Mission: Impossible

I really enjoyed watching the show Mission Impossible. I was just a young boy when the show aired and sometimes it was hard for me to follow. I remember having to ask my dad "why did they do that or what was that for?" My dad would say just watch the show and it would all come out in the end. Yes the spy, secret agent genre was all the rage in the mid to late sixties. Yes it was hard to follow sometimes but I thought is was a great show. I loved it.moreless

You cannot deny the charm in Mission: Impossible. And the charm that stems from this one-of-a-kind TV series simply is because of a composition of existentialist plot, and of course its near-impossible missions.

Why I say "existentialist in plot" is because of the lack of any proper characterization in its plot. This made M:I quite effective in my view, because without and excessive characterization that would have deviated the fun from the episodes, it makes us more connected with the characters and ongoing plot (not to mention all those suspenseful moments when we linger as to HOW the operation in any episode will be executed). But without an impressive array of cast members, M:I would have lost all its potency. It sears even today, and with Lalo Schifrin's memorable musical score, it has earned a rightful place in TV history today, which not even Tom Cruise can exceed!

In short, Mission: Impossible is the most enjoyable TV series I've had the priviledge of seeing, and I doubtless second anyone who votes this as the "greatest series in television history", were it not for The X-Files!moreless

when this show is good--it is really good.
unfortunately, a bunch of episodes are big clunkers--not believable, slow moving, dry acting, etc.
look through the ratings and for the most part--watch just the episodes with 8 or more as a score. ones below that are likely (though not always) to put you to sleep or make you go--noone would buy that.

Grandpa Walton is a pre-Austin Powers version of Doctor Evil, who runs a town filledwith townsfolk who have all drunk the KoolAid, who learn to kill and are dispatched out to dispose of evil Soviets. Its almost distracting not to have Jim receive an assignment from the Secretary, sit in his super cool 60s pad andlook throughthe glossy stills of the regular cast, and discard the black and whites of the producers of the show and their families. My favorite, albeit super hokey part, is Rollin's ingenious creation of the mask from a melted plastic examination table cover - then his perfect imitation of Doc Walton. So perfect, in fact, the the doofus townspeople are completely fooled, andthe IMF is able to get away in their usual stylish fashion. Not my favorite episode, but has a flair all its own.moreless

More important than the interesting premise, is the Fantastic Performance by Martin Landau! If he did not win an award for this episode, he definitely should have! Performed during a time when T.V. acting was definitely stiff and predictable, Mr. Landau gave everything he had as a condemned killer on death row. The viewer can FEEL the character's fear. The tears were REAL. Every bit of body language helped give even more credence to this very real performance. Thank you, Mr. Landau!

The plot holds one's interest. Very cleverly thought out. This is why I watch each and every episode in the order they were released - they just keep getting better and better.moreless