It's not the eye, but the voice that scares me, plus the pictures of those cards everyone and the psycho house-keeper... Scary!

Any suggestions which one I should watch next?

Maartje wrote:It's not the eye, but the voice that scares me, plus the pictures of those cards everyone and the psycho house-keeper... Scary!

Any suggestions which one I should watch next?

"The Hidden Tiger" and "Who's Who?" are 2 of my favourites, and "Return of the Cybernauts." I wrote a sort of sequel to "Who's Who," you know.

Oh yes The Joker, that one freaked me out a bit too. It's a scary episode, but a really good one! Still prefer Don't Look Behind You, but it's not a matter of like and dislike, because both episodes are terrific!

As to which one you should watch next, The Hidden Tiger and Who's Who? are definitely ones you should watch. I also really like A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Station, Escape in Time, From Venus With Love and many others

Ah, I forgot to add that I've already seen Who's Who (twice) and From Venus With Love, but I agree they're both fantastic episodes.

I think I'm up for another scary one, so I might watch Don't Look Behind You tonight, as you're so fond of it. Thanks!

Yeah I put that one on YouTube, it's basically the same episode, with a few changed details. And of course Honor instead of Diana. Or actually Diana instead of Honor

Haha, I know what you're up to, trying to convert me to the Cathy Gale fandom now as well, huh?

Well, at least you gotta admit the producers had quite a good taste:







Now, there were four girls right? Oh dear, I seem to have forgotten one - now, who could that be?

Maartje wrote:Now, there were four girls right? Oh dear, I seem to have forgotten one - now, who could that be?

Of course! I know who you mean:



Wait. You did mean Julie Stevens as Venus Smith, right?

(And you've chosen some excellent pictures of the ladies).

Hm, she doesn't look familiar... Now, I'm sure I've seen that fourth girl somewhere before... if only I could remember her name.

Timeless A-Peel wrote:(And you've chosen some excellent pictures of the ladies).

I know. (I'm smitten with that picture of Diana, she's so beautiful)

Didn't she have that unusual name? Now, what was it - Sharona?

Those pictures are gorgeous, especially the Diana one

Maartje wrote:Haha, I know what you're up to, trying to convert me to the Cathy Gale fandom now as well, huh?

Oh and something completely different.
Here's a beautiful Emma Peel video that everyone must see! It's 10 minutes long, and it's so beautifully edited, and the music is fantastic!

Aw, that is lovely - they really did use some fantastic pictures of Diana. Great choice for music too, I agree!

Anyway - I've just seen the Hidden Tiger, as Philly recommended. I love cats (not in a freaky way haha) but they really are the best pets in the world, so I definitely enjoyed this episode. Bonus points for the heartshaped doodle on Emma's wall (with the initials J.S.) and the name of Emma's missing cat, ''Little John''. Loved it!

Yeah , I saw that clip last week - it's great and well edited .
It makes effective use of some Bond music .
Watching it again , I noticed the scene from 'Man Eater of Surrey Green' were Mrs Peel is about to attack Steed .
The look in her eyes before she attacks is quite diabolical !
She's FANTASTIC !!

I love this clip !
Watch it until the end for a surprise and cool ending ...

That is one of the nicest pictures of Diana around. That whole photo shoot was just lovely, actually.

And I love the Don't Get Me Wrong video. I've seen it loads of times over the years, and it never gets old. Every time I hear the song, I think Avengers. And the Black and White lightning is lovely, too.

The Hidden Tiger is one of the best. I love Emma's pink dress and coat, and there are some great lines about the "cuddly bronze tabby" and little John's aristocratic nose. And, of course, we get the first use of the old "Pussy Galore" joke, this time delivered by Emma (next seen in Cat Amongst Pigeons delivered by Steed and Gambit). What would they have done if Honor hadn't done Goldfinger, I just don't know. They got the "pussy-footing" quip in Lobster Quadrille, and the bit about Fort Knox in Too Many Christmas Trees. Lots of mileage out of that one.

And did you recognise Gabrielle Drake, Gambit's Penny Redfern, as the catlike Agora?

Yeah I love that Pretenders video. I already loved the song and since seeing the video I love it even more
The Hidden Tiger is a great episode, I love Emma's pink dress too, and it has so many funny references. One of my favourite colour Emma's

Khell wrote:Didn't she have that unusual name? Now, what was it - Sharona?

I don't know.. Something with 'na' in the end, that's for sure.

Oh yes, the dress, already enough reason for me to love it! It doesn't go too very well with her orange coat though, but who cares, she looks great in it! Since I watched the New Avengers before I knew anything about Steed and Emma at all, I'm actually suprised how flirtatious their relationship is. It's pretty much like G/P in TNA, however, Purdey has her own ways of teasing Gambit, while Emma's much more direct. In many ways, Emma and Gambit would have made a nice couple as well... (that's why I like Brazil so much, all four of them!)

And yes, the actress who played Agora did seem familiar to me: I just couldn't place her, but now I know!

Maartje wrote:

Khell wrote:Didn't she have that unusual name? Now, what was it - Sharona?

I don't know.. Something with 'na' in the end, that's for sure.

Oh yes, the dress, already enough reason for me to love it! It doesn't go too very well with her orange coat though, but who cares, she looks great in it! Since I watched the New Avengers before I knew anything about Steed and Emma at all, I'm actually suprised how flirtatious their relationship is. It's pretty much like G/P in TNA, however, Purdey has her own ways of teasing Gambit, while Emma's much more direct. In many ways, Emma and Gambit would have made a nice couple as well... (that's why I like Brazil so much, all four of them!)

And yes, the actress who played Agora did seem familiar to me: I just couldn't place her, but now I know!

It's an awesome dress. But then I love almost all of Emma's clothes, and I'd love to have them in my own wardrobe. She did better than Purdey, that's for sure.

Steed and Emma are very flirtatious. That's why they're so well-loved. The difference I think between them and Gambit and Purdey is that Steed and Emma are a little less acerbic. I've actually always picture Purdey and Gambit as Steed and Cathy redux--a young dashing agent and his blonde ice-queen colleague with whom he's always trying to get lucky. The difference is they have a dash of Steed/Emma in that they're more playful and actually like each other--they're friends, not just flirts. And Gambit's much nicer than Gale era Steed. He has morals for one. And Purdey, unlike Cathy, has more of a sense of humour.

I think Gambit and Emma would get along great, which is exactly why I wrote them that way in "Brazil." I think they would have been able to share a joke pretty well, and I think Emma would find him and his past interesting, while Gambit would be a little in awe. It was fun to play with them. If I could have had any onscreen pairing, it would have been them.

It's hard to recognise Gabrielle under all the make-up, but it's her all right, just ten years younger.

Hm, I see what you mean. What I personally love about the show is that all the four girls have definitely similarities (they're all the perfect Avenger girl) but they're pretty different from each other at the same time. They're all four beautiful, smart and athletic, Purdey's no Emma for instance.

Steed's role did change a lot over the years though, where the series used to be focused on him, Gambit almost entirely took over in the TNA episodes. I do love Gambit, but it's nice to see some of the Steed-focused episodes (Dead Men Are Dangerous, Hostage) again as well, as he, more or less, became the show.

Anyway, the latest episode I have seen is Death's Door, because Avengers forever listed it as a very good episode, and I can clearly see why. Something which - I think - is typical for the show, is the way episodes are 'constructed'. First the opening titles, a scene in either Steed's or Emma's apartment, then you watch some kind of crime happen, Steed and Emma go after it, it happens again, they find the clue and sort it all out. Case closed. The New Avengers, in that respect, is pretty different. But the plots are always great: you can't help but think along with Steed and Emma as well, and the outcome is nearly always rather suprising.

Maartje wrote:Hm, I see what you mean. What I personally love about the show is that all the four girls have definitely similarities (they're all the perfect Avenger girl) but they're pretty different from each other at the same time. They're all four beautiful, smart and athletic, Purdey's no Emma for instance.

Steed's role did change a lot over the years though, where the series used to be focused on him, Gambit almost entirely took over in the TNA episodes. I do love Gambit, but it's nice to see some of the Steed-focused episodes (Dead Men Are Dangerous, Hostage) again as well, as he, more or less, became the show.

Anyway, the latest episode I have seen is Death's Door, because Avengers forever listed it as a very good episode, and I can clearly see why. Something which - I think - is typical for the show, is the way episodes are 'constructed'. First the opening titles, a scene in either Steed's or Emma's apartment, then you watch some kind of crime happen, Steed and Emma go after it, it happens again, they find the clue and sort it all out. Case closed. The New Avengers, in that respect, is pretty different. But the plots are always great: you can't help but think along with Steed and Emma as well, and the outcome is nearly always rather suprising.

Steed changed with his partners. I actually find him a little annoying in the Gales because he's very smug and self-satisfied, whereas Emma era Steed is the "classic" gentlemanly version of Steed most people associate with the character. Tara's Steed is more protective, and TNA Steed is the slightly melancholy mentor. I'd actually counter that Gambit "took over" from Steed--Steed gets pretty even screentime in season one, before completely taking over season 2 and shuffling Gambit off to the side with hardly any scenes. I don't mind Steed-focused episodes, but we get too many of them, and no Gambit to balance them out. I really don't understand Patrick's complaint that he was "put out to pasture." Steed always seemed to be really well-used to me. He couldn't do the stunts, which was the main reason Gambit was there--to be the "legs"--but I think they balanced the three pretty well in season one. Steed is most certainly The Avengers, but by TNA, I think the shift was toward Gambit, and I think they could have made more use of that.

A lot of people complain that the colour Emmas are too "formulaic" (season 4 isn't like that at all). I honestly don't mind it. Season five was my intro to the show, and I sort of think of that season as a "real" cartoon, so formula works. It's a bright, bouncy, light-hearted season, maybe with less substance, but I think pure fun is just as important. The main difference between it and TNA (other than TNA is darker) is that, while, like you say, we figure out the mystery with Steed and Emma, in TNA we're told the plot at the beginning, and have to watch Steed, Gambit, and Purdey piece it together, which is also a complaint a lot of people have about the show. There's not the same suspense, because we know exactly what's going on and why. This may be a weakness, but I think TNA's strength was always less the plots, and more the characters, because they were "thicker cardboard."

Man, you can really get me talking, can't you? (And I love Death's Door, too. Seen The Winged Avenger yet? That was my very first Avengers ep ever, the one that got me into the show).

Very true that Steed changes with his partners. Gale era Steed is so different, and though I can understand why many people don't really like him in the beginning, I actually do. I find it quite hilarious to see Steed acting like he's the most amazing man that's ever lived, and then being talked down by Cathy like he's some naughty school boy
Because she really doesn't fall for his charms and tricks, and he's used to women falling in love with him instantly.

I can understand why most people prefer Peel era Steed, because he's the ever charming prototype English gentleman, and the flirty relationship between Steed and Emma is what most people prefer to watch.
I haven't seen enough of the King era yet to really be able to judge it, but you can tell that Steed is a lot more protective, since his new partner is a lot younger and quite inexperienced.

As for TNA, I don't really understand either why Patrick said he was "put out to pasture." I think the on-screen time is quite equally divided between the 3. I even think that sometimes there's not even enough Gambit compared to Steed and Purdey. For instance The Eagle's Nest, I was watching it last week and I noticed that Gambit's hardly in that episode, especially once they get to St. Dorka, it's mainly Steed and Purdey focused.

Philippa wrote:Very true that Steed changes with his partners. Gale era Steed is so different, and though I can understand why many people don't really like him in the beginning, I actually do. I find it quite hilarious to see Steed acting like he's the most amazing man that's ever lived, and then being talked down by Cathy like he's some naughty school boy
Because she really doesn't fall for his charms and tricks, and he's used to women falling in love with him instantly.

I can understand why most people prefer Peel era Steed, because he's the ever charming prototype English gentleman, and the flirty relationship between Steed and Emma is what most people prefer to watch.
I haven't seen enough of the King era yet to really be able to judge it, but you can tell that Steed is a lot more protective, since his new partner is a lot younger and quite inexperienced.

As for TNA, I don't really understand either why Patrick said he was "put out to pasture." I think the on-screen time is quite equally divided between the 3. I even think that sometimes there's not even enough Gambit compared to Steed and Purdey. For instance The Eagle's Nest, I was watching it last week and I noticed that Gambit's hardly in that episode, especially once they get to St. Dorka, it's mainly Steed and Purdey focused.

Definitely, if anyone was going to be shafted for screentime, it was always Gambit. Others have pointed out that Gambit's hardly in The Eagle's Nest, which is kind of shocking given it's the pilot. He was definitely the most under-utilised character of the show.

I'm afraid the first time I watched the Gales, I wanted to deck Steed. But when I rewatched some, I found him less annoying, and I really enjoy the hardboiled edge to his character--you know, his burning the ropes off his wrists, getting put through the Wringer (literally) and showing a brutal, almost Gene Hunt, edge kicking prisoners in the ribs when they don't answer his questions. It's a whole 'nother side to Steed, the brutal, ruthless bastard (as I had Gambit calling him in "Lost Boys") Steed that just lurks under the surface. But I find Steed and Cathy's arguing gets a bit tiring after awhile. I just start to wonder why they even bother working together when they clearly can't get along for thirty seconds. Steed and Emma are much more fun to watch. But I really have to watch the Gales again. I've only seen most of them once, and I've seen Emma's so many times that they need the several year break I've given them. Tara? The less she's with Steed, the better she gets as a character. But her plots are actually really good.

I agree, sometimes you really wonder why Steed and Cathy even bother to work together. My guess is that Cathy likes the adventure and the danger, and she likes to do good and help people, and if that means working with Steed then so be it. But I'm sure that a part of her secretly likes Steed, though she'd never admit it. But it's true that Steed and Emma are much more fun to watch. To be honest I prefer the episodes where Cathy is working on her own for most of the time, and with Emma I usually prefer the ones in which her and Steed work closely together.

I love the interaction between Emma and Steed, there's so much chemistry between the two of them that it's hard to imagine that they're both fictional characters, although I do believe that it was based on genuine friendship.

You two are right about Gambit though - so many missed opportunities there, even in the actual episodes. They really should have done a Gambit-focused episode, at least, like they did with both Purdey and Steed, but even in episodes like, Hostage and Angels of Death, in which Gambit basically gets no credit at the end of the day.

I haven't seen much of the Cathy Gale and Tara King eras, so I'm simply not able to judge about those, but I am rather affraid that neither of the two works out like Steed/Emma or Purdey/Gambit did.

Maartje wrote:I love the interaction between Emma and Steed, there's so much chemistry between the two of them that it's hard to imagine that they're both fictional characters, although I do believe that it was based on genuine friendship.

You two are right about Gambit though - so many missed opportunities there, even in the actual episodes. They really should have done a Gambit-focused episode, at least, like they did with both Purdey and Steed, but even in episodes like, Hostage and Angels of Death, in which Gambit basically gets no credit at the end of the day.

I haven't seen much of the Cathy Gale and Tara King eras, so I'm simply not able to judge about those, but I am rather affraid that neither of the two works out like Steed/Emma or Purdey/Gambit did.

We needed a Gambit episode bad. It was a glaring omission in the production of the series, probably brought on by the shift in focus to Steed. Gambit had a great background that you could come up with tons of stories for. Oh, to have been alive in 1977...

I agree with Philippa, though--I think Cathy works with Steed for humanitarian reasons. She wants to help people, and Steed gets her wrapped up in such a way that she can't just walk away and leave people to their fates. But I get the feeling she's always aware that when the benefits outweigh the rewards, she'll have to walk away, and she does. Does Cathy like Steed? Maybe a little--he can be a charming rogue, and lots of fun on an evening out when he's not plotting something. But the annoying bit is, more often than not, he is planning something. If she knew that she could be around Steed without being manipulated, she'd probably like him more. But as it is, their relationship is always going to be limited. After all, she's known him since the '50s, and clearly it took quite a few years for her to hook up with him again. I just never see them as friendly as Steed and Emma or Purdey and Gambit.

I think this is now officially our thread with the longest posts