Mission: Impossible

CBS (ended 1973)
EDIT

Show Summary

  • Ended
This 7-year series chronicled the adventures of the Impossible Missions Force (IMF), a team of government spies and specialists who were offered "impossible missions" (should they decide to accept them) by the unseen "Secretary". Although the cast varied over the years, the main characters included The Team Leader (Dan Briggs the first season, then Jim Phelps the other six), The Techno-Wizard (Barney Collier), The Strongman (Willy Armitage), The Master of Disguise (first Rollin Hand, then The Amazing Paris), and The Femme Fatale (Cinnamon Carter, Dana Lambert, Casey, Mimi Davis). The series is best known for its standard (but not invariable) opening mission contact (conducted by a pre-recorded message), the theme composed by Lalo Schifrin, the leader's selection of mission agents from a dossier, the opening briefing, the intricate use of disguises and a typical "mask pulloff" scene near the end of most episodes, and the relative lack of characterization of the characters.moreless
8.4
out of 10
Avg Rating: Great
724 votes
  • Your Rating: 10
    "Perfect"
  • Your Rating: 9.5
    "Superb"
  • Your Rating: 9
    "Superb"
  • Your Rating: 8.5
    "Great"
  • Your Rating: 8
    "Great"
  • Your Rating: 7.5
    "Good"
  • Your Rating: 7
    "Good"
  • Your Rating: 6.5
    "Fair"
  • Your Rating: 6
    "Fair"
  • Your Rating: 5.5
    "Mediocre"
  • Your Rating: 5
    "Mediocre"
  • Your Rating: 4.5
    "Poor"
  • Your Rating: 4
    "Poor"
  • Your Rating: 3.5
    "Bad"
  • Your Rating: 3
    "Bad"
  • Your Rating: 2.5
    "Terrible"
  • Your Rating: 2
    "Terrible"
  • Your Rating: 1.5
    "Abysmal"
  • Your Rating: 1
    "Abysmal"
Rate Now!
  • Clever thought provoking show, great theme song too.

    8.0
    "Great"
    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
  • Profundity in action, existential in outlook

    9.5
    "Superb"
    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
  • awesome with clunkers.

    8.0
    "Great"
    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.
  • This Town is NOT a Must See

    5.0
    "Mediocre"
    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
  • Wow! Great premise!

    9.5
    "Superb"
    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
WRITE A REVIEW
  • looking for an episode
    i just watched "mission: impossible - ghost protocol" and a scene reminded me of a "mission: impossible" episode: that's the one i...
    04/14/12
    1
    Reply
  • Help with episode identification
    I just joined. I am trying to identify an episode of Mission Impossible I remember. (I was very young at the time, watching with m...
    05/31/11
    2
    Reply
  • "Good bye, Mr. Phelps..."
    Peter Graves, portrayer of IMF leader Jim Phelps from the first episode of Season Two through the 1988-90 revival series, has pass...
    03/20/10
    2
    Reply
  • Peter Lupus
    I thought that Peter Lupus doesn't have hair on his chest because of a photo of him wearing some kind of undershirt in first few s...
    01/01/10
    3
    Reply
  • Best episode of season 1 ?
    After the worstest episodes, let's talk about your favorite episodes of season 1. I think the three best episodes are "The Legacy"...
    08/26/09
    4
    Reply
More
Less

More Info About This Show

Categories

Action & Adventure

Themes

Crime