Would you believe that this classic 1965 spy spoof series created by Buck Henry and Mel Brooks is finally making its retail debut with a superb season one set from HBO? Don Adams stars as CONTROL agent Maxwell Smart, who is assisted by shapely Agent 99 (Barbara Feldon) in the fight against rottenness and evil. Armed with a shoe phone, a hapless canine sidekick, and the Cone of Silence, Smart is anything but, as he stumbles and bumbles his way to victory in the 30 debut season episodes compiled here. Get Smart is justly legendary for its sharp wordplay, interesting characters, slapstick humor, and clever satire (the show spawned several catchphrases, including “sorry about that, Chief,” and “missed it by that much”). The enemies faced here include a Chinese villain with a metal hand who is appropriately named “The Claw,” a band of rebel Indians with plans to shoot a giant arrow into Washington D.C., and an evil art gallery owner who uses explosive paint to kill his enemies. Get Smart netted Adams three Emmy awards, and the show itself received two more. DVD extras include audio commentaries on three episodes and intros by Feldon. An excellent series, sure to be popular again following the success of Peter Segal's 2008 remake starring Steve Carell, this is highly recommended. [Note: Get Smart: The Complete Series, compiling all five seasons, will be released on Nov. 4, priced at $199.99.] (C. Birkmeyer)
Get Smart: Season 1
HBO, 4 discs, 900 min., TV-G, DVD: $24.98 Volume 23, Issue 6
Get Smart: Season 1
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
Order From Your Favorite Distributor Today: