The Young Avenger
Page 20 of 110

Dressed to Kill
By Joseph A.P. Lloyd

Direction: Five out of five. Whilst I appreciate Peter Hammond's talent, he would have been quite the wrong person for such a fun, light-hearted episode as this. Bill Bain, however, has a fabulous time with it, particularly in the railway station, where he blends different views into one shot. Very good.

Plot: Four out of five. Unlike its successor, "The Superlative Seven," this episode has a brilliant plot, which is easy to understand without being too simple, like "The Superlative Seven" was, and it does not have the cartoon characters of the Season Five episode. A great effort, which sends it right to the top.

Music: Four out of five. Dankworth, in keeping very much with Steed's cowboy costume, composes some very good Western-style music especially for the occasion. Good on him, I say.

Wittiness: Four out of five. "Careful, you'll make me purrr." Pussy Cat after having her tail touched by Steed. A very funny episode until the sinister purpose of the villain is revealed.

Action: Three out of five. "You are eighteen stone, and have a strenuous day ahead." A great fight, then a DRAW! sequence straight out of High Noon combine to make this one an action-packed episode. Again, Superb.

Cars/Sets/Locations: Two out of five. Like all the other Gale episodes, this one was done on the cheap. But it is quite marvellously well-planned, and the audience never get the impression of being cheated by the sets.

Introduction/Tag: Three out of five. The radar station is a little unrelated to the major proceedings, but it really puts us in the picture about the severity of what we are dealing with, national security. The end tag is classic, though.

Overall Impression: The best Cathy Gale episode that I have seen. With a truly unforgettable guest cast, some great direction, that weighing scales, and just a common link of land to tie them all together. It is a shame to see that Brian Clemens could actually make the rewrite worse!

Rating: Nine and a half out of ten.

All materials copyrighted per their respective copyright holders.
This website Copyright © 1996-2017 David K. Smith. All Rights Reserved.
Page last modified: 5 May 2017.

Top of page
Table of Contents