UNCLE negoaitates with a "freelance" gangster who's been in competition with the Mafia his whole career, for info to take them down in exchange for retirement with security. But first, April has to protect him from being BUMPED OFF by the most unlikely of paid assassins, a quiet, low-key, mild-mannered, happily-married church-going pillar of his community.
YES, too many episodes of MAN and GIRL FROM UNCLE during the 1966-67 season got a little too silly. Actually, that goes for almost every adventure show on the air during that season (with the notable exceptions of the 1st seasons of TARZAN, STAR TREK, and MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE). But NOT this one! Mark Slate is in the hospital with a broken foot, being nagged by his boss about it, while, somehow fittingly, the hit-man April is keeping a watch for walks with a limp.
The humor this times comes from the situation, and very likely social commentary, that someone so normal might not be what he seems. On the flip side, the career criminal April is protecting also comes across as a VERY nice guy, who's quite taken with both her beauty and her abilities.
A highlight has to be when a knock-down-drag-out fight erupts between the gangster and a hotel waiter working for the hit man, during which April is passing on a report to Mark, and, racing down a hallway to drop off a bomb in the hit man's room.
Pernell Roberts gets my vote for perhaps the most charming guest-star I've seen on this show so far. It was a shame he left BONANZA the way he did, but, clearly he didn't want to get stuck in such a rut for the rest of the decade, and I'm glad he didn't. I need to see more of his work.
On the other side is none other than Wally Cox, who growing up I mostly knew as the voice of UNDERDOG. (I've also seen him in an episode of LOST IN SPACE from this same season, and, the tv-movie THE NIGHT STRANGLER as the man in charge of the newspaper archive who helps Carl Kolchak track down info going back many decades.)
The hit man's wife looked vaguely familar-- turns out, it was Olive Sturgess, who played Vincent Price's daughter (and a young Jack Nicholson's potential love interest) in the Roger Corman film THE RAVEN.
The longer this season went on, the more competant and confident April Dancer became. Maybe seeing less of handsome, smiling Noel Harrison would have been a GOOD thing? Had we seen more episodes THIS good, the show might have lasted more than one season.
YES, too many episodes of MAN and GIRL FROM UNCLE during the 1966-67 season got a little too silly. Actually, that goes for almost every adventure show on the air during that season (with the notable exceptions of the 1st seasons of TARZAN, STAR TREK, and MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE). But NOT this one! Mark Slate is in the hospital with a broken foot, being nagged by his boss about it, while, somehow fittingly, the hit-man April is keeping a watch for walks with a limp.
The humor this times comes from the situation, and very likely social commentary, that someone so normal might not be what he seems. On the flip side, the career criminal April is protecting also comes across as a VERY nice guy, who's quite taken with both her beauty and her abilities.
A highlight has to be when a knock-down-drag-out fight erupts between the gangster and a hotel waiter working for the hit man, during which April is passing on a report to Mark, and, racing down a hallway to drop off a bomb in the hit man's room.
Pernell Roberts gets my vote for perhaps the most charming guest-star I've seen on this show so far. It was a shame he left BONANZA the way he did, but, clearly he didn't want to get stuck in such a rut for the rest of the decade, and I'm glad he didn't. I need to see more of his work.
On the other side is none other than Wally Cox, who growing up I mostly knew as the voice of UNDERDOG. (I've also seen him in an episode of LOST IN SPACE from this same season, and, the tv-movie THE NIGHT STRANGLER as the man in charge of the newspaper archive who helps Carl Kolchak track down info going back many decades.)
The hit man's wife looked vaguely familar-- turns out, it was Olive Sturgess, who played Vincent Price's daughter (and a young Jack Nicholson's potential love interest) in the Roger Corman film THE RAVEN.
The longer this season went on, the more competant and confident April Dancer became. Maybe seeing less of handsome, smiling Noel Harrison would have been a GOOD thing? Had we seen more episodes THIS good, the show might have lasted more than one season.
