DVD: Danger Man - The Complete First Season
(A&E Home Video) 39 episodes, 5 DVDs
Reviewed by DJ Johnson

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British TV viewers got all the good stuff. In 1960, which was before Sean Connery's Bond or Roger Moore's Templar, Patrick Mcgoohan introduced himself as "Drake. John Drake." Yes, he was a secret agent, not for any particular country but for NATO, and he was the best. You wouldn't find Drake firing a dart out of his wrist watch and jumping out of an airplane with some space-age gadget to break his fall, a la Bond. What made Drake so very cool was his complete lack of concern for being cool, his self-assured methods that made sense in a non comic-book way and the fact that he didn't seem to have any silly weaknesses. Pussy Galore couldn't distract John Drake from his task, nor could fine wine, fancy cars or anything else. He was a spy you could relate to. The show was only half an hour long, yet they managed to make complete and satisfying stories in that time frame, at least partially because the story lines are as real as Drake himself. Is he going after a man with a golden gun on a hidden island? No, no... Instead, how about setting up a sting on a pair of murderous brothers who knock off mail carriers for the loot they might be delivering? Or figuring out who is hiring whom for a professional hit? Or maybe tricking a British traitor into leaving her safe asylum and returning to England with him? It's all very clever and exciting to watch, and with 39 episodes in the set, there's a whole lot of entertainment here, all in glorious black and white. Later, an hour long series aired both in England and America under the name Secret Agent, that one running for 47 episodes, also quite good. Danger Man is a real find for the spy show fan, especially one who would like something a little less Disneyland than Bond. It's still escapism, but accompanied by a feeling that this stuff could happen, and probably does.

© 2004 - DJ Johnson