outlaw-74408
The complete season one of "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." that was released on Monday (3rd of August 2015), and delivered by the GPO today was a pleasant surprise when I opened up the 'box'. In my view most boxed sets are very badly designed and totally unacceptable. Without exception when I come across them I always put the disc's into spare storage cases and throw the unacceptable packaging away. However in this instance the spare triple and quad storage cases I had put to one side in advance of delivery of this set, in order to cater for no less than 7 discs, were not actually required.The reason being that this box set is supplied in a proper DVD storage case (or box if you prefer), very much like the 6 disc DVD storage cases, despite this one being slightly narrower. Yet it caters for the 7 discs containing all 29 episodes of season one. There are 5 episodes on disc 2 and 4 episodes on all of the others, which of course gives us the complete first season.Season one was, for the most part in B&W, however two episodes were filmed in colour as there were plans to turn them into feature films. They were the pilot episode "The Vulcan Affair", along with "The Double Affair". Both were actually broadcast on TV in B&W anyway. All subsequent seasons were in colour.I sat through "The Vulcan Affair", this afternoon switching from 4:3 to full 16:9 modes. Eventually going back to 4:3. The entire collection has been digitally remastered, but the picture quality does show it's age a little. Still one has to make allowances for the time when the filming took place. Season one being transmitted in the USA, at least, in 1964/65. Sound is in Dolby Digital Mono in English with subtitles in English, French and German (along with English and German for the hearing impaired).This all brings back very happy and fond memories of going out of my way to ensure that I never missed an episode of "The Man From U.N.C.L.E.", on the BBC on a Thursday evening as it was one of my all time favourite TV shows when I was in my late teens. About the time that I started working for a living. It should be noted that I have not rated this collection yet as I've only watched the one episode thus far. I'll need to watch a few more before I decide on a rating, but there is already a plus 1 to be added just for the packaging of this collection.Anyway if you will excuse me... the time has come to resume my catch up with a few more of Napoleon and Illya's attempts to bring the dastardly THRUSH rabble to account for their crimes.
A_Different_Drummer
Actually, after reading all the glowing reviews here, I was reluctant to weigh in, because, speaking generally, other users don't like it when you knock their favourite shows off the pedestals they put them on. But this is a database, and it is intended for different perspectives. So here we go. For the time, this was ground-breaking and fascinating. Much like MISSION IMPOSSIBLE, its contemporary, also unique. If you were a kid in the 60s (guilty) you could not get enough of these shows. In fact, even today (2013) I have friend who will phone me and the first words out of his mouth are "Open Channel D." But the real test of these shows I think is whether they stand the test of time? UNCLE was part of the spy culture of the era and trust me, there were spies everywhere. I mean in the bookstore, in the drugstore, on TV and in the movies. (No computers then, no streaming media). With hindsight, however, we now know (from numerous biographies) that Fleming was just a frustrated frat boy at heart, sitting on the beach, typing with one finger, and banging out fantasies with characters like Pussy Galore. If you were a serious writer, like John LeCarre, or even semi-serious like Donald Hamilton (Matt Helm) you had trouble finding a filmic audience in the 60s because the viewer demand was for stylized action and superficial situations. (Matt Helm movies, so-called, reviewed elsewhere on IMDb, with a lot of subsequent angry feedback from groovy 60s kids in serious denial). This series was clever. At first glance Vaughn seemed an excellent counterpoint to David McCallum, the latter being the very definition of "foreign hunk" for the period, and guaranteed a high female turnout from week to week. And part of the "gimmick," according to TV GUIDE of the era, was that there was to be at least one "innocent civilian" involved in each episode, to try to ground the series and avoid the mad Bond-esqe fantasies. Still, in the opinion of this reviewer, the series quickly fell into the same traps experienced by shows like WILD WILD WEST and BATMAN. Similar plots. Similar villains. Predictable plot arcs, including the obligatory "Rescue/Resolution" with only 7 minutes left on the clock per episode. No one's fault. Not blaming anyone. But viewers in the 60s wanted their action shows like they wanted their coffee -- sweet, double sugar. If someone had tried to do a Bourne film with Matt Damon (in theory) back then, they would have been arrested for excessive violence. And notice that this show was really the only point in Vaughan's career where he tried to be likable. He ultimately ended up playing bad guys, and McCallum ended up hosting multiple reality shows. The truth is that you wanted serious spy action in this period, there were lots of books, but your TV/film choices were limited. I have on IMDb done a very positive review of the Danger Man (Secret Agent) series out of Britain, followed by the Callan series, also from the UK. If the question on the floor is, which product holds up best over the decades?, and could be enjoyed even today, I give to nod to the latter titles. THE MAN FROM UNCLE is, I think, very dated and very specific to the period.
redjag_1965
The Man From UNCLE premiered in 1964 based on the popularity of the James Bond movies. I never was a big fan of the Bond flicks, but I loved the Man From UNCLE. The combination of tongue-in-cheek humor and outlandish gadgets was not only entertaining, but great fun! And Robert Vaughn and David McCallum did a terrific job in their roles, skirting just on the edge of silliness, but still with a certain gleam in their eye that let you know the whole business was just too outlandish to possibly be real. Secret headquarters, outlandish villains, super spy gadgets, MFU had it all. And it was all great fun! Leo G. Carroll played the unflappable Mr. Waverly, who always seemed to be one step ahead of his agents. Season 1 was undoubtedly the best, although 2 had its moments. Season 3 was not entirely a disaster, but the producers tried too hard to make it all silly comedy, a la Batman, which was a campy hit, and lost the flavor of the show, although there are some outstanding moments, as when Solo is busy kissing the girl in the warm comfort of a car, while Kuryakin is fighting the bad guys in the pouring rain. As he stands there, drenched, Illya looks at his warm, dry partner and remarks, "we make such good partners." But by the time season 4 rolled around, the damage had been done, although they tried going back to the original concept. All the actors had lost interest and it was canceled. It's still fun to watch and nice to know both actors are still busy performing, Vaughn in the British series, Hustle, and McCallum in the CBS hit NCIS. I still miss the fun of the Man From UNCLE. No-one ever did a spoof better, and we'll never see anything quite this good again. Too bad Warners seems to have some kind of problem releasing it to DVD, there are plenty of people who'd love to have it.
hakobell
I know the last user thought the episodes were just average, but you cannot judge very early 60's TV by today's standard and technology. The show was very cool, and so were Napoleon and Illya. Heck, that is why there is still a huge following forty years later.Yes, the shows look as if they were filmed on back lot. They were. The pace and budget did not allow for on location scenes. Look at old Star Trek and you will see the same limitations.Many shows were intended to be funny or at least tongue in cheek. The episode with Joan Collins is a riot. The agents are trying to get a low class woman to pass off as a lady. This episode, The Galatea Affair, is a take on My Fair Lady and introduces Noel Harrison as Mark Slate. OF course you will remember that his father had the task of transforming Liza Doolitle in MFL.Try the very early pairing of Shatner and Nimoy in Project Strigas or The Ultimate Computer Affair, another great MFU episode. There were over 100 of them in this popular 60's show.