Les 7 mercenaires

As a dyed-in-the-wool western fan for most of my life, I was a little dubious about the series, but when it finally aired in the UK I loved it!

Some of the direction in the Pilot was a little poor and haphazard, but I loved the chemistry between the seven actors, all of whom looked as though they were having a whale of a time.

The subject matter has been varied, from prostitution to slavery, serial murder to religious intolerance, a welcome change from the shoot-em-up mindless tosh we have been offered previously. Coupled with well-written, witty scripts and a fabulous cast, it has been a revelation.

Each of the seven is well-delineated, their characters complimenting each other; from the haunted leader to the smiling ladies'-man, the earnest healer to the acquistive gambler, the quiet, deadly sharpshooter to the brash greenhorn, and, of course, the great Ron Perlman as the penance-ridden ex-preacher, it has been a true delight.

Very saddening that it only lasted two seasons - the Powers-That-Be should be ashamed of themselves.

The Magnificent Seven, the original movie, is one of my favorites, and the TV series does justice to it. Although it's been somewhat cleaned up for TV, and the characters live every week, it's still a classic, serious TV western worthy of mention with other greats like Maverick, Have Gun, and Gunsmoke.

I have been hooked on this show since the pilot first aired. I was a fan of the original movie and love Westerns, so I had to check it out. I also was a fan of Michael Biehn, especially from science fiction, which didn't hurt.

What a treat! The actors are both handsome and skilled, the sets and plot lines are authentic, and there is a nice balance of drama and humor. There is plenty of room for plot development and great interplay between a solid ensemble cast. I especially appreciate the inclusion of blacks, Latinos, and realistic portrayals of Native Americans -- the West was widely populated with all types of people, and that comes through clearly here. The guest stars have also been fantastic, and some may become regular guests.

I've been taping and re-watching each episode several times -- it's that good. If you haven't watched it yet, check it out -- you won't be sorry!

Kali

It was a wonderful film and TV series with great chemistry between the cast and terrific character development. I enjoyed the original movie, but this one far surpasses it in the casting, you couldn't have found a better ensemble that worked so well together. Even the bit characters were well done. It was nice also to have some connection besides the original music when they put Robert Vaughn in as Judge Travis. In the original movie a viewer couldn't really connect with the characters as well as you could with the remake in 1998. The interaction between the men was much better than the original. Also this cast would work well with the same characters even if they were moved to a different time and occupation (ie: maybe an ATF team or military team) simply because of the chemistry. It should have lasted longer.

There havent been to many western tv series lately. Two of the best that were on in recent years was The Magnificant Seven and The Young Riders. Give me a good sci-fi or action movie or series anyday. Although The Magnificant Seven and The Young Riders were westerns they had alot of action in them and the casts were great. Casting Micheal Biehn as the Seven's leader was a great choice. He works well in a western setting; as he did in Tombstone. It is a shame there were only 23 episodes made. I hope they can make some tv movies about The Magnificant Seven with all of the same cast. I also hope they will air the reruns again of this great show.