Don Movie Reviews

Okay, Im not really a martial-arts fan, fans of this movie, and I know they exist, will split into 2 camps. Fans of martial arts in particular Don Wilson, and bewitched male fans of female martial arts star Catya Sassoon, now tragically the late Catya Sassoon. The storyline is formulaic, Wilson works as a repo-man tied to a car junk-yard, and uses his martial-arts prowess to deal with occasional difficult clients who dont want their car repossessed. One day, during a car repo, Wilson encounters a tough customer in the category, a guy twice Wilsons size who is also a formidable martial-artist, and a mob-henchman as it turns out. This is certainly a good fight,right here, the second of many in the movie, the fights, to me, are convincing, Wilson and his opponents are all 1st class fighters. Wilson wins this one , after taking many hits, but the BMW he repos contains something of great value to a very nasty ruthless criminal gang with big plans. Wilson returns to his workplace later after dropping off the BMW earlier, to find his workmates and boss dead or dying,the gang he crossed with this particular repo have dropped by, his young daughter is tracked down and kidnapped as collateral for the as-yet unrecovered mob property, and Wilson embarks on a bloody bare-knuckles oddysey to recover her, aided by a GOOD woman, Amanda Wyss.
Now, there is also a BAD woman,deliciously shaking-hands bad, Lisa, played by Catya Sassoon, a martial artist, and star of 'Angel Fist'. In that, she was good, well, in BloodFist4, she finds her calling, is a ruthless tough high-kicking switchblade-slashing killer who steams up the screen and steals the show if you are a good boy who dreams of bad ladies,let me tell you. Wilson clashes with her twice, once when she impersonates an agency baby-sitter, and again right at the end, where they stage the films final martial-arts fight.Shortly prior to this,she disposes of two redundant mob goons by suddenly drawing her switchblade and slashing them as she shows them to the door, smiling evilly as they crumple gasping in front of her.She enjoys her work. In this scene, she is in black costume with thigh-high stilletto-heeled boots, with switch-blade tucked into boot. Did I mention she has a killer body, no pun intended? Anyway, she jumps Wilson running through a doorway and heaps some one-sided punishment on him, lots of high-kicks with those boots, a nice head-kneeing to a staggered Wilson, and at the climax, a ball-busting booted groin-kick with Wilson pinned against the wall, then, drawing her switchblade for the coup-de-grace, the tide tragically? turns........
Catya had cult-figure potential, based on this movie, I would have loved a rewrite remake with A.) more Catya action B.) better lighting, the final fight Ive described takes place in dark-lit gloomy background and with her dark attire,you are robbed of some detail.
To sum up, the story-line is familiar, the acting and script very ordinary though Ive seen worse, the fights are brutal and well-staged/well fought, but evil Lisas scenes may have you wearing out the rewind/slomo of your vcr....and even have you rooting for the baddie-ess. I did.

I just sort of stumbled onto the low-budgeted, popular kung-fu action series, BLOODFIST. Mind you, after Bloodfist II, these movies bare no connection to each other, so after Bloodfist II, it really doesn't matter what order you watch them in.
Bloodfist IV:Die Trying was the first one I saw, and let me tell you, it quite literally kicks [rear-end]. Don "The Dragon" Wilson isn't as bad of an actor as his reputation might suggest, and he makes a very impressive action star. Every last fight in all the Bloodfist movies is fantastic, and Die Trying is no exception. The best one here is withou a doubt the one in the room full of tear gas. I own the first four Bloodfist movies, and
Bloodfist VII:Manhunt, and I'm relentlessly hunting down Bloodfist V:Human Target and Bloodfist VI:Ground Zero on the internet, as well as some of Wilson's other flicks, like Blackbelt and The Capitol Conspiracy. Trust me, if you enjoy the high kickin' performances of Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Jean-Claude Van Damme, or if your'e familiar with legends like Bruce Lee, or his son Brandon Lee, Don "The Dragon" Wilson is right up your alley, and the Bloodfist series is a great place to start.

What can I say? Let's have a look

Okay, Im not really a martial-arts fan, fans of this movie, and I know they exist, will split into 2 camps. Fans of martial arts in particular Don Wilson, and bewitched male fans of female martial arts star Catya Sassoon, now tragically the late Catya Sassoon. The storyline is formulaic, Wilson works as a repo-man tied to a car junk-yard, and uses his martial-arts prowess to deal with occasional difficult clients who dont want their car repossessed. One day, during a car repo, Wilson encounters a tough customer in the category, a guy twice Wilsons size who is also a formidable martial-artist, and a mob-henchman as it turns out. This is certainly a good fight,right here, the second of many in the movie, the fights, to me, are convincing, Wilson and his opponents are all 1st class fighters. Wilson wins this one , after taking many hits, but the BMW he repos contains something of great value to a very nasty ruthless criminal gang with big plans. Wilson returns to his workplace later after dropping off the BMW earlier, to find his workmates and boss dead or dying,the gang he crossed with this particular repo have dropped by, his young daughter is tracked down and kidnapped as collateral for the as-yet unrecovered mob property, and Wilson embarks on a bloody bare-knuckles oddysey to recover her, aided by a GOOD woman, Amanda Wyss.
Now, there is also a BAD woman,deliciously shaking-hands bad, Lisa, played by Catya Sassoon, a martial artist, and star of 'Angel Fist'. In that, she was good, well, in BloodFist4, she finds her calling, is a ruthless tough high-kicking switchblade-slashing killer who steams up the screen and steals the show if you are a good boy who dreams of bad ladies,let me tell you. Wilson clashes with her twice, once when she impersonates an agency baby-sitter, and again right at the end, where they stage the films final martial-arts fight.Shortly prior to this,she disposes of two redundant mob goons by suddenly drawing her switchblade and slashing them as she shows them to the door, smiling evilly as they crumple gasping in front of her.She enjoys her work. In this scene, she is in black costume with thigh-high stilletto-heeled boots, with switch-blade tucked into boot. Did I mention she has a killer body, no pun intended? Anyway, she jumps Wilson running through a doorway and heaps some one-sided punishment on him, lots of high-kicks with those boots, a nice head-kneeing to a staggered Wilson, and at the climax, a ball-busting booted groin-kick with Wilson pinned against the wall, then, drawing her switchblade for the coup-de-grace, the tide tragically? turns........
Catya had cult-figure potential, based on this movie, I would have loved a rewrite remake with A.) more Catya action B.) better lighting, the final fight Ive described takes place in dark-lit gloomy background and with her dark attire,you are robbed of some detail.
To sum up, the story-line is familiar, the acting and script very ordinary though Ive seen worse, the fights are brutal and well-staged/well fought, but evil Lisas scenes may have you wearing out the rewind/slomo of your vcr....and even have you rooting for the baddie-ess. I did.

I just sort of stumbled onto the low-budgeted, popular kung-fu action series, BLOODFIST. Mind you, after Bloodfist II, these movies bare no connection to each other, so after Bloodfist II, it really doesn't matter what order you watch them in.
Bloodfist IV:Die Trying was the first one I saw, and let me tell you, it quite literally kicks [rear-end]. Don "The Dragon" Wilson isn't as bad of an actor as his reputation might suggest, and he makes a very impressive action star. Every last fight in all the Bloodfist movies is fantastic, and Die Trying is no exception. The best one here is withou a doubt the one in the room full of tear gas. I own the first four Bloodfist movies, and
Bloodfist VII:Manhunt, and I'm relentlessly hunting down Bloodfist V:Human Target and Bloodfist VI:Ground Zero on the internet, as well as some of Wilson's other flicks, like Blackbelt and The Capitol Conspiracy. Trust me, if you enjoy the high kickin' performances of Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Jean-Claude Van Damme, or if your'e familiar with legends like Bruce Lee, or his son Brandon Lee, Don "The Dragon" Wilson is right up your alley, and the Bloodfist series is a great place to start.

What can I say? Let's have a look

These dvds are an excellent buy for the DB, DBZ, or DBGT fan. This set holds the root to the story of the red ribbion army which comes up frequently through DBZ. seeing this set allows you better understanding of how and why it all started with goku versus the red ribbion army.
the picture quality is tradional to the rest of the series so far. not anything spectacular. the sound is sub par. you feel like you are watching it straight from tv.
but besides that it is fine and to a fan that is all that matters.

Finally. No more waiting for Toonami having to show the kiddie versions. I have seen the Cartoon Network versions, and I can't believe some of the things they took out. With characters such as Major Metalitrron, Ninja Murasaki, Android "Eighter" Number Eight, Buyon among many others, you cannot go wrong. If you liked the Cartoon Network versions, you should get this set. Remember, this is only one small set of many to come. It will take a couple years to obtain the entire series, but it will be well worth it.

This is a double DVD set of the Red Ribbon Army saga. Not to be confused with an actual box set (ie: a multitude of DVDs contained within a box), this is simply 2 dvds in 1 dvd case (a dvd holder on each side when opened). Within it a booklet (well I shouldn't say a booklet, it's just one piece of paper folded in half) that contains the episode information such as episode numbers and summaries.

Now that we've reviewed what it actually is, let's talk about what's contained on the discs. Finally! The original Dragonball available in the original uncut Japanese glory with subtitles! What a deal too! If you were upset with the Dragonball Z dvds only having 3 episodes a piece, you will be more than delighted with this. Funimation brings you 8 episodes on the first dvd, and 9 episodes on the second, bringing you a total of 17 great Dragonball episodes. Apparently they aren't trying to milk this like they are with 'Z', and for all the original Dragonball fans this is a blessing!

Take a step back from all the fighting you see in Dragonball Z, and tag along with chibi Goku on all of his action-packed adventures. Goku takes on the Red Ribbon Army to take back his grandfather's momento (the 4-star Dragonball), and later saves a captured village chief. This saga is full of action, humor, suspense, all with the beautiful art by Akira Toriyama you've come to know and love all these years. This saga is taken from the original Toriyama manga, but with more stuff added only available in the anime.

For $..., and free shipping on Amazon.com, this is one deal you do NOT want to pass up.. especially if you're a hardcore Akira Toriyama fan. You may want to check out the other Dragonball "boxed sets" which include King Piccolo part 1 and 2, and the Tournament saga. If I could give this 6 stars, I would.

The only thing I can think of that's remotely disappointing is the extras, which include character profiles and a trailer for another anime (I believe it's Lupin 3rd). The profiles are pretty cool, especially if one isn't familiar with all of them, but I would've liked something special like an interview with Akira Toriyama, or any of the creators of the anime. Let's hope we see some worthwhile extras in the future!

And When the Sky Opened, is perhaps the most erie story ever done on the Twilight Zone as Rod Taylor plays an astronaut who along with two others goes into space, black out, and then return only to discover that no one remembers them and that some mysterious force is wipeing them out of existence. "Someone or something" as they put it. They don't know how or why but they are powerless to escape their fate. A very terrifying story that will send chills down your back. The other show deals with Mickey Rooney playing a horse jock who wants to be a big man, and a small voice grants his wish, only the wish brings him more misery then he could ever have guessed. Stories written by Rod Serling and Richard Matheson.

In Volume 16 of "The Twilight Zone" DVD series the common thread is men who discover there lives are taking bizarre twists. "And When the Sky Was Opened," written by Rod Serling and based on Richard Matheson's short story "Disappearing Act," tells of three astronauts who have just returned from their first space flight. Harrigan (Charles Aidman) calls home, is told by his parents that they have no son and then suddenly disappears. When Forbes (Rod Taylor) disappears, only Gart (James Hutton) is left from the crew--but for how long? "In His Image." an hour-long episode by Charles Beaumont based on his short story "The Man Who Made Himself," George Grizzard plays Alan Talbot, who pushes an old woman in front of a speeding train and then goes off to meet with his fiancee (Gail Kobe). But when they drive to his hometown, Alan discovers that things are not quite as he remembered them. Mickey Rooney stars in Serling's "The Last Night of a Jockey" as Grady, who has been banned from the track for horse doping. As he contemplates his ruined career, an inner voice asks him for his dearest wish. Grady knows the answer--to be BIG. After a nap, he finds out he has been given his wish. The script is certainly passable, but Rooney's tour de force performance makes this a stand out episode.

Volume 16 contains AND WHEN THE SKY WAS OPENED, IN HIS IMAGE and THE LAST NIGHT OF A JOCKEY. Rod Taylor, Charles Aidman and Jim Hutton turn in excellent performances in AND WHEN THE SKY WAS OPENED. IN HIS IMAGE is one of the best hour-long episodes from the 4th season starring George Grizzard. Mickey Rooney gets what he asks for in THE LAST NIGHT OF A JOCKEY. When purchasing a DVD on any of the "Twilight Zone" episodes, I think it is safe to say that in the majority of cases the buyer knows those stories by heart. The main concern is one of quality. How does the picture measure up? In this case I have never seen better transfers. The images are excellent. They are sharp, clear and maintain consistent contrast. The laserdisc versions had a problem with black & white contrast. That problem has now been corrected.

The films that come from the BBC seem to offer an endless supply of talent. In this case, Irish author Roddy Doyle has penned a good-hearted, sometimes hilarious tale of Brendan (a rigidly shy teacher who's addicted to movies and who sings, in a beautiful tenor, in the church choir) and Trudy, an outgoing, fun-loving, beautiful young woman who'll see any movie "as long as it's in color." An unlikely pairing, but it works. Trudy slowly draws out the movie "hero" inside Brendan, emancipating him from his previous unfulfilling existence and introducing him to a life of petty crime. It's a movie that takes its opening directly from Sunset Boulevard, and has snippets of dialogue (and clips) from any number of films all the way through--particularly the Jean Seberg, Jean-Paul Belmondo classic, Breathless. In one wonderful scene, the two characters re-enact the Seberg/Belmondo exchange on the street; it's shot at just enough of a distance to mislead the viewer into thinking it's another clip from the original film. Then it breaks out and turns back into its own film.

There's a somewhat unnecessary, even foolish, "what become of" sequence at the end of the film that would've been better left on the cutting room floor. But overall, it's such an entertaining film that it really doesn't matter.
Highly recommended.

I spent my junior year of college in Cork, Ireland. While I was there this movie came out in theaters, and I loved it so much I saw if three times! I have been waiting for it to come to the States since I've returned, and even tried to buy it from amazon.uk only to find that even dvd players are different in Britain. This movie is one of the funniest I've ever seen, and hope that Roddy Doyle continues writing books as well as films!

For a wonderful, laugh a minute, joy of a tale, watch this film as Brendan gets his first chance at love and his second chance at living. If you haven't read the official review here, avoid it....it's a spoiler. Just see this film! You'll look at love in a whole new way! Everyone in the theatre was HAPPY as can be when they left!

The final season of the original Avengers finally comes to DVD & VHS in region one. "The Forget me knot," the debut episode of Ms. Tara King played by Linda Thorson, was released back in 1998, but only now is the entire series seeing the light of day - and it's been well worth the wait.

There are many of course who do not rate these last adventures featuring the debonair John Steed as Britain's top government agent as highly as what had gone before, and it's easy to see why. Steed's pairing originally with Mrs Gale (Honor Blackman) and later Mrs Peel (Diana Rigg) had been an excellent match for his skills. With Mrs Peel leaving the show, the producers, Brian Clemens and Albert Fennell followed suit and John Bryce was brought back to the programme, following his stint producing the early Mrs Gale episodes.

The first thing Bryce did was to cast his girlfriend, twenty one year old Canadian Linda Thorson as Steed's new assistant, Miss Tara King. In order to complete the delivery of episodes to the US market, production was fairly rushed, and what came out of it was deemed substandard. Bryce was sacked and Fennell and Clemens brought back to rescue the production. Clemens was particularly unhappy about Linda Thorson's role, but it was too late in the day to do anything about it. They set about filming the initial block of 8 episodes (extended to 9), rehashing two of the abandoned Bryce episodes, and bringing back Mrs Peel for the one-off story "The forget me knot" to introduce the new character of Tara (although this "debut" was actually filmed third). Once these episodes were ready, they set about producing the final batch of 24.

There is a very significant shift in the character of Tara King between these two production blocks as Thorson began to gain confidence in the part. Also added as a regular into the later stories is Steed & Tara's boss, "Mother," played by Patrick Newell. Thorson's inexperience and the naivety of the character are often cited as the reason the show was cancelled after these episodes were transmitted. Personally, I think the inclusion of the very annoying "Mother" to be a far more valid reason. But it's all a matter of taste.

The stories are included on the discs in the order they were first transmitted in the UK. I would strongly recommend viewing them in PRODUCTION ORDER (easy to track on any Avengers website). There are several reasons for this. It's easier to warm to Miss King as you follow her character development. It also makes more sense to understand her constant hair changes and costume. She started as a blonde, moved to a be-wigged brunette, and only in the latter 24 episodes did we see Thorson's own hair. We can also see how the actress started in "slimmed down mode" (on the orders of the TV station) but regained her lost weight as the series moved along. The character also started out as a complete "spy" trainee, but by the second production block, had become one of the most experienced agents in Mother's department. I also enjoyed seeing the rehashed sets from episode to episode too. All these nuances are lost by following the stories strictly in disc order, and indeed the characterisation of the leads is actually confusing if you simply watch the shows in disc order.

As for the discs themselves, sadly A&E have once again neglected to include any extras at all. All there is are a few still photos, although it has to be said that the menus are at least very well done. The picture quality is certainly very sharp, but there are definitely flaws due to sparkle and dirt. Sadly, "You'll catch your death" has been transferred incorrectly, and the picture strobes and jumps throughout. Clearly no-one at A&E was paying much attention to the remastering process.

Clemens believes this batch of episodes to be the best of the entire run of The Avengers. He has stated that everything came together right in terms of production and scripts. I can't say I agree entirely. They are certainly as enjoyable as anything else, but the total fantasy nature of the stories and the weakness of Tara and Mother characters combine to take the edge away when compared to the earlier Peel episodes. Regardless, it's all camp and wacky fun and I still highly recommend this collection to any fan of the series as there is plenty here to enjoy.

The Avengers Season 6 - the final season of the ever popular British TV cult classic. In this, the second set of the Tara King era, we have six rare outings. Featuring fan favorite "All Done With Mirrors". So join join the always suave and sophisticated John Steed, and his able bodied female counterpart Tara King, as they battle ville villians, confounding criminals, and dangerous doubles.

We have two class acts in volume one. The solo Tara King outing "All Done With Mirrors", and the outrageous and stylish "Maltese Falcon" spoof "Legacy of Death". In "All Done With Mirrors", Steed is put under house arrest by Mother, and Tara is sent to investigate the leakage of secrets from a top-security facility. One of my favorite Tara King episodes, "All Done With Mirrors" is sharp and clever, with great direction and performances, and Tara at her series best. She proves quite resourceful, level-headed, and good in a fight (looking wonderful in her denim wardrobe, I might add). In "Legacy of Death", Steed is given the Falcon Dagger, which is the key to unlock a secret buried treasure, which is also the central interest of a bunch of crazed criminals. It's actually quite fun in spots, and then exessively over-the-top in others. But just a bevy of weirdos help it to succeed.

Volume two also has two keepers. The heavy romantic qualities of "Noon Doomsday", and the gag-filled luncy of "Look (stop me if you've heard this one) But There Were These Two Fellers...". Both are quite good, "Look..." being somewhat of a polarizer as not everybody loves it as I do. In "Noon Doomsday" an injured Steed, again, becomes the the target of an old foe who put him away. Not the best episodes, but still enjoyable. Features some good romantic interplay between Steed and Tara, if you like that sort of thing. Could have done without the western music cues though. "Look..." is a much better episode, as retired vaudiville artists seek revenge on the compapny who are planning to bulldoze their old theaters, in order to build and underground miltary shelter. The number of gags in this episode is immense. Beautifully directed by James Hill, "Look..." is absolutley hilarious! And I stand (in good company) firmly on the positive side of this when I say that this is a great episode.

In volume three, we have the rather dull "Have Guns - Will Haggle", which is recycled from an earlier unused Tara episode, and the slow but solid "They Keep Killing Steed". In "Have Guns - Will Haggle", a bunch of top-of-the-line rifles are stolen and tested on living targets, only to be auctioned off to foriegn bidders. A real yawn, as nothing really exciting happens, in this below average episode. I'd advise you to fast-forward to the much better episode "They Keep Killing Steed", in which a madman attempts to create a duplicate of Steed in order to infiltrate and sabotage a peace conferance. It's slow, but it' still good. Worth it for the fights alone, which are great.

In a nutshell - a good buy. Most of the episodes are good, but worth the price alone for "All Done With Mirrors". And, as I said for set one, if you don't like Tara, don't bother. Still, it's great fun for any Avengers fan!

I JUST GOT THIS A FEW DAYS AGO AND I THINK IT IS FAB
THE STORIES ARE AS FOLLOWS.

ALL DONE WITH MIRRORS- TARA MUST CLEAR STEEDS NAME BUT CAN SHE DO IT.

LEGACY OF DEATH- A JAPANEESE SWORD CAUSES CHAOS FOR STEED AND TARA.

LOOK (STOP ME IF YOU HEARD THIS ONE BUT THERE WERE THESE TWO FELLAS)-STEED AND TARA CLOWN AROUND WITH SOME HOMICIDAL CLOWNS.

HAVE GUNS WILL HAGGLE-WHERE TARA'S LIFE IS FOR SALE...TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER.

THEY KEEP KILLING STEED..AN ARMY OF STEED LOOKALIKES CAUSES CHAOS AT A PEACE CONFERANCE..WILL TARA SHOOT THE RIGHT ONES.

ALL IN ALL A MIXED BAG I FOUND EPISODE 6 A BIT BORING BUT IT IS ALL VERY WATCHABLE.I WOULD RECOMMEND YOU BUY IT NOW.

The final season of the original Avengers finally comes to DVD & VHS in region one. "The Forget me knot," the debut episode of Ms. Tara King played by Linda Thorson, was released back in 1998, but only now is the entire series seeing the light of day - and it's been well worth the wait.

There are many of course who do not rate these last adventures featuring the debonair John Steed as Britain's top government agent as highly as what had gone before, and it's easy to see why. Steed's pairing originally with Mrs Gale (Honor Blackman) and later Mrs Peel (Diana Rigg) had been an excellent match for his skills. With Mrs Peel leaving the show, the producers, Brian Clemens and Albert Fennell followed suit and John Bryce was brought back to the programme, following his stint producing the early Mrs Gale episodes.

The first thing Bryce did was to cast his girlfriend, twenty one year old Canadian Linda Thorson as Steed's new assistant, Miss Tara King. In order to complete the delivery of episodes to the US market, production was fairly rushed, and what came out of it was deemed substandard. Bryce was sacked and Fennell and Clemens brought back to rescue the production. Clemens was particularly unhappy about Linda Thorson's role, but it was too late in the day to do anything about it. They set about filming the initial block of 8 episodes (extended to 9), rehashing two of the abandoned Bryce episodes, and bringing back Mrs Peel for the one-off story "The forget me knot" to introduce the new character of Tara (although this "debut" was actually filmed third). Once these episodes were ready, they set about producing the final batch of 24.

There is a very significant shift in the character of Tara King between these two production blocks as Thorson began to gain confidence in the part. Also added as a regular into the later stories is Steed & Tara's boss, "Mother," played by Patrick Newell. Thorson's inexperience and the naivety of the character are often cited as the reason the show was cancelled after these episodes were transmitted. Personally, I think the inclusion of the very annoying "Mother" to be a far more valid reason. But it's all a matter of taste.

The stories are included on the discs in the order they were first transmitted in the UK. I would strongly recommend viewing them in PRODUCTION ORDER (easy to track on any Avengers website). There are several reasons for this. It's easier to warm to Miss King as you follow her character development. It also makes more sense to understand her constant hair changes and costume. She started as a blonde, moved to a be-wigged brunette, and only in the latter 24 episodes did we see Thorson's own hair. We can also see how the actress started in "slimmed down mode" (on the orders of the TV station) but regained her lost weight as the series moved along. The character also started out as a complete "spy" trainee, but by the second production block, had become one of the most experienced agents in Mother's department. I also enjoyed seeing the rehashed sets from episode to episode too. All these nuances are lost by following the stories strictly in disc order, and indeed the characterisation of the leads is actually confusing if you simply watch the shows in disc order.

As for the discs themselves, sadly A&E have once again neglected to include any extras at all. All there is are a few still photos, although it has to be said that the menus are at least very well done. The picture quality is certainly very sharp, but there are definitely flaws due to sparkle and dirt. Sadly, "You'll catch your death" has been transferred incorrectly, and the picture strobes and jumps throughout. Clearly no-one at A&E was paying much attention to the remastering process.

Clemens believes this batch of episodes to be the best of the entire run of The Avengers. He has stated that everything came together right in terms of production and scripts. I can't say I agree entirely. They are certainly as enjoyable as anything else, but the total fantasy nature of the stories and the weakness of Tara and Mother characters combine to take the edge away when compared to the earlier Peel episodes. Regardless, it's all camp and wacky fun and I still highly recommend this collection to any fan of the series as there is plenty here to enjoy.

For those staunch Emma Peel fans, you can rejoice, for the infamous episode "Killer" is in your hands, featuring the undeniably Emma Peel-ish Lady Diana Forbes. But for those other unbiased viewers, you'll be happy to know that there's only one sour apple in the bunch. So settle down and take these six doses of Tara, and judge for yourself; adorably wacky or embarassingly inept?

First, we have the indelibly charming "The Interrogators", and then the humorous "The Rotters", and of course the detestable "Invasion of the Earthmen". "The Interrogators" is perhaps the definitive Tara King episode, in which agents run trough a special interrogation course, and then find all their contacts have been murdered. So many plusses for this one! First of all, we have the great Charles Crichton directing (his last episode, sadly), a terrific script, and an exorbant amount of batty boffins, with lots of cute touches such as Izzy Pound and his Incredible Marching Sound, which, for me, takes the cake. This is one of my favorite Tara episodes, featuring the ever-menacing Christopher Lee as villianous Colonel Mannering. A truly brilliant episode in every respect! Next we have "The Rotters", in which experts on forestry are being murdered for knowing too much about dry-rot. I can't find much to say, but it smacks with classic Avengers touches, such as a delightful pair of villianous, a good dose of wit, and plenty of eccentrics. Last there's "Invasion of the Earthmen", in which Tara and Steed invetigate at a Space Academy, training astronauts with aspirations of conquering space. This one's a dud thanks to its shakey production history. It was half finished with producer John Bryce at the helm, before he was sacked, then additional scenes were filmed and the result presents a fascinating premise, but it's just so very dull. I reccomend you pass on this one, unless you feel you can really stomach it.

On the second disk, there's the fan favorite "Killer", the haunting "The Morning After", and the straightforward but well-executed "The Curious Case of the Countless Clues". "Killer" seems to work much better for the Tara-haters, as Tara is off on holiday and she's replaced with leggy Lady Forbes, in which agents are all turning up dead, gift-wrapped, clean as a whistle, and dumped in a graveyard. The Forbes character seemed quite wooden to me, while the episode was still good, I would have much preferred Tara. Good all-round production, though. "The Morning After" also excludes Tara, as she spends the episode asleep, and Steed, handcuffed to a criminal, searches a deserted town. This episode is extremely haunting and memorable for it's somber and sweeping atmosphere. Much like "The Town of No Return", it's quite eerie. Last we have "The Curious Case of the Countless Clues", in which aristocrats are being implicated as murderers thanks too some extremely damning evidence, courtesy of a very clever killer with a weakness for art. This episode is quite good. While rather bland, there really isn't much at fault, and features an extremely harrowing climax well worth the price of admission.

This set is definitely worth your money, and all the episodes, except one, are good. It's worth the price for "The Interrogators" alone. So don't hesitate, Tara won't bite.

I JUST GOT THIS DVD AND IT IS GREAT.
THE STORIES ARE AS FOLLOWS.

THE INTERROGATORS-STEED AND TARA VS AN EVIL MASTERMIND KILLING AGENTS INFORMERS WILL TARA SPILL THE BEANS..

THE ROTTERS- STEED AND TARA INVESTIGATE A VERY BAD CASE OF DRY ROT...

INVASION OF THE EARTHMEN- STEED AND TARA ARE HUNTED THROUGH A BIZZARE SCHOOL FULL OF PITS,KILLERS AND DEADLY TUNNELLS.

KILLER-TARA TAKES A HOLIDAY AND STEED GETS A NEW ASSISTANT WHO CAN MORE THAN TAKE CARE OF HERSELF.

THE MORNING AFTER- STEED AND A MAN HE IS TRYING TO PUT INTO CUSTODY MUST TEAM UP TO SAVE A DESERTED TOWN...AND TARA IS PUT TOO SLEEP!!

THE CURIOUS CASE OF THE COUNTLESS CLUES- STEEDS FREINDS ARE BEING FRAMED FOR MURDER SOON IT IS STEEDS TURN ..THE VICTIM A INCAPACITATED TARA..

I LIKED THESE ONES ALL ARE VERY INTERESTING BUY THIS NOW.

For all the fans of The Avengers familiar with the Emma Peel/Tara King era of the show, these early episodes featuring Cathy Gale and Venus Smith may come as something of a disappointment. In fact, fans of the later shows may find it hard to believe that they are even part of the same TV series!

After the initial run of 26 episodes featuring Police Surgeon David Keel and his cohort John Steed had aired in the UK in 1961/62, the producers of the program opted to bring Steed to the forefront of the action and give him a number of different "assistants." Thus, for season two, 26 further episodes were made and broadcast in 1962/63 featuring Steed abetted by Martin King, Venus Smith or Cathy Gale. Mrs. Gale turned out to be the most popular and successful foil for the suave agent, and the other characters did not return after season two. Unlike the later Peel/King stories which were all made on film, these studio based TV shows are much more reliant on dialogue and plot than visual elements, and can be somewhat heavy going as a result.

A&E is releasing these stories in a somewhat confusing order, and has started with season three. The first two sets released, Avengers 64 1 & 2, feature the LAST six episodes of season three. Next comes Avengers 63 sets 1 & 2 which comprises of the first half of the season. Next up in the release order is 63 sets 3 & 4 which precede 1 & 2 in running order and in fact feature the last seven stories from season two, plus the first from season three. Confused? Ultimately, it doesn't really matter, since thankfully there's no real reason to watch the stories in chronological order anyway.

What is interesting is the development of the production standards. 63 sets 3 & 4, featuring the latter stories from season two, are far more rudimentary in terms of production quality. The sets are extremely small and sparse; The direction very slap-hazard; Camera work shoddy; Sound is extremely poor; and the acting is negligible. With no budget for editing or reshooting, all the actor's fluffs and goofs stayed in. Steed's character is far less suave and sophisticated then he became later during his familiar role alongside Mrs. Peel, and the relationship with Mrs. Gale in particular is at first downright hostile with very little warmth between the two. He seems to get along much better with Miss Venus Smith, a night club singer who he engages at various gigs to act as his eyes and ears. Venus is a very odd character, and played strangely, but enthusiastically by Julie Stevens. She looks about 12, sings like she's forty, and dresses like anything in between. She also seems extremely naïve and it's hard to imagine why Steed engages her to help him at all. The far more intelligent and elegant Mrs. Gale does eventually warm up to Steed, and in the season three stories where she is the exclusive companion to him, their relationship develops nicely and they become much warmer and closer to each other.

The production values on season three are also much better than the earlier episodes. The sets became larger and more elaborate. The direction, lighting and sound improved greatly and the acting was much less wooden. Some editing was clearly allowed on these later stories, whereas the earlier ones clearly were broadcast as if they were live. There's a terrific blunder in "Six hands across a table," where Cathy is called "Ros" in one scene, and both actors realize the mistake, but keep going.

The quality of the DVD's is somewhat disappointing, even accounting for the age of the material and the production values mentioned above. It may not be the case, but it certainly appears that A&E have made no attempt whatsoever to re-master the original tapes, and the flaws, jumps, scratches and sound blips are too numerous to mention. Virtually every episode on 63 sets 3 & 4 are hampered by picture and sound flaws and defects. Things do improve for 63 1 & 2 and 64 1 & 2, but the quality is still disappointing. Mind you, it appears they have done nothing to clean up the Tara King episodes either!

As a big fan of the series, I wouldn't even consider not having these episodes in my collection, but if you're looking for the wacky camp humor and the tele-fantasy of the Peel/King eras, these stories may not be for you.

Of the 160 "Avengers" episodes telecast since its inception (recorded on 1/61) to the last of the Tara King entries (5/69), numbers 41-128 are now available from A&E on tape and DVD. This means we have almost all of the Cathy Gale's and all of the Diana Rigg's, which is saying a lot! The latest entry in this series is that give us those telecasts starting with "Intercrime" (1/63) and ending with "Brief for Murder"(5/63).

In reviewing the other sets, I stated that we must judge these older offerings on their own merits without comparing them unfairly with what was to come when Rigg took over. Here we must even forget the more fanciful Honor Blackman episodes that began after the ones included in these sets; for indeed many of these are pretty cut and dry detective plots without much imaginative development or even witty dialogue. (An exception is a female character's claiming that in her act she does "interesting things with stuffed snakes"!)

The best one of all is the last, which is really the opening of the third Avengers season. Here we have Steed apparently involved in treason and then in a murder, the latter being that of Cathy Gale. Since we simply KNOW that the whole thing has to be a put up, the suspense is minimal. However the acting is the smoothest of all the episodes in these sets, special thanks given to John Laurie and Harold Scott, who play two lawyer brothers determined to make legal history in a way that followers of the O.J. murder trial will find very up to date.

Some of the telecasts find Julie Stevens as Venus Smith in place of Honor Blackman; and I for one found myself fast forwarding through the two obligatory songs she was given in each of her appearances. As always, the chemistry between Steed and Gale is never that between Steed and Peel. Gale seems to display more annoyance than admiration for him; and frankly I do find his character a little too cocky, enough to make me agree with her.

It is always fun to spot actors who will appear in future episodes or as stars in their own right in the years after these shows were recorded. We have a very young Paul Eddington ("The Good Neighbors," "Yes, Minister"), Philip Latham (the Rigg episode "Room Without a View" and the series "The Pallisers")--to name only two.

Still, there is enough enjoyment in these old telecasts, which (by the way) seem to have a better picture and sound quality than early issues of later shows; but still with occasional blurring and jumping, much of which I suspect is in the original tapes, and now and then fuzzy sound, due mostly to the accents.

Not a very gentleman-like Steed you say? Before the good old days you say? If you fondly remember that great British import that we watched on TV way back in the 60s then you no doubt know about the content of what you are getting. Yet, you may be surprised by this one. John seems a bit rough and tumbled around the edges. And his partner is quite a looker. In this case it is not John and Emma, but instead John and Kathy Gale (Honor Blackman). Still you may likely be concerned about the quality of the product. Being on DVD, the aesthetics about the actual episodes are not in question here. All these episodes were shot directly to videotape and they have great historic value to lovers of the show. 'Warlock' is my favorite episode. Very creepy that one is.

The first episode on this dvd was stunning . Goku is fighting with freiza who is now 50% power . Frieza holds Goku under water until he faints . Goku then has a dream of all his friends on earth in pain . You see the faces of all the characters in the series flash before your eyes . Then you hear Frieza's demonic laugh and BOOOOM!! the earth explodes . Goku figures out this is what will happen if he is defeated by Freiza . His eyes open up and then you see a shot of frieza who is holding Goku under water . The water starts boiling and Frieza gets a concerned look on his face . Goku blast frieza out of the water and fly's up with new found strength . HAAAAAAAAAAAAA! Goku screams . "50% power he says wether it's a bluff or not I absolutly can not lose!" KAIO-KEN!!Goku blast of and gives Frieza a well deserved punch in the face flys around and puts his hands together ......Ka me ha me HAAAAAAAA!!Boom, a gint blast flys out and frieza atempts to block . A stugle pursues and Freiza deflects the energy . Frieza looks at his badly burnt hand and then at goku....."That one hurt ,.....IT HURT!!Frieza lunges towrds Goku and the conflict continues . This was just a small part of this dvd . Dont listin to the english version because it destroyes the part I explained above . I took a star off because the animation could of been better in several places but this is still a great buy .

Eh, these three episodes are boring. Just Gokuu powering up for the Genki Dama and some Kaiouken stuff. Get the episodes with the five minutes/Super Saiya-jin stuff instead, unless you really want all the episodes.

Frieza and Goku fight and Goku starts losing. It seems there is nothing else Goku can do so he remembers a technique he learned while training with King Kai; the Spirit Bomb! He needs time to charge it and when Frieza finds out what Goku's up to, Piccolo tries to stalll so Goku can complete the Spirit Bomb. Non-stop action and great music.

The Majin Buu Saga is the last saga of DBZ. The Majin Buu Saga is unlike any other saga in DBZ. It doesn't take itself seriously like it did for the Android saga. Majin Buu is a unique villain, though. In the Majin Saga, Goku goes super saiyan 3 and Goten and Trunks fused to become Gotenks!
The Majin Buu Saga does have the most death in it.

It is my favorite DBZ Kid Boo Saga DVD released in the US yet, including most of what I like... The fighting, a good story and the return of a awsome fighter. Also it has Kid Boo.

This DVD has got some of the last few episodes of the entire series. As such they are far from disappointing. As what is left of Dai Kaio in the good buu faces off against the raw madness of Bibidis original creation, Vegeta uses his tactical expertise to both revive the earth and its inhabitants. Now it is left in the hands of humans to save themselves. Quite harrowing when most people would rather get icecream and watch movies instead. Meanwhile good buu gets pretty beaten up. Goku realizes that SS3 is a little harder when you actually have a body so of course lets build a spirit bomb. Kid Buu saga marks the final form of the last nemesis in Dragon Ball Z. It is no wonder killing him is such a collaborative event.