La nouvelle équipe

Its premise was exactly this: Three teenagers who get into trouble with the law and help out others out of trouble by solving crimes with the help out the Lieutenant(played by Tige Andrews) who keeps one step ahead of everything they do. Out of all the Aaron Spelling shows that he ever produced this was one of the best ever(which is second to "Starsky and Hutch" and his earlier works too including the long forgotten detective show "Burke's Law"). Three teenagers from different backgrounds were basically detectives in their own way in getting the bad guys. The concept of this show was just that: kids ratting on kids,and going undercover to break up drug busts or sometimes save a girl from great danger. Pete, Linc,and Julie were the kids of their generation and it will never be a show like it ever. The show itself had some of the grooviest fashions ever from that period along with the stylings of the Afro and its standard of unity for all. The show was a top ten hit when it ran on ABC from 1968-1973. The executive producers were Danny Thomas(of Make Room for Daddy fame),and Sheldon Leonard(who was also producing I Spy and Andy Griffith at the time)and they kept the story lines with great action and one of the best crime drama shows ever to come out of that era. The guest stars who appear on the show were making their mark during its run with stars like Richard Dreyfuss, Richard Pryor, Michael Douglas,and Karen Black. Was one of the hippest ever....catch the episodes on videocassette if you can..

I was to young to relate to Mod Squad when it was on TV but I've been watching it again and I kinda like it now. The show was sponsored by Chrysler and they drive a Dodge Challenger. My first car in the 70s was a Plymouth 'Cuda so im a Mopar guy through and through and really enjoy shows with Chrysler products. Mannix and the Brady Bunch was also sponsored by Chrysler. Mod Squad is a ride down memory lane.

I could see why Peggy Lipton became a star from this television show. She captures the role of Julie perfectly with a range of vulnerability and innocence in the role. Peggy Lipton's performance as Julie is believable in this somewhat unbelievable series. Anyway the series may be dated but there are plenty of surprise guest appearances. The other actors like Michael Cole, Clarence Williams, and Tige Andrews complete the male dominated cast. Each episode features a mystery to solve but without the gore and violence of today's crime dramas. The Mod Squad is largely more character driven than plot and action driven. Plenty of guests are familiar faces on television. The Mod Squad are three very different individuals whose lives are turned around by a police captain. He gives them a second chance in redemption and becoming unlikely police officers. I love the California scenery. The show was a hit largely because of the chemistry among the cast members and the time period for audiences. To see African Americans and Caucasians interact was still a new experience on television but not in reality. This show was caught up in the hype of the late sixties and early seventies of the counterculture. This show didn't shy away from controversial issues as well.

As I'm re-watching the series on DVD, two things stand out to me:

* It's very much of its' late 1960s time with the counter-culture and all. But it's amazing to me that three full-time undercover cops have so much time to not do, well, cop things. They seem to start their own cases all the time instead of being assigned what you'd expect undercover cops to do... long-time stake outs of drug dens and such. They're being paid for something but they're always just living a teenage life and crime just happens to show up while they're doing it.

* The fact that Julie apparently can't do anything to defend anyone except running for Linc and Pete just grates my nerves. She sees trouble, she screams, and she runs for help. There were some strong women in the 1960s -- nobody messed with Kitty on "Gunsmoke" -- but "Mod Squad" isn't there. It would be a decade before a show like "Cagney and Lacey" hit the airwaves but it was desperately needed.

I write this commentary not as someone reminiscing about a show that they watched as a kid or adolescent; that reflected the era they grew up in - as many do on here, but as someone who discovered the show a generation later. I was not born until 1972 - so just as the show was ending its successful run. I didn't see the MOD Squad until it was shown as a rerun in the UK (where i was born and raised) in the late 90's/early 2000's. From memory it was on at 1.30 in the afternoon and I watched it during a brief period of unemployment. From reading episode synopsis' on several sites, it must have been season 4 I was watching. What I remember thinking was - what a cool premise. Three kids from conflicting backgrounds, anti-establishment, setting aside their differences, working together to help others. Yes, the cover is that they are working as young cops, ultimately to solve crimes but, to me, the show had a much more philanthropic message. At a torrid time in the USA and the world as a whole, the show commented on things such as Vietnam, race, social injustice - things that were actually quite risky for a mainstream TV show to be commenting on at the time. One thing that really sticks out is an episode where a soldier has just returned from Vietnam. Pete firmly shakes his hand and welcomes him home - in a time and a USA where returning veterans were, generally, not welcomed. The villains weren't always clear cut villains - it wasn't a case of black and white - the show exposed the fact that there are always several shades of grey in between; that there are often human tragedies lurking beneath the surface. The show had a lot of angst, the central characters Pete, Linc and Julie often having to examine their consciences; being faced with making difficult decisions. However, amongst all this, they always had each other. Maybe I am looking at this through rose tinted glasses but what I have really enjoyed through rewatching the newly released to DVD season 1, is the fact that these three 'kids' really care for each other; look out for each other - are always THERE for each other. Was it really like that at the time? Well, I like to think so - I think people were more neighbourly and mindful of each other back then. Is it like that now - sadly...no. I wish I could say it was but I really can't say it is. And this is from someone who did not live through that era - I was born to it but the world had changed a great deal by the time I was old enough to really start taking notice. I really hope that the distributors have had enough success with the release of the two season 1 DVD's to warrant a release of the subsequent 4 seasons. I know its all about profitability - sadly. But I think a lot of people would really appreciate this show - not only those who remember it first time around but perhaps those who enjoyed the reruns in latter years and, who knows, there may well be a new audience waiting amongst the generation of today. I can't think of any other show at the time that gives such an accurate social commentary of the time and if I was pointing anyone in the direction of a memorable show from that era to reflect ' how it really was' that would be the one.

And boy......Was Pete Cochran ever sexy!!!!