Synopsis: An ex-girlfriend comes flirting around but gets kid-napped by some mafia types that need to keep her father silent since he's recently gone legit. Tony to the rescue!
Lar-ry-view: This is a good one. It was still fun in 2007, so I imagine it must have been excellent for its time. This time the damsel in distress is an old girlfriend, who brings along her troubled and troublesome father. This makes the story more interesting: it has built in back stories and Tony's motivations for helping are more believable and involving.
This one features more magic, including three routines from Mark Wilson, and appearances by Mark's son Greg as well as famous magician Dai Vernon. We also get to see Tony in a performing situation rather than just impromptu. I don't get the needless exposures they are doing...that seems out of character.
We get the usual excellent action, stunts, and location footage. Again we get a helicopter. Also we get the usual creative climax location. I won't spoil it for you.
Tony is presented as a lady's man. He's got a beautiful girl on the arm (that he ignores), a girl on the phone inviting him to the boudoir (that he spurns), and an old ex-girlfriend who did him wrong with a troublesome father (who agrees to go back to his place, and for whom he risks his life in return). Man...that's action. The guy's got game.
We get a lot of sparkling dialog. The writing's good. The plot is also not convoluted like before and you don't get that tedious exposition. This one is tight, witty, and has some zing.
OK...now on to the best part. You get a scene stealing performance from Lloyd Nolan....a superstar from back in the 1930s. He doesn't dazzle the screen so much as he obliterates the loudspeakers. His quirky rhythm, accents, selective enunciation, and vocal inflections are so much fun that I was laughing out loud with each and every line he delivered. I kept playing him over and over until my wife threatened to eat her dinner in the bathroom unless I let the movie play on. Coupled with some great dialog, his performance turns this episode into a classic. Here's an example:: "I asked you to look after her, didn't I? To help her, to keep her safe. That's what you like, isn't it? Helpin' people?' That's the way you like to play it, isn't it? 'Johnny on the spot?' Well you blew it!!!" I'll vote for that as the best line in the entire "The Magician" TV series.
Lar-ry-view: This is a good one. It was still fun in 2007, so I imagine it must have been excellent for its time. This time the damsel in distress is an old girlfriend, who brings along her troubled and troublesome father. This makes the story more interesting: it has built in back stories and Tony's motivations for helping are more believable and involving.
This one features more magic, including three routines from Mark Wilson, and appearances by Mark's son Greg as well as famous magician Dai Vernon. We also get to see Tony in a performing situation rather than just impromptu. I don't get the needless exposures they are doing...that seems out of character.
We get the usual excellent action, stunts, and location footage. Again we get a helicopter. Also we get the usual creative climax location. I won't spoil it for you.
Tony is presented as a lady's man. He's got a beautiful girl on the arm (that he ignores), a girl on the phone inviting him to the boudoir (that he spurns), and an old ex-girlfriend who did him wrong with a troublesome father (who agrees to go back to his place, and for whom he risks his life in return). Man...that's action. The guy's got game.
We get a lot of sparkling dialog. The writing's good. The plot is also not convoluted like before and you don't get that tedious exposition. This one is tight, witty, and has some zing.
OK...now on to the best part. You get a scene stealing performance from Lloyd Nolan....a superstar from back in the 1930s. He doesn't dazzle the screen so much as he obliterates the loudspeakers. His quirky rhythm, accents, selective enunciation, and vocal inflections are so much fun that I was laughing out loud with each and every line he delivered. I kept playing him over and over until my wife threatened to eat her dinner in the bathroom unless I let the movie play on. Coupled with some great dialog, his performance turns this episode into a classic. Here's an example:: "I asked you to look after her, didn't I? To help her, to keep her safe. That's what you like, isn't it? Helpin' people?' That's the way you like to play it, isn't it? 'Johnny on the spot?' Well you blew it!!!" I'll vote for that as the best line in the entire "The Magician" TV series.