User Reviews

The final entry into "Ensign O'Toole" opens with fine Japanese location shots. O'Toole (Dean Jones) and Lt. St. John (Jack Mullaney) are at a geisha house waiting for St. John's friend Steve Turner (game show figure Jack Carter). We are next thrown into Steve's world with scenes relating solely to him. He and a fellow swindling colleague Al Shrieber (Eddie Ryder) are being ridiculed by an unspecified authoritative figure credited as Ambassador Cobb (Ransom M. Sherman). He informs the men unless they can come up with $500 he swindled from a Japanese man, they will be deported. The unintentionally unlikable character of Steve arrives with Al to unsuccessfully talk it over with the Japanese man, Mr. Yamada (Robert Kino). The pair decide to open a geisha house for women in Japan. The Japanese men become upset and set to put Steve and Al out of the country.

It's clear that this last episode was serving as a pilot for a vehicle starring Jack Carter. And, like most of the pilots stuffed into an existing series on it's way out, it's hard to follow and buy into. I'll address a previous review about racial stereotypes being a product of the time. Well, it's still a product of our time found within a multitude of shows from "Chappelle's Show" to present-day skits on "Saturday Night Live" and all African-American casts. Somehow, you don't hear any outrage from that though.

Reflecting upon the series, "Ensign O'Toole" had a talented cast of character actors but a star ill-suited for comedy. When the star of a sitcom isn't very involved in the comedy, it's hard to be successful. Nevertheless, there are a number of comical, enjoyable episodes found within the series.

Even by the standard of the racial insensitivity of the early 60s, this one is a stunner.

Let me note here that I usually take the racism and stereotypes of the studio period in stride. It's ugly, but that's what the period was like.

This episode, though, obviously a backdoor pilot for a series featuring Jack Carter as a lovable con man fails, thanks to Carter's basic unlikeability in the role, the over-the-top characterizations of the Japanese characters (at least two Japanese-American actors are directed to use horrific accents), and the terrible stereotyped writing.

"Ensign O'Toole" was a problematic series at best, but this episode was the final nail in its coffin; a most unfortunate way for the show to go out.

Only for completists of the series or of Carter's work.