William Tremblay I looked into this show after seeing Secret Army, everyone's old favorite. Colditz was actually made before Secret Army though. Many of the same actors make appearances. They come up with great stories with lots of nerve-wracking suspense, just like S.A. did.Also like S.A., it's interesting how the good guys and bad guys are not so clear. Sometimes fellow prisoners are the villain; sometimes the Germans end up being unlikely saviors. The Germans even have enemies of their own in the SS, who are itching to get their hands on the camp and run it their own brutal way. The Germans are actual well-rounded characters, as well. They are as much a part of the story as the prisoners. They are not portrayed as just generic goons thwarted at every turn.I agree with one other reviewer (although not quite as strongly) that the series wasn't quite as good in the second season. The first season finale with Carrington and Grant's big home run was the pinnacle, and it left me very excited to see what happened in the second season, but unfortunately I was a little disappointed. Still worth watching, but perhaps they set the bar a little too high for themselves in the first season.I'd say my favorite episodes were Tweedledum, Gone Away (parts I and II) Odd Man In, and Chameleon (just because I laughed out loud when Mohn was trying to buddy up to the prisoners to save his own sorry butt) A couple things I didn't really like: - Lt. Dick Player is inexplicably absent from the final few episodes... Kind of sucks because he was easily one of the most interesting characters.Some of the Americans who show up towards the end have awful accents. I looked it up and I think Phil Carrington might be the only American character played by an American actor.I found the ending rather... Anticlimactic. I'm not sure if it's because I accidentally read the synopsis of the last episode on Wikipedia, and thus the suspense was ruined for me, but I think it could have been done a little better.Overall, good show. I'll probably watch it again in a few months.

kolibrimm I just finished a marathon of this series, and it became agonising to watch as it progressed. From the fictionalising of the historical elements, to O'Herlihy's awful accent in later episodes, the show just slumps the further it goes. If you are looking for some low quality production generalised WW2 fluff, then I could recommend season 1, but avoid anything after that, it degenerates into being one step from a soap opera, with increasingly worse story lines and sensibility.The old B&W film is by far the best of any form of entertainment with the Colditz name attached to it, and even that is not what one could hope for.

noseyq This outstanding series is the kind of psychological drama at which the British excell. Set almost entirely within a reconstruction of the now-famous castle-fortress prisoner-of-war camp during WWII, there is little in the way of physical action. Instead we're treated to some of the best form of "mind games" and psychological manoeuvring and competition you can hope to see on TV, as the two sides constantly strive to get one over on the other. The Allied prisoners are determined not to be beaten mentally by their surroundings and look for every possible means of escape, while the Germans are always on their toes, looking for clues about possible break-outs and ways in which the Allied prisoners are trying to outsmart them. I couldn't tear myself away from the series when it first came out in Britain, and I was pleased to see how little it had aged when it was reshown on the History Channel a couple of years ago. Excellent acting and strong story lines make this a must-see for me. Out of 10, I'd rank it about 13.6!!

Jazmyne-2 I found this show very very good. I really enjoyed the acting, the costumes and the use of the German Language. (as a student of the German language, it was rather nice knowing what they were saying and not some gibberish to throw the average viewer off) The escape stories and sub-plots kept me on the edge of my seat. To me, this was not some mindless TV show where you switch your brain off. What held my interest was that it made you think. It was almost like playing chess. Who makes the next move? Robert Wagner, Jack Hedley and David McCallum are my favorites but I must say, I also found some of the German actors appealing too. Hans Meyer and Bernard Hepton were both splendid. It was nice seeing Mr. Hepton play a Kommandant after seeing him play a barkeeper in Secret Army (another British war/drama) Mr. Meyer's character (Hauptmann Ulmann) was as cold as ice and sometimes, those are the hardest characters to play. (his eyes - how many closeups did that guy have?) This show was not only entertaining, but I found it to be quite educational too. I plan to visit Colditz on my next trip to Germany. Unfortunately, I never did see the end of the series, so I don't know how it ends. I only saw up until end of first season (gone away part 1 and 2) so, if anyone saw the series (or remembers it) please feel free to e-mail me and tell me what happens. I think when History Channel decides to play it again, I'll probably be in Germany and these shows and channels are not available - even on satellite.