Product Details

• Actors: Patrick Macnee, Diana Rigg, Honor Blackman, Linda Thorson, Ian Hendry
• Writers: Sydney Newman
• Format: Box set, Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: A&E Home Video
• DVD Release Date: January 2, 2001
• Run Time: 330 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000051TVP
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #21,833 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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  Movies & TV > Television > British Television > British Cult Television

• For more information about "The Best of The Original Avengers" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Only those with a Diana Rigg bias would complain that of the six episodes included in this collection, only two feature the ravishing Mrs. Emma Peel, the second and most popularly known partner of gentleman spy John Steed (Patrick Macnee). But they do rank among her finest hours. In "Death at Bargain Prices," Emma goes undercover at a department store, prompting Steed's classic line, "I asked where to find you and was told, 'Our Mrs. Peel is in ladies' underwear.' I rattled up the stairs three at a time." In "Too Many Christmas Trees," Emma, the girl of our dreams, comforts a distressed Steed, whose nightmares are coming true. The Cathy Gale (Honor "Pussy Galore" Blackman) and Tara King (the unfortunate Linda Thorson) episodes pale by comparison, but, as Macnee offers in a newly filmed introduction, they represent what is best about this cult classic British series: "Tradition; humanity; character; sexuality; bizarre comic strip action; witty tongue-in-cheek humor." "Mr. Teddy Bear," which launched the series' second season, also marks Cathy's debut as Steed's partner. "Don't Look Behind You," a psychological thriller, was later remade with Emma Peel as "The Joker." Winning the award for most outrageous episode title is "Look (Stop Me If You've Heard This One) But There Were These Two Fellers." This love-it-or-hate-it Tara King episode, in which music hall clowns really slay their audience, features a memorable appearance by a pre-Monty Python John Cleese. Thorson's own finest hour may be "All Done with Mirrors," in which she, saddled with a bumbling sidekick, must clear Steed of charges of treason. While more Mrs. Peel is needed, this set will thrill old fans and new collectors looking to enhance or start an Avengers library. --Donald Liebenson

Product Description
Studio: A&e Home Video Release Date: 10/22/2002 Run time: 330 minutes Rating: Nr

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent compilation, January 14, 2001

By	"jhitesman" (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

The point of this DVD is to show Steed's partners at different time in the show. The Amazon reviewer seems to be a bit Mrs Peel favorable, when the truth is that The Avengers is STEED's show. He was the only continuing character throughout the entire series and into the spin off. This DVD set shows Steed at different points in his agent career and how his various partners act. Starting out with "Mr. Teddy Bear", it introduces Cathy Gale, who was a good series but suffered from the technically inferiror resources which can now only look very dated. Nonetheless, the storylines are good here and in "Don't Look Behind You", the original "The Joker" and scarier in black and white. The set moves on to Emma Peel with the witty "Death at Bargain Prices", a perfect example of Steed and Emma's relationship amidst any peril known. Further complexities are revealed with "Too Many Christmas Trees" as it achieves a perfect balance of humor and seriousness, a series trademark and featuring some of the best repartee between the leads. Then comes Tara King with the love it or hate it "....Two Fellers". It does represent all that was loved about the show *humor, strange situations, relaxed leads, great guest stars, etc* but is almost too broad to be Avengers ish if you take it seriously. Take it as a spoof and you might enjoy it more. Finally, the final episode on the set is the fabulous "All Done With Mirrors" where Linda Thorson and Tara King come into their own. She goes on a Steedless mission to the Devon coast amidst beautiful location filming. It is also an excellent storyline, filled with wit and great situations. The music score is easily Howard Blake's best out of his series of contributions in the final season. "Mirrors" is also uniquely filmed by Ray Austin. Just check out some of the camera angles and you'll see! Overall, this set represents all that is great about this fabulous show and would be a great addition to anyone's collection.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great overview of a classic series, January 3, 2003

By	Ron Wise (Cleveland, MS USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This very reasonably-priced box set (six hours of entertainment for the usual price of one movie) is a bargain at any price. A&E did its usual first class job of putting together this package.

I won't dwell too much on the content of each episode since the other reviewers cover them in depth, except to say the Patrick Macnee did an excellent job of selecting two episodes each featuring each of his three female leads; Honor Blackman, Diana Rigg, and Linda Thorson. And, for a man his age, Patrick is still holding up quite well in the newly-videotaped segments.

The extras in the package are a strong point, too. Patrick's overall introduction is worth the time to watch before watching any of the episodes. Also, he gives a short introduction to each episode. Some of his remarks seem candid such as his displeasure about the introduction of the "Mother" character in the last season in which he states that this took away some of the mystery and charm of the Avengers team by bringing out into the open the governmental spy organization in which they worked. Before, the Avengers seemed to be more like free agents loosely working within a hidden framework. "We would just show up," he said, "at the scene of a crime" and no one would question from where.

Another extra, Linda Thorson's 15 minute promo film the box set called "Town Girl" (even though no title is shown on the film) does it's best to show Linda as a happy-go-lucky star on the rise. It appears to have been filmed after the Avengers series ended around 1969 or the early Seventies. The color is crisp and sharp and shows her running around the English countryside in tight blue jeans with dirt on the seat of her pants. Then there's a scene of her jumping into a swimming pool and trying to keep her head above water. It's all good clean fun.

All in all, this is a great package from Honor Blackman's film noir episode "Don't Look Behind You" to Diana Rigg's quirky department store-turned-atomic bomb episode "Death At Bargain Prices" to Linda Thornson's wonderful "All Done With Mirrors."

This set is a great place to start for anyone who is interested in the evolution of the Avengers or a person who has never heard of the Avengers or for even the die-hard Avengers fan.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A King and 3 Wild Cards Takes the Hand, March 22, 2001

By	hille2000 "hille2000" (USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

Poker faced John Steed certainly must have felt that he lived in a house of cards with the likes of the regal Kathy Gale, Mrs. Emma Peel and Tara King. `The Avengers" was a popular 1960's British fantasy-adventure series that focused on the exploits of a male-female duo in the service of the British government. The series underwent several changes of its female lead but its one constant male lead was John Steed always portrayed by the debonair Patrick Macnee (Originally the John Steed had two male partners but that format eventually changed). Kathy Gale portrayed by Honor Blackman became Steed's first female partner. However, when Honor Blackman departed the series and Diana Rigg entered as Mrs. Emma Peel, the show became an international sensation. Rigg brought sophistication, wit, charm and beauty, which hid her lethal and highly visual judo and karate abilities. Macnee and Rigg complemented each other beautifully with their carefree witty and charming exchange of dialogue. The show distinguished itself with bizarre and futuristic villains and fantastic plots. Popular at the height of the James Bond craze, the show was able to distinguish itself with its simply over-the-top visual style. Laurie Johnson's catchy and sophisticated main title theme matched the visuals of the show and still conjures up an image of the series when listened to today. When Diana Rigg left the series, Linda Thorson entered as John Steed's new partner Tara King. The series soon went off the air in the United States. It was a shame because the episodes with Tara King were quite good. The King episodes seemed to be a little more down to earth and contained some very good writing and intricate plotting. In any event the series definitely left its mark amongst the finest. These DVD copies are gorgeous and they sound great in Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono.