Rodney's Reviews
Page 26 of 42

From Venus With Love
By Rodney Marshall

Only nine months separate the end of filming of Series Four from the beginning of production on the Fifth Season, yet the progression—in the neutral sense of the term—seems quite radical. The colour series feels very different and while one has to be cautious about making generalisations, there seems little doubt that (as The Avengers Dossier puts it) "the show luxuriates in its newfound colourfulness." This early episode is a perfect example. The music of Laurie Johnson seems to play a more integral role, more intrusive IMHO. The special effects are far more impressive. The fashionable clothes—which were already a key ingredient—become even more important in this new, dazzling Technicolor Avengers world. Style and eccentricity have been upped a few notches, the witty dialogue is still there, but in terms of plot I would suggest that "style" now seems to be more important than "substance" (detailed plots, intriguing storylines etc.)

"From Venus With Love" is rather like "The Positive Negative Man" in its reliance on special effects. The bleached bodies, the distinctive sound of the laser beam, the burning scarecrow and the melting dummy's head are all impressive and do not seem particularly dated forty years on. The eccentricity of guest characters pervades the episode, from the posh chimney sweep, to the mad Brigadier and the wonderfully insane Dr. Primble. Having said that, the deadly mastermind's reasoning seems fair enough: anger at private donations for medical research being redirected towards a bizarre new space project. It is also nice to see a writer employing the red herring of Venus herself; one senses (early on) that she might be the baddy. The dramatic tension is less evident, though: our heroes are almost too relaxed. As in the Williamson episode, Mrs. Peel almost looks as if she is enjoying being tied up, as if she knows that Steed will arrive on cue.

Overall, this is an enjoyably nutty episode even though some of the charm and subtlety of the black and white series has been lost. We are exploring the brave new (cartoon?) world of The Avengers in colour. It is not necessarily the case of the earlier season being better than this new one, we simply have to re-adjust our expectations as the chameleon-like Avengers changes itself once again. Rather than nostalgically recalling the earlier Rigg episodes maybe one should be grateful that the colour series was exploring new territory in fresh ways.

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Page last modified: 5 May 2017.

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