Often left floundering by the writers, this would be Nimoy's final season. Lupus was also apparently considering leaving the series, and Sam Elliot was brought in as physician Doug Robert, replacing Lupus in nearly half of the 23 episodes.

Having worked with more experienced actresses in the previous season, the producer's selection of Warren as Dana Lambert, seems a bit odd. With experience on stage and as a dancer, Warren tries hard, but is not always credible, as she has a tendency to get too emotional and overact. Her performances do seem to improve over time, as the writers stop putting her in bimbo roles. The actress apparently felt that the situation wasn't ideal, and left after one season. The departure of both Warren and Nimoy, continued the trend of cast turnover.

Attempting to come up with fresh ideas and establish the dynamics between the new characters, the episodes are a mixed bag of mostly average quality stories that often cover old ground, while incorporating familiar elements. Entering the 1970's, the tone is more relaxed, with longer hair, more stylish clothes, and a more swinging vibe. As in the early days, some adventures still involve the manipulation of foreign governments, but many missions involve matters, much smaller in scale.

Occasionally the stories do explore new areas and come up with something fresh, as in the episode "Homecoming", where Jim Phelps returns to the town where he grew up, and a series of murders causes him to bring in the IMF team to help investigate. In "Decoy", Jim falls in love with a princess he is supposed to rescue, and drives her to safety in a race car.

Outrageous con jobs are a staple of the program, and "Flight" is probably the best example in season five. John Colicos is a government official planning to assassinate his country's president and assume power. The IMF team cooks up an over the top scheme involving a phony plane crash, and escapade in an island prison, to foil the scheme.

At a time when the practice of apartheid was condemned by most of the free world, "Kitara" explores this controversial subject. Lawrence Dobkin plays a white military officer in a fictional African land, who suddenly finds his skin turning very dark, as part of the IMF's plan to free a captured rebel leader.

Barney Collier is spotlighted in several episodes. He goes undercover to avenge the death of his brother in "Cat's Paw", and is exposed to a deadly toxin and captured by the enemy in "The Innocent". He is wounded on a mission in Africa, in "Hunted". Desperate and on the run, he is befriended by a beautiful deaf girl.

Paris also has some personal time in the badly written "My Friend, My Enemy", when he falls into enemy hands and is brainwashed. In a superior story, Paris impersonates a mob figure, and penetrates the inner circle of an organized crime family in "Squeeze Play", where Albert Paulsen plays a dying mob leader.

With faint ties to reality, Mission Impossible always required some suspension of disbelief. A smash hit with a bold and exciting premise, maintaining credibility was not a high priority when the series created by Bruce Geller began. However by Season Five, cold war tensions had eased, the novelty of rubber masks had faded, and plots were being recycled. There is still some entertainment value, and the new cast members add some interest, but long time fans may find that the same gimmicks and phony accents, no longer play as well. There are some good moments, but there are also several terribly written episodes that just do not work. More changes would follow in Season Six, as Lynda Day George would replace Lesley Warren, and the IMF team would mainly operate as a foursome.

Packaging, video and audio quality first rate. Some very entertaining episodes here, and a few clunkers. I always liked the teamwork and camaraderie of the "Mission: Impossible" regulars. Why have there never been interviews with personnel associated with "Mission: Impossible" or CBS Video's other '60s-'70s title "Hawaii Five-0" on the expected bonus tracks of these DVDs?! What a treat it would be to see Peter Lupus, Lesley Ann Warren and Leonard Nimoy provide insight into production of specific episodes and share some meaningful anecdotes about "Mission" and the show's treatment by Paramount and CBS. I mean more than the cliched "Oh, we were all just like a family. Blah, blah, blah." And speaking of "Five-0" why hasn't CBS Video provided the "Mission: Impossible" episodic promos which are provided on "Hawaii Five-0" DVDs? And why not include/offer the station break bumpers mid show? Those 5-second music and title card clips are nostalgic to many of us who fondly recall "Mission's" CBS broadcasts. And one doesn't have to be in the group who saw these episodes first-run to want to see/hear the Paramount logo at the tail of the end title. Why, oh why, can't CBS Video retain the complete end title with Paramount title card and then add on the CBS Video clip?! It boggles the mind. That one act destroys the overall experience of feeling one is watching vintage "Mission: Impossible."

Sadly, this review site has become a hang-out for disgruntled "Fugitive" fans with a never-ending grudge against CBS/Paramount. Get a life!
This 5th series of MI is one of my favorites. They finally grow there hair/sideburns a little and start swinging with the '70's! Really strong writing, and a good variation of plots. Too bad Leonard Nimoy wasn't happy with his role, but he is a team-member of equal importance, and really shines in several episodes. Sam Elliott as a doctor is not a good replacement for strongman Willie in 10 episodes, but he is not as bad as I expected, just generally useless. Lesley Anne Warren is very young and new to acting, but she is gorgeous and wears some incredible mini-dresses & mini-skirts (and never wore a bra). Yes, I admit, pure eye candy, but she is effective in the mod episodes where Barbara Bain would have seemed, well, out of place. The next years are good too, but this seems like the last classic team, and the least repetitive with plots. (I mean, how many Eastern European or South American jails do they have to infiltrate, then escape?)