The Professionals Episode Reviews – DVD set one



Linda:
It seems as if enough people are interested in doing episode discussions to make it interesting. As no one has objected to using production (dvd) order, Old Dog is up first. It has been suggested that we discuss one episode a week or week and a half. I guess we'll see how things go and adjust the time as necessary. There are no rules for this. Just give your own thoughts and/or respond to the comments of others.

Okay, Old Dog: Not my fav episode. On the downside, it looks 'old'. Something about the filming and the sound recording. And Bodie and Doyle aren't at their most beautiful in this one cause I like their hair longer.

On the up side, Bodie's clothes are tight and yummy. I also like most of Cowley's "fight fire with fire" talk. It was a good introduction to Cowley's character. Doyle gets to show an aspect of his character that (I think) too many fanfic writers forget when he determines that Billy was treated for depression, showing that he is a man who has had some education and has some insight into human behavior.

Random thoughts: Bodie slaps his first woman. Doyle threatens to blow off the head of an innocent man. Would he have pulled the trigger? How bad is Cowley's knee pain scene? The William Shatner school of acting, imo. And Bodie moves like a cat? Ah, where?

Debbie:
I love the way Cowley bellows at them down the corridor and Doyle says "You heard what the gentleman said" and Bodie replies "That's no gentleman, that's George Cowley." and when they're in the cellar or what ever it is and Bodie says "well at least we're at the right end of the cat" and the smirk on his face and slight shake of his head when Doyle corrects him. I also love the banter in the interrogation room with young Billy about Doyle's art classes.

Show's off Lew's sense of humour beautifully. I think in this one they were probably still getting used to each other and how the other works.

Birgit:
Relationship -
The friction between B+D is largely different from later eps. Maybe this does reflect also the initial tensions between MS and LC, but basically it's a script thing, and if this was the kind of friction the producers were looking for, I'm rather glad it turned into something else later. I much prefer the amicable one-upmanship between B+D in other eps, starting perhaps around Private Madness. However, the interesting thing for me is that right from the start neither of the two characters has the upper hand in their relationship. When Bodie makes snide comments about coppers or art classes, Doyle responds calmly and seemingly without much sharpness - only to get his own back on other occasions like the "you must be Betty" scene (talk of bad acting also in this one, dear me!).

Doyle -
I agree with Linda's comment on Doyle's insight into the human mind. I suppose that apart from an interest in other people which is time and again emphasised, it's probably a benefit of his police work - they're trained to predict and evaluate the behaviour of people to be able to prevent things from going out of hand, aren't they? In Mickey Hamilton, for example, he proves that he even knows his Freud.
This ep also reflects his caring side which comes out clearly in the horrible scene with Cowley's bad leg - it's Doyle who jumps to get his boss another drink and who looks concerned and tries to make him comfortable. He looks most put out when Cowley sends them away so gruffly.

I'm not so sure if "educated" is the right term (thinking of the adenoid/android bit in Rogue), but he is certainly making an effort, also judging by later eps (he reads and speaks French, however badly, he is often seen reading books - and not only pulp stuff, like some fic authors suggest.)*

*an OT aside: I finally managed to find out what Doyle is reading in Ojuka (the coffee scene with Kutunda): it's Juan Goytisolo's "Sands of Torremolinos", i.e. contemporary Spanish literature, if anyone's interested :) Must have been pretty dull, though, (or our boy pretty tired) because he falls asleep over it...

Back to Old Dog:
Bodie is shown here as a rather prejudiced person: he resents and ridicules policemen, artists, criminals - just about everybody, and he doesn't always think first before talking (the "what do you think where he got that leg" remark). To me, this Bodie feels somewhat annoyingly juvenile and rather full of himself, as the "doctor in East Africa" scene suggests. Doyle seems quite a bit more grown-up than Bodie, although - in my opinion at least - he doesn't look older.

And speaking of looks:
I like the longer hair better too, but somehow the camera manages to make Doyle's face look slimmer and thus more attractive than in the period around Stakeout and Heat where he looks definitely puffy. MS seems to deliberately try to give his face a certain "hard" look - watch his mouth, it's quite different from the lovely wide mouth
we're used to in later eps. It even affects his pronunciation, which is much more "slurred" (watch out for his "s") than elsewhere, although he does it on some occasions even in later seasons.

Both men's tight trousers are a highly delectable sight, although I'm not too fond of Bodie's smart suits (or his hairstyle). Does anyone have any idea what those "flak jackets" were for? They don't look particularly bullet-proof to me and never make an appearance in later eps again. Yet their visual effect was rather nice, especially
as the one Doyle is wearing allows us a VERY welcome viewing of his rear in the shoot-Billy scene...

Back to serious stuff -
It's interesting to see the relationship between Cowley and the two as compared to later seasons where he treats them certainly not as equals but as senior agents able to work independently. Here, however, he keeps a close eye on both of them and snaps at them at every occasion.
I am pretty sure Doyle wouldn't have shot Turkel and Cowley wouldn't have ordered him to, for legal, but also for psychological reasons. Unlike many fic authors I do think Doyle may have killed before CI5, but still wouldn't be prepared to do it without very good reason. And he certainly wouldn't have simply followed orders, given his obvious resentment of hierarchy.

Sorry, this has become rather long, but I for one really like the ep despite all its flaws. It somehow feels out of place in the (admittedly non-existent) continuity of the series. I find it rather puzzling, therefore, that many stories I've seen pick up the relationship between B+D as it is shown here, with Bodie's bloated ego and Doyle-the-little copper and all the rest.

Anyone still awake?? My apologies :)

Frankie:
There isn't much I can contribute to this ep. I've always thought the storyline a bit flimsy, how likely is it that the bad guys don't have any means of identifying their prisoner?

But I agree wholeheartedly on the tight trouser bit.

Oh, as for the jacket, I think he was trying to make a statement, but I'm damned if I can figure what! Although I have to say I love the friction relation ship bewteen the lads in this, I do prefere their chummier roles (side thought- Are we doing Klansmen in this, coz it's only on the DVD's isn't it?) Any way, my little tiny bit of input, for what it's worth.

Brenda:
Bit of nostalgia from way back: I vaguely remember some of the hype surrounding the launch of the series, particularly among the teenagers of the time (OK, I was already 22, but... *g*). I think various magazines had advertised it, mentioned a few things, so we were all waiting there, hormone-ridden, for it to start. Goodbye Alias Smith and Jones, Starsky and Hutch... we Brits were going to have our own, home-grown men to drool over.

And drool over it we did. I think a lot of people who saw the first ep (was Old Dog the first one shown?) couldn't really care less about the plot, as they were too busy discovering... other stuff. Of course, VCRs weren't around, so re-hashing was the only way to go if you wanted to share bits and discuss finer points. This, however was not usually about the plot if you were female, but more on the lines of 'oooooh apparently they trained with the SAS, did their own stunts, wear their own clothes, play guitar, love those jeans...' sort of thing.

Now you really wanted to know all that... And if you didn't you should have scrolled quicker or pressed delete. Nah!

Anyway, I have to admit Old Dog isn't a favourite of mine on an aesthetic level, as I'm a 'shaggy Doyle' person (and no, that does not read 'shag Doyle person, although....). The plot (see? I do notice more than jeans and bums now and then) was a bit weak. Bodie seems extremely condescending and smug, and immature in it, and as Birgit says, Doyle's speech is downright odd - MS obviously hadn't got a handle on the accent. In fact, I'm not sure if he ever does - he seems an interesting mixture of rough and polished, educated and uneducated right from the start, and so does Bodie, really. Could this have been intentional? The whole 'complex character' thing? Or do we just blame the scriptwriters and actors for feeling their way around?

Doyle and Turkel are interesting, and it did make me wonder if Doyle had shot somebody before (Birgit, I shall blame you personally for getting behind on work). I'm just curious - and must say a few bits of dialogue focusing on a 'first kill' would have been welcome as a bit of added oomph in the 'getting to know the lads' stakes. Mind, I could suggest a few thousand added bits, and although it would have added roundness to the characters, it would mean even more canon and less fascinating stories on 'did he kill before or didn't he'. Hm. OK, if I had my way each ep would have been two hours long, with lots of psychological bits and action and lots and lots of banter. And tight jeans. At least fanfiction adds those bits, which is one of its major attractions to me. But I digress...

Banter: oh, the more the better. The bits of it in Old Dog aren't 'run in', just like the cast and the whole 'feeling', but I like the friction, even if I like the 'mates' feeling in later eps more. The actors/characters are tiptoeing around each other and this is a *good* thing because it's a first ep and a scene-setter in many ways. It makes you wonder how much of that tiptoeing is the actors or actually laid down in the script.

Finally point is that yes, they seem like fairly 'young' agents in that they're sort of in awe of Cowley (although already care about the old lad), and vastly different to when they're obviously 'seasoned'. Timelines in the whole series have probably been discussed forever, but to me this takes place in very early days. Doyle's not long out of the police, and Bodie's getting used to civvies - although not terribly useful civvies for belting around in. Bodie is probably getting used to not being a squaddie in other ways too, and enjoying (yet not used to) the freedom of CI5. I get the feeling about Doyle that he probably wanted out of the Met and the drugs squad because they're 'like the criminals', so he's at the start of some sort of crusade in a way, yet enjoying his new role (and the 'no rank' thing) too just like Bodie is. Lots of new toys, fast cars, and nobody breathing down your shoulder a lot of the time. And chippies along the route... but I digress again.

Stormdarkblue:
I always thought Doyle's accent was more what Martin's own accent would have been before drama school? Only in that as being from the Midlands myself I never really thought of him as having an accent and I tend to do that with accents similar to my own.

I thought Martin had huge accolades for his accents in drama school (probably totally wrong so don't flame me ... just a distant memory of something I thought I read) so can't imagine he was struggling with an accent ... and as Birgit says, Doyle's speech is downright odd - MS obviously hadn't got a handle on the accent. In fact, I'm not sure if he ever does - he seems an interesting mixture of rough and polished, educated and uneducated right from the start, and so does Bodie, really. Could this have been intentional? The whole 'complex character' thing? Or do we just blame the scriptwriters and actors for feeling their way around?

Carol:
Hmm... <thinks>

Not a favourite ep for me. Doyle's hair is too short and controlled <G> which probably means I'm a shaggy Doyle person as well (LOL, B!). His accent is still a bit 'stage' and I much prefer it later when he settles down into whatever sort of accent it's supposed to be...

I actually think it's a reasonable plot, although - and the same is probably true of every single episode - to make it a good plot would have needed a longer programme, with some of those obviously omitted bits filmed.

I've never really considered the Doyle/Turkel thing. Doyle has a job to do, and does it. Although it seems early on for both of them, this isn't their first case. Only 6 episodes later in Close Quarters, Doyle tells us they've been working together for 2 years and 3 months. Hardly likely then, that Doyle hasn't killed before - although given that our cops don't carry firearms, it's extremely unlikely he killed before joining CI5. I'm not sure whether Doyle would have followed orders to kill Turkel - I can't see him doing it 'cold', although I think the novel says something like 'if Cowley and Bodie were dead, then Doyle would blow Turkel's head off' which is far more possible - even at that early stage.

Bodie's suits were clearly a mistake, given what the writers/producers actually wanted him to do in them. I'm sure the original intention was for Doyle to be dressed much more smartly as well. I'm sure in one of the Brian Clemens interviews he mentions that Martin had been told if he turned up in jeans for filming he'd be sent home - that obviously didn't happen! - and we got the curls as a further measure of defiance.<g>

The 'banter' is an early version of what we can expect later - at this stage it's extremely sparky which is I think due more to the writing than the actors. Once they've settled into their characters they can adapt the inflections behind the writing to best effect.

Certainly we have to discuss Klansman - I can't believe we have anyone who hasn't seen it <G>

Birgit:
In response to Carol's 'although given that our cops don't carry firearms, it's extremely unlikely he killed before joining CI5.'

I agree for his time as a bobby on the beat, but if he was Met handgun champion and whatnot and Cowley chose him partly because of his skills with a gun (which seems to be one of the "facts" about oyle, as far as I remember the annuals and the tie-in books), then he would have been called out on jobs where armed officers were needed, at the very least while he was at the Yard - which means he could well have killed someone during that time. I was thinking of those "The Chief" episodes where the coppers are issued handguns for certain occasions and actually use them. Or am I getting something wrong there?

Carol:
You're not wrong. But I think the number of cops who actually get to use their guns, and the number of people killed, is extremely small, even these days when gun crime has shot up since the programme aired.

Also in the Met there's far more likely to have been a specialist gun unit than in the Chief's area - not that the Met wouldn't issue firearms – they did to the Sweeney and Robbery Squads, but Doyle never served with them.

Frankie:
Going back to what Carol said about Doyle's look, you're totally right. He was told they were both to have short hair and suits and he said long hair and jeans were more in and he was threatened with being sent home if he did that. So he had his hair permed as there was nothing they could do short of shaving it off and wore jeans but the production cast hasn't been told about the threat so filming went ahead.

Going against original characters is also why Bodie's outfit is a bit strange at times ie knitted cardigan. It was his way of going away from his written image.

Just as a bit of useless but interesting info for you all!

Franni:
Really enjoyed the excuse to run the DVD in the corner of my iMac's screen.... yes, you can indeed watch the Pros while the other 20% of your brain's checking email. Probably a better scene setting first ep than many new series would get today. Cowley's 'Bisto kids/roses and lavender' lecture good for giving the viewers enough background on what CI5 was...
Most unconvincing scene - no, I do not believe Bodie would have a dead sheep on his bed... tigerskin perhaps...

Linda:
After seeing his 'dancing girls' picture and his little hearts shirt, none of his decorating choices surprise me <g>. It is a sad confession, but I think if I'd gone home with Bodie back in '78 and saw the dead sheep I would have thought it was pretty cool and he was a trendy sort of guy. I need to watch the ep cause my memory of the relationship between B and D is different from some of the comments so far. As I recall, they seemed close and jokey together, no friction at all. But at my age, the memory plays tricks.

Brenda:
Agree, Carol.
In those days particularly, being issued with a gun in the police was very rare indeed. Nowadays, there are lots of divisions of the police where it's more frequent. What interests *me* on this topic is where / why did Doyle learn to shoot? Before he was a copper or when he joined? And if he was trained at the Met, why? Was it a hobby or an optional extra? Was he a natural talent or was he trained for a purpose, i.e. he had to be armed for drugs squad ops? Hm. I can feel a plot coming on, maybe.

Bodie's flat to me looks like (a tidier version of) my husband's 'bachelor pad' when I encoutered it in 1983. Brown and cream and boring (Bodie's pad *was* brown and cream wasn't it or am I having the wrong visions here?) were 'safe' colours. Not fussy and frilly and feminine, and it didn't show the dust... I always thought Doyle's flats looked much more interesting - stuff like the toy soldiers and Desiderata, better colours - with the exception of the one in 'The Rack' which looked really horrible and tatty. The one in DIAG looked huge and rather smart - sign he'd come up in the world? But then I've always been fascinated by their 'environments'. Ooops - much more and I'll be wandering into 'curtain hanging' stories, much loved by 't other genre when the lads move in together and discuss shades of paint and stuff *g*. Ummm yes, shut up, Brenda.

But (yes, it's a rambling day...) there are lots of stories where CI5 has this seemingly endless supply of flats and it's all pot luck who gets what - it makes CI5 look more like a housing agency than anything to do with criminal intel. In practice, intelligence people choose and pay for their own places, which are vetted (location, neighbours, etc.) and they're kitted out discreetly with extra security.

Another question thrown into the pot: how many people do you all think are actually in CI5? It's supposed to be a 'small elite squad', right? So they're unlikely to have masses of admin people (and hey, they've got Betty, who has to do the work of at least a dozen, bless 'er). Another of my niggles is when stories have the lads sent to 'medical'. I mean can they really justify a *full time* medical team (including operating room and the works). I prefer to think they just hire out Doc Ross and call in the quack, rather than having an entire crew on hand for the next time Doyle fractures an eyelash or Bodie's lips freeze in the 'smug' position :) Obviously they'd need mechanics to fix up cars, computer people (we've seen them), but I tend to think it's still pretty small? I think their training is done in collaboration with the army, for instance and they use police armouries and firing ranges - they aren't going to own facilities like the ones we see in Wild Justice.

Birgit:
But whaddayamean his flat in The Rack looks tatty? That's just the carpet, m'dear, and yes it's a little bit worn out by all those CI5 parties and dozens of birds queuing up each night to get into Doyle's bed no doubt. BUT it's definitely the same flat as in Hunter, Hunted (Cliff Road), merely the sofa has been shifted so we can look down on Ray in all his sprawled splendour. I really love that flat, especially the cosy kitchen area and window sill with pot plants - ah, domestic bliss... Thank god he had no curtains there - the ones he has in DIAG are horrible. And did you see the wallpaper in his bedroom? Argh! Oh, and pesonally, I prefer the carved stone head an other "arty" stuff in Cliff Road to those bloody toy soldiers or those awful Chinaware dogs (and just what kind of "sculpture" is that metal thingie next to the Desiderata??) - not Doyle's style at all, imo, he's not usually so military, is he?

Re. the support staff:
They do have their own forensics experts (Hunter, DIAG), bomb-disposal people like Philips (Purging), and presumably their own car mechanics to replace all those smashed windscreens and flat tyres. They would need an archive (everything was still on paper in those days) as well as some kind of human resources department and
accountancy. They don't seem to have a canteen, though: the only concession to man's basic needs seems to be the coffee-vending machine which appears in the corridor outside Cowley's office sometime during the first season (and, true to Scottish principles, has to be fed with coins!)

I'm not so sure either about a squad doctor, although it seems like Bodie goes to see one in Close Quarters. From my experience in the industry, I'd rather say they might have a nurse able to treat minor owwies and dispense pills for tooth-aches and upset stomachs to spare them the time to go and see their GP. They obviously don't have a fully equipped surgery, though, because everybody with more than a graze ends up in some hospital.

What puzzles me is how the lower ranks are supposed to work efficiently while changing location all the time. It seems that Cowley uses various offices (in Purging, one of the lads even says Cowley hasn't got a permanent office), but what does that imply for the office staff? As an employee, I had to move into another office three times in four years and found it a highly annoying experience. Perhaps even ever-efficient Betty got fed up with her job when she realised she spent more time packing and unpacking files and pencils in the Cow's wake than anything else?

Linda:
Franni's email reminded me that our episode discussions would be a great opportunity to determine a few things about the lads. For example, despite what Professional Insight claims, I don't believe that Doyle drinks more than Bodie. So, my plan is to count the drinking as we go along (none in Old Dog, I think). Anything else we should count as we go? We could do up a list in files of the various items to
check for.

Birgit:
I assume you mean the hard stuff, not that lovely mug-of-tea-with-a-sarnie the lads are enjoying when they emerge from the restroom for the first time ever. I really love that scene - perhaps we should count all the times those two are sitting/hanging/lying around somewhere doing patience, napping, reading or playing arts/mastermind/cards, just to prove all those stories wrong which claim they spend 24/7 slaving away for
Queen and Country?
Just a thought.

Dinah:
Been trying to resist getting involved all week but have finally fallen <g>. Should be working so will try to be uncharacteristically quick... [this intention died a death, as you can see - Ed]

Firstly, Doyle gets the drinking award on the technicality that we see WAAAYY more of his downtime than we do of Bodie's. We get the impression Bodie drinks more because he talks about it more, though we don't see it on screen (ie - whingeing in Heroes, turning up hungover in Civil Servant, mentioning going for a drink with Fraser, giving his local as his contact number etc etc). And if you take Doyle's tally in Involvement out of the equation I think Bodie wins.

The point being, as I have always said, it is wrong, inaccurate, unbalanced and UNFAIR for there not to have been an Involvement-For-Bodie. My only motivation for writing fanfic, that - redressing the balance.

Secondly... (trying to remember everything I managed to stop myself posting over the last few days) ... Bodie and style. I certainly don't see Bodie as taking 'safe' style options! 70s brown and cream or not. He's one of those people who tries new things and likes to make an impression ... and sometimes it's bloody awful. I can just see Bodie at 40 in the early nineties cringing at old photos while Doyle's still wearing the same jeans...

Thirdly, I think I might be quite impressed right now if I went back with a guy who had a dead sheep on the bed <ducks>. ANYTHING to bring a bit of character and individuality to single blokes' rooms. Bodie and Doyle are quite rare, imo. I don't know many single 27-yr old blokes with fully decorated, thought out living quarters with pictures and ornaments and what have you - particularly if they're in the habit of moving home regularly. 27-yr-old single blokes are never in to appreciate them ...

... And speaking of being 27, in defence of Bodie being immature in Old Dog, that still is pretty young. He's only been out of the army two years, he's enjoying his freedom and playing the field as much as possible. And Bodie doesn't care what people think, particularly, as long as he gets a reaction. He'd prefer people *not* to know that there's a sensitive mature side in there somewhere. He's probably had a gutful of being mature and sensitive, considering all the things he's seen and had to do that can't but have affected him (not that he'd have shown sensitivity in the SAS! But he would have *felt* things - we know important people died). Look how blokes behave when they come out of serious relationships. I'd guess leaving the SAS is possibly a bit like leaving a relationship.

What the hell happened to 'quick'??

Bugger.

Oh now I'm off. Think we're wandering away from the original topic somewhat though <g>

In my count Bodie's drinking will not have to be actually seen in order to count. Implied drinking will be enough.
Entering the bizarre realm of supposition here <g>. How do you put a count, for example, on 'implied drinks' resulting in the level of hangover in Civil Servant? You'll have to make some calculation that takes into account the fact that he got out of bed at 5.30am (how long were they in bed for? Did they drink in bed? What time did he start drinking?), how fast Bodie drinks, how much it takes to get him drunk... You've got one hell of a project there. Good job you don't have a life.

If we're going that way, should we also 'count' number of implied shags (how many times could you get it in before 5.30? Club kicks out at 2am perhaps... Half an hour cab ride... half an hour to get down to it - or not? - three hours in the sack ... Three times? Or once, then pass out for a couple of hours? Or they met in the pub at 8pm, went straight to her place and did it solidly (oo-er) for nine hours... Does Bodie take his time or would it be a series of quickies? The possibilities are endless...)

Face it, Doyle drank because he was with Ann and she was a bitch. He drank to forget. Bodie wouldn't drink, he'd slap her.
Don't start on Ann!! I've never heard such utter bollocks - well, not since we last had this conversation <g>. I hope the Involvement discussion crops up when I've got nothing much going on. Anyway, Bodie only slaps women with good, justified reason ... if they're unflatteringly psychoanalysing him, for example, or asking him to analyse himself, or communicate, or discuss things or anything utterly out of order like that. Where's the tongue-in-cheek emoticon?

Jo:
Are we still doing Old Dog New Tricks? Because, today being a bank holiday, I've finally got around to rewatching it. And enjoyed it far more than I remembered. Yes, there's a lot wrong with it: still finding their feet, so to speak, and a little awkward in spots. But it's got some great Lad moments <g>

I've never been fond of Cowley's speech to the recruits, although I know it's important in setting the scene for viewers. I do like the scene in his office after, where the Lads tell him about the grenades. 'We think it's quite important.'

Couldn't help noting the scene early on, where Doyle tries to draw Bodie out about Belfast, and gets nothing. This is where fanfic writers have got that from.

I love the scene, again in Cowley's office, where they are trying to work out who carried out the theft of the weapons from the Irish group. Notice how Cowley and Doyle are thinking along similar lines, while Cowley rejects Bodie's idea out of hand. Not the last time that will happen (I'm thinking Runner, in particular).

Then there's the 'can you take him?' scene - I just love these little exchanges between the Lads. But why, when the grenade is about to go off, does Doyle leave the safety of the car he's sheltering behind, to run to another? Director's whim, perhaps?

Great exchanges between the boys while sweating poor simple Billy. And the verbal fencing between Doyle and Cowley in his office, later. It's Doyle who wordlessly hands over his drink to ease his boss's pain, although it's Bodie who verbalises his concern. Bodie leaves his empty glass on the table, Doyle puts his on top of the filing
cabinet - a silent protest against the suggestion of a bent Top Cop? This spills over into the next scene, with the cops turning over the Turkle's place. I do enjoy a bit of friction <g>

First appearance of Betty: a saint dressed as a secretary, ministering to her weary boss at the crack of dawn. And Doyle does so enjoy dragging Bodie out of bed and needling his girlfriend. She won't be his girlfriend much longer, judging by the glare.

I love how silent the cops are when they get held at gunpoint – not one murmur of protest. Not getting paid enough to speak?

Love how Cowley orders Bodie go go *buy* himself something respectable. Hope he's got enough cash on him. And remembers to keep the receipt, in the vain hope that it will be reimbursed eventually ... more of this later <g>.

Doyle argues against Cowley's plan, gets shouted at, goes along with it. Again, not the last time this will happen. He then has great fun pulling 'rank' on that cop. And still calls him 'sir'.

George almost seems to be enjoying himself, playing at being a hostage. He just loves spinning these webs, watching how the game plays out - especially when it works as planned. That adrenaline rush.

I love the look exchanged by the Turkle brothers - maybe the will get to share a cell.

Doyle opens the car door for Cowley, who thanks him by snatching the shotgun out of his hands.

Having shelled out for that natty suit, Bodie then gets ordered to take it back. I presume George wasn't willing to reimburse him for it. One can only hope that he didn't get it stained or torn while freeing the hostages, since he's clearly not going to get his money back from George if the shop won't take it back.

all in all, an enjoyable ep.

Brenda:
I know this is TV, but I always had this vision of Bodie positively blasting into a conveniently located natty menswear shop, grabbing something that conveniently fitted, and dashing out again, all within about 3 minutes flat. And maybe, if he *didn't* have enough cash, drawing his gun, and yelling 'CI5, emergency... gimme
a *suit*." Just one of those moments worth writing a story around (and no, wasn't thinking of it!).

As as for taking it back... just how many shops *would* take back a suit worn for an hour or so?

OK... so I have problems suspending belief at times *g*. Just call me pedantic. But hey, little things amuse / perplex me. Imagine if he'd grabbed the first suit he found and it was too big / small and his frustration...

Sue:
Like Jo I've found time this weekend to watch Old Dogs. It's hard now to remember what I thought when I watched it first time around but I was hooked from the moment I saw Private Madness, Public Danger and I don't think I was deeply critical of any episode as long as it had plenty of Doyle in it :-)

With hindsight it is easy to say that Martin didn't yet have a grip on Doyle's voice but at the time, I don't recall noticing that. The dubbing is very bad and grates quite a bit when I watch it now, especially the closing scene.

Lewis is excellent as Bodie. He does appear to have the character from the beginning although it probably helps that he doesn't try to do anything with his voice.

Scenes I particularly like; Jo already mentioned when the lads are trying to tell Cowley about the grenades. I love Bodie rattling off Cowley's thoughts on where agents time is best spent, the look Cowley gives him and then the look Doyle gives Bodie before saying, "we think it's quite important." God bless videos/dvd's for giving us the chance to see these lovely little moments again.

I enjoy the insight into Betty with her humorous comment when she brings him breakfast and Cowley says, "you're a good girl Betty" and she replies, "no, just careful."

When Cowley's bad leg pains him, Doyle offers him the only comfort he will accept, the drink.

I also love Bodie's line to Billy about wanting to make a will. He delivers it so well; casually but with such menace.

I also like the seemingly stiff necked Inspector clearly accepting and taking pleasure in the bluff Doyle is about to pull on Turkel. Despite his outward appearance he is one of the policemen who are frustrated, as Doyle was, at criminals getting away with so many things because the rules the police work by tie their hands too much. Oh and talking of policemen. I presume others have also spotted that the policeman B & D interact with when they arrive at the hospital car park is none other than the bent Chives from In The Public Interest?

I am quite convinced that there is no way Doyle would have killed Turkel even if he had heard shots from within the police station. It was Cowley's bluff and Doyle was doing his best to be convincing to make it work but if it had failed, he would have thrust Turkel back into the arms of the nearest policeman and done what he could to contain the violence. Picking off anybody who poked their head up, yes, but blowing Turkel's head off with that shotgun, no.

Just a comment on Gordon Jackson. I don't understand those critics, at the time and later, who said he was not convincing in the part. I find him completely convincing. He was a fine actor and made it all look so easy and believable.

Thanks for starting us on this road Linda. I'm looking forward to a slow meander through all 57 episodes. Or should that be 58 now Brenda? <G>

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