Let me introduce...Simon Templar by Gord Lacey (All reviews)
5/19/2002
Simon Templar made his first appearance in a book, not on TV as I had originally thought. In 1928 Leslie Charteris released his novel, "The Saint Meets The Tiger". This character would appear in over 100 novels and stories, 9 movies from RKO, radio dramatizations on the BBC, a movie staring Val Kilmer and, of course, a TV series lasting 118 episodes with Roger Moore as the title character.
I've always liked Roger Moore as James Bond and I've known that Sean Connery was the second choice (behind Moore) to start the series of movies, but it was rather interesting to find out that it was Moore who was the second choice to play The Saint. If Patrick McGoohan hadn't turned down the role it would have changed the feel of this series as well as the entire Bond franchise.
This set features the following episodes:
The Angel's Eye
Amsterdam - entrusted with a legendary diamond, Simon is confronted with a baffling mystery.
The Man Who Liked Lions
Rome - determined to vole the mysterious murder of an American journalist, Simon uncovers a secret society of assassins in a Roman orgy.
A Better Mousetrap
Cannes - the French police are convinced Simon is their man when a string of jewlery thefts follow the Saint along the Riviera. To prove his innocence, Simon must build a better mousetrap.
Little Girl Lost
Ireland - When a beautiful young woman begs for his help, Simon finds himself entangled in a deviously plotted web of lies.
Paper Chase
Leipzig, East Germany - deep in the communist bloc, far behind the Iron Curtain; Simon is sent to recover a stolen file. Hundreds of lives are at stake with the army and the police closing in Simon must end the paper chase.
Locate and Destroy
Lima, Peru - When Simon inadvertently identifies a stolen artwork, he uncovers a gang of Nazi war criminals who will go to any lengths to keep their secret intact.
Video
As with their other "Cult TV" releases, A&E has done a nice job with the video. The colors in the video appear nice and bright and rich with color. The print contains dust and some minor flaws and the odd glitch here and there, but overall it's a nice transfer. The episodes of "The Saint" take place around the world and stock footage is shown for these locations. Unfortunately these are lower quality prints and contain quite a bit of dust and grain. The text during the opening of "Little Girl Lost" is blown out.
Audio
A mono audio track from the 60s isn't anything to jump up and down about, but it serves it's purpose. The audio is nice and clear and without any major problems. While a Dolby Digital 5.1 mix is great for a show like "Thunderbirds", I'm quite happy with a mono track.
Trailers
There are trailers for each episode in the set which last 1 min each.
Photo Gallery
There are 9 photos on the first disc and 9 on the second featuring scenes from the 6 episodes.
History of "The Saint"
3 still frames containing the history of "The Saint".
Summary
While I prefer the James Bond character over The Saint, this show is fun to watch. My only complaint is A&E has started with the first color season and not released the show in order.
