The Immortal

I remembered this series from when I was a child and after hearing it was possible spent months scanning ebay for a DVD copy. Finally bought it and after viewing about half,,, disappointed. episode plots are weak at best, story flow between chase scenes is painfully slow, Overall writing is poor. I understand that the first season of any show is usually the fleshing out period, but its as if once the idea was created the producers didn't know what to do with it. It seems they were just trying to basically repeat the Fugitive which had ended just two years before. I can't fault Christopher George his performance was more then excellent through out but given his talent he really deserved better then this. Nice seeing his future wife in the 'Man on a punched card" episode though.

Gary

Christopher George is excellent in this short lived man-on-the-run series. The stories are odes to friendship, loyalty, honesty, treachery, perseverance etc., the show is about life, the episodes are morality tales.

The Immortal is derivative of The Fugitive but don't be disappointed when you compare the two. The producers were not trying to equal the former show and The Immortal should not thus be judged too harshly for not measuring up. It is not The Fugitive 2.0 but it is a lot of fun and adventure, even when on occasion the writers could have done a better job.

Let us examine alleged plot holes.. Some ask why is he running, why doesn't he just go to the police for protection from the evil corporation ? Or, why doesn't he just agree to make regular donations of blood to Maitland (or Braddock) and remain free ? 1. We should assume that Maitland is kinda all-powerful, he controls the political machine in a large swath of the nation, as well as the media. This is why Ben Richards cannot just go to the police or FBI for protection, they are corrupt. 2. If Ben Richards agreed to make regular donations of blood to Maitland it is easy to see how this arrangement would quickly fall apart. For one thing there would eventually be a host of other 'Maitlands' lining up to have a piece of the immortality pie. And back in 1970 technology could not extend ones blood components like we can today. Every rich dude in the world - or just ordinary folks with big dreams- would, be wanting a piece pf Richards, this tug of war would probably result in the premature death of Richards through misadventure. This is why Maitland must be the sole controller of the blood source and Ben Richards must be captured and isolated.

I watched every episode and the pilot. Most of them knocked the ball right outa the park. Highly recommended.

hard to believe I woke up this AM thinking about Barry Sullivan in his role trying to capture 'The Immortal'. 37 years ago and the idea still reverberates. imagine, one person's blood able to smooth the wrinkles out of veteran actor Sullivan's face, make him young again, cure AIDS (more than a decade before we knew about AIDS), cancer, heart disease, and all else. handled differently, as one reviewer suggested in the Sci-Fi genre, this could have been a TV long run gem instead of a variation of 'The Fugitive' and chasing Dr. Richard Kimble. possibilities with the plot were untapped, thus the idea was wasted. perhaps it's time for a rebirth with more courage and bigger budget. the Sci-Fi channel might be the ticket. enjoyed remembering George and his rugged good looks. believe he was married to that beautiful Dove soap lady.

Ben Richards was not a fugitive from the law, as many of the people he encountered assumed by the way he acted, but a fugitive from the human race, he couldn't seek help from authorities because he had something no one else had and everyone wanted, immortality that was also contagious through a blood transfusion from him.

When you get down to it, we are all terminally ill, we just sugar coat the term and call ourselves mortals. But what would any one give to cure themselves of their own terminal illness we call mortality? Capture one man and turn him into a blood donor for the human race? Was Maitland really evil and greedy, or was he just like the rest of us? I think the character of Ben Richards could of been used in many Hollywood movies as the trump card to movies with a sad ending or a movie lacking a twisted plot.

The Big Question I have is there any surviving film footage of this great short lived series?

I have clear memories of watching this series and have never forgotten it. It does run along the same lines as the Fugitive, although the lead character is being chased by those outside the law.

Every time I watch the current series "The Pretender" I see the same story line as "The Immortal". The hero being chased by a corporate entity because of a special gift that he has (special blood in this case) and sorting out people's problems along the line.

I'd like to see the Immortal once again.