TV’s Second Times

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31341, 11 April 1967, Page 7

TV’s Second Times

Sequels are rarely as good as the originals; old friends often seem changed after a long absence. And, unfortunately, John Wilder, John Steed, and Emma Peel left something behind when they started their second time round.

“The Avengers” has substituted exaggerated style for substance; the air-conditioned jungle of “The Power Game” is not as dangerous as the Scott Furlong factory of “The Plane Makers.”

I am not surprised that the return of “The Avengers” has been greeted with only modified rapture by many of my friends who were once devout admirers of John and Emma. When these avengers first began to charm us they were wacky and way out. We were delighted by their elegant airs and their casual approach to every problem. But the wackiness was unforced, and they were gay and spontaneous on their way out. Now much of the gaiety and spontaneity has disappeared. Steed and Mrs Peel are still elegant, casual, and wellmannered. Everything is done with the same lightness of touch, and the camera work is as clever as ever. But something new has been added —a synthetic gloss has been applied to the Steed insouciance and the Peel charm. These days it is fashionable to blame the Americans for almost everything. The attraction of their dollars can be blamed in part for the changes in “The Avengers.” In each episode the producers are looking over their shoulders at the American audience. The stories have lost their, snap, crackle and pop. They used to be fun; now they are a trifle sick. Success has spoiled “The Avengers.” It has also done something to Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg. They have become self-conscious and slightly mechanical projections of what they used to be. The debonair Steed is almost

a fashion plate, the charming Emma has become a kinky clothes horse. John Wilder is not forced to repeat himself in “The Power Game.” He has not been spoiled by his knighthood or his elevation to the ranks of the merchant bankers. There is far more to him than a swinging umbrella, a tilted bowler, and a bland look. He is a man of power—ruthless, brutal, arrogant, and thoroughly unpleasant.

But “The Power Game” does not provide the same opportunities for Wilder as “The Plane Makers.” His efforts to gain control of Caswell Bligh’s construction business are not half as exciting as his involved manoeuvres in the aircraft industry. And he has no real opponents. One can’t imagine Bligh or anyone else toppling the stocky colossus or driving him to a coronary.

The power game is a game played in slow motion. It lacks the excitement and tension of “The Plane Makers.” The question of who wins the game does not seem as important as it used to be. When the level of the stories matches that of the acting the result is very

successful television. In “The Power Game” the stories may be slow-moving and less exciting; the actors are true to life and background. Patrick Wymark is still superb as Wilder. The measure of his success is that he makes such an unsympathetic and unlikeable character so convincing. “The Power Game” has brought back Barbara Murray as Lady Wilder. In. the corridors of power Lady Wilder remains an enigma. Barbara Murray plays the role with dignity and cool self-possession, still concealing successfully her true feelings towards her husband. I don’t blame a viewing colleague for passing up the opportunity of seeing' Sir Laurence Olivier in" “Othello” for “The Power Game.” His excuse was that he had not seen “The Plane Makers.” He wanted to see Wilder. In Britain “The Power Game” did not have as long a life as “The Plane Makers.” That is not surprising. Its story content is not sufficient to make it as successful as its predecessor. But it is worth watching every time just for the appearance of Patrick Wymark. —ARGUS