Shout Factory’s YouTube channel has been a blessing to Saturday Night Showcase lately, and it is again tonight. Some of you out there probably remember the name Patrick McGoohan from The Prisoner, the somewhat surreal British series that had an impact on science fiction. But what about his other popular show, Secret Agent? At least that’s what the last two seasons was called in the US for some reason. Those of you who pop in from the UK (hey, Gary!) more likely know of the show under it’s proper name: Danger Man, which for the first season was the name used in the US. Why the change? Maybe CBS thought it sounded like a superhero or stunt show? I don’t know. We’re going with the UK name for the rest of the review because this is the pilot, when they still used it, even though the video is titled with the later US name.
Danger Man/Secret Agent follows NATO agent John Drake as he investigates various crimes. I didn’t even know NATO had their own criminal investigation group. I guess they thought MI6 was already done enough thanks to James Bond? Created by Ralph Smart and fleshed out initially by Ian Flemming (speaking of Bond) but replaced by Ian Stuart Black, Drake doesn’t use guns and sleep around like Bond does (also no cool gadgets) but he does have his own style. In the pilot, “View From The Villa”, Drake is trying to find stolen gold before the guys who killed the actual thief find it first. Enjoy.
