The Protectors

What opulence! The cars, the clothes, the interior designs, the DOG! Could a seventies show BE any more seventies? From the sublime Jensen Interceptor, to Anholt's neck scarves and Nyree's exquisite trouser suits, from Vaughan's eyebrow acting to the fantastic multi-Euro locales (did an episode ever NOT feature a European airport?)... pure snazz! Who cared that 30 minutes weren't enough? Who gave a damn about the back projections, Nyree's dodgy accents (Italian? British? KIWI??)...? This is a deluxe show, where EVERYONE has a drinks bar inside a big globe, and no matter what is going on, there's always time for a scotch - "drink?" And the yellow car in the opening credits? A FIAT 850 Coupe... so now you know.

Altogether now, "All the low are living high!" Groovy!

I hope I never grow up enough to think this show is awful.I can see why people think it is dated,but I like it.The first episode is one of the best,it was very exciting. The theme tune is great as well as catchy.I often find myself humming it. Gerry Anderson fans might like it,but I think other people will think it is terrible.

It is one of my favourite Gerry Anderson shows.

The Protectors is an effective globe-trotting action series from the 1970s about an intrepid group of investigators lead by Harry Rule, with consistent help from the Contessa di Contini and Paul Buchet (although poor Paul sometimes just pops up for a scene or two). Each episode sees the group take on villains and solve crimes, but the 25-minute episodes do mean that things are a bit abrupt. Indeed, some episodes lack clear resolution, introduce villains late into the drama, and the feel of others is a bit like flipping the channel 25 minutes in on a 50-minute drama and then picking up on the action as it isn't always clear why the team are on the case. Robert Vaughn is as cool as usual and Nyree Dawn Porter wears some eye-catching 70s hats, but more time per episode would have been a good thing.

I remember seeing this series in Saint Louis, running as the last thing Sunday night. As an old fan of "The Man from UNCLE," I was curious to see Robert Vaughn playing an older, cynical, grouchier version of Napoleon Solo. Vaughn's personal liberal sentiments occasionally showed through, in one episode involving a military intelligence case. His Harry Rule character showed nothing but contempt for the way the military operated and its goals.

On the other hand, there was a small amount of goofiness. One episode I recall had Rule and his Italian costar stopping a neo-Nazi plot. Instead of contributing the gold they seized that was intended to revive the Third Reich to a charity cause, they stuck it in a Swiss bank. Not precisely heroic behavior.

One other note: Faberge, the perfume company, made the series (it was "A Brut Production") and the show contained a lot of "barter" spots for the Brut line of men's care products.

Rather than the glib UNCLE show, this effort for Robert V. had a believable conceit - a small group of bodyguard/detectives hires themselves out to whomever can afford them (without crossing their moral scruples). CEOs and governments were frequent customers of The Protectors, never mob or terrorist elements. As with the best in series television, a good premise and tight chemistry in the cast usually overcame mediocre scripts.