The Rogues

This was a great series. I was so disappointed when it canceled so prematurely. There just is no accounting for American tastes (the Osbournes, etc.). Anyways, I'd enjoy watching them again.. altho it occurs to me that in so doing I might have to relive my disappointment over the limited number of episodes. Oh well..

To all those people that continually ask The wonderful series The Rogues has been released on DVD but only in Germany. You can obtain 20 of the 30 episodes. The picture quality is excellent and you can hear the soundtrack in English.But beware the region coding is fine for any DVD players in Europe but not USA players. This was a wonderful show with a sparkle that is missing from shows today.The whole cast was perfection itself. I have just viewed the episode Mr. White's Christmas and it was superb. A wonderful re working of Dicken's A Christmas Carol, therefore perfect Christmas viewing.I thought the 3 leads were brilliant but the series was made so special by the excellent playing of Gladys Cooper and Robert Coote in almost every episode.The Real Russian Caviar stands as a highlight of the series.

The Rogues was one of the best comedy series ever to appear on US television, being a blend (in spirit) of a good Blake Edwards comedy film, "The Avengers," and any number of David Niven's 1950s comedies ("Bedtime Story" with Marlon Brando of course comes to mind). It's a great shame we can't have TV like this today, with actors the caliber of Charles Boyer, David Niven and Dame Gladys Cooper, supported by the fine skills of Gig Young and the always fine John Williams. The only series later to attempt a simulation of the jet-setting, witty skulduggery of "The Rogues" was perhaps "The Persuaders" (Roger Moore, Tony Curtis). It's a great disappointment that as of this revised comment (December 2005) this fine series isn't even available on VHS, let alone DVD. If you ever have a chance to see it in rerun somewhere, don't miss it.

Obviously a show as deliciously witty and as sparklingly clever as this, with such a magnificent cast - David Niven, Gladys Cooper, Charles Boyer, Robert Coote, Gig Young, Larry Hagman, and John Williams - was too good for the tastes of the American public. It lasted just one season. On the other hand, the execrable "Beverly Hillbillies" - a more accurate barometer of the American public's sense of humor - marched on in glory for nine tedious years.

I saw this series as a preteen and agree with the previous reviewer -- it was wonderful! With such suave men as David Niven and Gig Young, how could it fail. My mother was British, so perhaps my sense of humor was a bit perverse, but then, look at the success of Monty Python! I'd love to know where you can find this for purchase or to watch in syndication.

If you're a fan of great comedy, this is definitely the series for you. Too bad the American audience didn't see it that way. I'm pretty sure most (or all) of the primary characters are gone now, alas, so this will be a lesson for some in 'when actors were really actors.'