Customer Reviews

Mission: Impossible - The Second TV Season

5 star:		(54)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

At last, the much anticipated second season of Mission Impossible. This is where Peter Graves takes over from Stephen Hill as Jim Phelps. Although Mr. Hill did a fine job, I would venture to say that most of us who remember the series place Mr. Graves as the head of the MI force.

For those of you who think of MI based on the Tom Cruise movies, this is entirely different (and much, much better). The television series is NOT comprised of a bunch of "flash/bang" scenes slapped together in a two-hour film clip designed to make a buck. The TV series was an intelligent attempt (which succeeded for the most part) in portraying a highly specialized and trained group of individuals working for a top secret government department who got missions which were otherwise; well, impossible. They would accomplish this through a meticulous and clever plan, which in most instances involved conning the enemy involved. There were few car chases or gun battles in these episodes (unless the MI force planned them in advance), yet each installment was captivating as we would watch the plot unwind and the bad guy get his just dues.

Yes, we know that by the end of the hour the IM force is going to be successful in its mission each time - but what is so fascinating is how they do it (we are privy to only part of the plan each time at the beginning of the show). The plots often have more twists than a pretzel and are believable (with a couple of exceptions).

Very few of the installments were "losers", which made the TV series well above average overall. The program lasted for seven seasons and outlasted all of the other "spy programs" (such as `The Man from U.N.C.L.E', `I Spy', `Get Smart', etc) during the 1960's spy program craze.

If you haven't yet seen the original television program, do yourself a great favor and try one of the two sets soon available (Season One is available right now). Sit back in your favorite chair with your friends or family and prepare to be delighted. I'll bet you'll find the episodes are like Lays Potato Chips - can't watch just one.

Highly Recommended

~P~

Episodes from Season Two include:

Season 2, Episode 1: The Widow
Original Air Date: 10 September 1967

Season 2, Episode 2: Trek
Original Air Date: 17 September 1967

Season 2, Episode 3: The Survivors
Original Air Date: 24 September 1967

Season 2, Episode 4: The Bank
Original Air Date: 1 October 1967

Season 2, Episode 5: The Slave: Part 1
Original Air Date: 8 October 1967

Season 2, Episode 6: The Slave: Part 2
Original Air Date: 15 October 1967

Season 2, Episode 7: Operation 'Heart'
Original Air Date: 22 October 1967

Season 2, Episode 8: The Money Machine
Original Air Date: 29 October 1967

Season 2, Episode 9: The Seal
Original Air Date: 5 November 1967

Season 2, Episode 10: Charity
Original Air Date: 12 November 1967

Season 2, Episode 11: The Council: Part 1
Original Air Date: 19 November 1967

Season 2, Episode 12: The Council: Part 2
Original Air Date: 26 November 1967

Season 2, Episode 13: The Astrologer
Original Air Date: 3 December 1967

Season 2, Episode 14: Echo of Yesterday
Original Air Date: 10 December 1967

Season 2, Episode 15: The Photographer
Original Air Date: 17 December 1967

Season 2, Episode 16: The Spy
Original Air Date: 7 January 1968

Season 2, Episode 17: A Game of Chess
Original Air Date: 14 January 1968

Season 2, Episode 18: The Emerald
Original Air Date: 21 January 1968

Season 2, Episode 19: The Condemned
Original Air Date: 28 January 1968

Season 2, Episode 20: The Counterfeiter
Original Air Date: 4 February 1968

Season 2, Episode 21: The Town
Original Air Date: 18 February 1968

Season 2, Episode 22: The Killing
Original Air Date: 28 February 1968

Season 2, Episode 23: The Phoenix
Original Air Date: 3 March 1968

Season 2, Episode 24: Trial by Fury
Original Air Date: 10 March 1968

Season 2, Episode 25: Recovery
Original Air Date: 17 March 1968

After geting season one, I could not wait for the release of season 2. The first season dvd were better than expected with great transfers of both picture and sound. The stories, of course were even better than I remembered. This is Mission Impossible, not the movies of recent times. These episodes are based on outwitting, fooling or even conning the opposition not outmuscling them. These agents use planning and stealth to achieve the mission. Of course, something will go wrong calling for improvisation and adaptation. This season marks the appearance of Peter Graves as Jim Phelps. He has a warmer screen personna than Steven Hill of the first season. These shows hold their own even after forty years. From the first note of the opening theme, you will be hooked. Action, humor and suspense delivered with great acting and writing. Do not let this set self destruct. Do not disavow this series. It is an all time classic.

This underappreciated series focused on the fooling, outsmarting, & even conning the opposition to beat them. Often using great gadgets & disguises, Barney Collier{Greg Morris} was the best part of the show to me. Not surprisingly, something will go wrong calling for fast adapting & improvisation for the members of the impossible missions force.

This season, the warmer Peter Graves as Jim Phelps replaced the detached Steven Hills as the leader of the IMF. This seasons episodes had more diverse plots than season one. For me discs 3-4, episodes 9-16 were the best. Examples: In 9 "The Seal," has a trained cat recover an ancient jade seal to return it to its rightful country. The two part "The Council," was very well done with even more intruiging disguises than usual. Rollin{played by the superb Martin Landau} impersonates a mob boss using a face supplied by Cinnamon{Landau's real life wife Barbara Bain}. In 14 "The Echo Of Yesterday," was a finely detailed story. Cinnamon & the whole IMF team goes to great lengths to stop a munitions magnate who is giving arms to Neo-Nazi's. Guest star Hans Gudagast{Eric Braden} of Rat Patrol & Young & The Restless fame was very good as the unstable Nazi leader. This may have been the most imaginative episode of the season? The only slight minus was the overdone makeup Barbara Bain wore. Both the series & the opening theme deserves ten stars.

Mission Impossible - The Second TV Season begins where most of our memories remain of the show. The first season featured Steven Hill, best known for being the NY DA in Law and Order, as the head of the Impossible Missions Force. But Hill left the hit show and was succeeded by Peter Graves as Jim Phelps, the leader most of us grew up watching.

The show continued with its great guest stars, sometimes complicated plots, and skillful use of the "con the bad guys" approach that was the hallmark of the series. Graves came in and fit seamlessly at the same time his brother James Arness was continuing his long run as Matt Dillon on Gunsmoke.

This show will always be treasured for its pioneering plot devices and its challenge to the viewer to keep up with what was going on. It's great that this series is finally on DVD.

With this second season of Mission: Impossible we see Peter Graves
introduced as head of the Impossible Missions Force, in the role
of Jim Phelps, replacing Steven Hill as Dan Briggs. The Dan Briggs
character is more cerebral, the Jim Phelps character is more physical.
Both characters have their supporters, although I tend to prefer
Jim Phelps. It is noteworthy that I don't believe there is any
other television series that could replace its lead actor and not
have it affect the shows quality or popularity. This is because
MI is "plot driven" rather than "character driven". Indeed, two more
central characters would leave after season 3 (Rollin and Cinammon) and
yet the series would go on for several more seasons, indicating
the outstanding quality of the plots, direction and production.
In general, I feel the overall quality of the series improved in the
second and third seasons. There are episodes in the first season that
are as good as any ever produced (e.g. Operation Rogosz, The Carriers,
The Frame as well as the pilot episode), but there were a good number
of weaker stories. The second season sees an overall stronger effort.
Whereas the first season still has some 1960's-staple car chases, shootouts and fist fights, these pretty much disappear in the second season and the emphasis is on outwitting the enemy with clever plots and ingenious gadgets. Especially noteworthy is "Trial By Fury" which is an especially intense
story, masterfully directed by Leonard J Horn who also did the equally intense "Operation
Rogosz", "The Photographer" with a great performance by Anthony Zerbe who plays the son of a convicted atomic scientist out for revenge, and an unusual episode called "The Town" where Jim is drugged and held prisoner
by an evil enemy agent played by the otherwise grandfatherly Will Geer.
Seeing masterpiece television series like this made 40 years ago can only make us lament the dismal state of the art today.

When the first season was released last year it was more of a blind buy for me than anything, based on fuzzy childhood memories and a well-known theme song. But I had so much fun with the set that I immediately grabbed the second season when it came out.

Season 2 introduces Peter Graves as Jim Phelps, and with his arrival we have what is arguably the show's best-known roster. Objectively I'm torn between Graves and Steven Hill, the first season leader; Graves has a warmer appeal, and he stayed with the show longer, but Hill had more of a special-ops toughness to him. Also debuting as a full cast member is Martin Landau, after spending season 1 under guest billing. Landau always steals the show, and his extensive prosthetics are the coolest element of any episode as well as what takes the most suspension of disbelief.

Speaking of which, there's a tad more of that going on this season. Maybe it's a side-effect of watching so many episodes back-to-back, but you start to question how far ahead the IMF plan to manipulate the bad guy into a certain room, or have them pull a gun at that right moment. Some traps seem overly elaborate for a relatively mild objective, but that's half the fun. The budget this season also seems a little higher; there's less obvious set-redressing like that large room from season 1 that doubled as a lobby/casino/police station/prison/etc.

So 7-discs in nice slim cases covering 25 remastered episodes, which look and sound great. The glaring lack of subtitles from the season 1 set has been fixed. A great value for any spy genre fan, and a great series for those who like classic television.

In the fall of 1967, CBS television made the decision to renew "Mission: Impossible". From a ratings perspective, the series hadn't exactly broken records. What the show did have in it's favour was positive reviews from critics, not to mention acclaim - the series walked away with the Emmy for Outstanding Dramatic Series in it's first season. There were however changes.

Steven Hill (who played Dan Briggs - head of the IMF team) during the first year was let go. According to backstage reports, Hill's behaviour and requests (which included leaving the set early on Friday nights to attend mass - Hill being an Orthodox Jew) were becoming increasingly difficult for the show's producers to accommodate. Moreover, there was pressure coming from the network for a more "visible" (ie: traditional) leading man who could anchor the series.

Enter Peter Graves as the new leader of the IMF team, Jim Phelps. Graves was an ideal choice and remains to this day the most identifiable person connected with the series. Tall and commanding, Phelps was smart and heroic. He led the team with purpose and confidence as opposed to the "blend-in-with-the-background" persona favoured by his predecessor. Graves also proved to be a hit with viewers as well.

Also returning were Martin Landau (having being bumped up to series regular) as Rollin Hand - man of a thousand faces. Barbara Bain as the sultry Cinnamon Carter. Greg Morris as gadget's wizard Barney Collier and Peter Lupus as the team's muscle Willy Armitage.

This season would see the show's writers begin to bring the series into sharper focus. The stories themselves would contain the same level of tension and suspense whilst at the same time, increasing the stakes. From outwitting enemy agents ("The Survivors", "The Photographer" & "The Spy") to bringing ruthless people to justice ("Sweet Charity", "The Counterfeiter" & "The Killing") to helping resistance movements ("The Astrologer" & "Trial By Fury") the IM team were indeed a force to be reckoned with. The series would even delve into personal territory when Jim stumbles onto an assassination plot by accident and the team are called in to save both him and foil the scheme in the episode "The Town".

There is a sense of confidence at play here when watching the season season of "Mission: Impossible". The episodes are still smartly written, well acted and expertly produced. This measure of success also translates effectively for viewers to as the series began to outperform it's competition - ratings wise. Not surprisingly, by the end of the second season, the buzz factor had well and truly kicked in and the show established itself as tv's hottest spy series.

For retro kicks, season two of "Mission: Impossible" is well worth checking out.. Treat yourself to some fun.....

With its second season (1967-68) Bruce Geller's "Mission: Impossible" hit its stride. This was the season in which ace writers William Read Woodfield and Allan Balter took the series' reins in hand and never let go (until, sadly, about eight episodes into the third season). With Woodfield and Balter creating scripts and editing all others, the classic "M:I" format was set: The Big Con, rigged by the "Impossible Missions Force," in which the heaviest of heavies ended up undermining or eliminating one another. This is also the season in which Peter Graves first (and seamlessly) took over as team leader Jim Phelps, Martin Landau committed himself to the series as the indispensable cast member he was, and all five regulars--Graves, Landau (as Rollin Hand), Barbara Bain (Cinammon Carter), Greg Morris (Barney Collier), and Peter Lupus (Willy Armitidge)--came together in every episode as an inseparable team. This season also gave us some of the series' finest and most memorable episodes: "The Seal" (a "Topkapi" caper starring a trained tabby), "The Council" (a stellar two-parter, recut and released in Europe as a feature, "Mission: Impossible vs. The Mob"), "The Photographer" (the IMF stages, for a traitorous audience of two, the end of the world by nuclear destruction), and "The Killing" (a ghost story done up in splendid "Mission" style). Emmy Nominations and Awards abounded.

Two final notes: First, this is television that has to be watched and paid attention to. It is utterly entertaining and engrossing, but treats viewers as intelligent beings who can follow intricate plotting that is highly visual, with minimal exposition. Second: Forget the recent, self-indulgent Tom Cruise spectacles and return to the original. This, and this alone, is "Mission: Impossible" as Bruce Geller created it. And it's a doozy.

They truly don't make 'em like they used to, and this classic series, that lasted eight seasons was one of the most consistently entertaining series ever. Great acting, great plots and surprising twists, edge-of-the-seat gripping tension. The first season was great, but the second season and beyond, with the addition of Peter Graves and the seasoning of the entire creative and production team made for some absolutely perfect and unbeatable video entertainment!

Best of all, these releases cost a little more than a dollar an hour of viewing. Petty hard to beat!!!!

This is the real thing, the original Mission Impossible. The stories are brilliant with intricate plots, subtle and intelligent. The missions rely on team work and dedication. At the start of each episode the leader picks the members of the team based on their unique abilities, who then proceed to make marvels of intrigue. There are no stars, nor is there James Bond like glory. Instead the group works together like a well oiled machine to the point of perfection. It is too bad we don't get more show like it.