Blind

The team's mission if they decide to accept it: Deetrich (Jason Evers) and Matula (Tom Bosley), rivals seeking criminal Lawton's favor, with Matula actually being another undercover fed whose cover is in danger. Jim's mission is to preserve Matula's cover and get him promoted.

A Doctor temporarily blinds Phelps in order for him to convincingly pose as an alcoholic, washed up, ex- federal agent who's eager to sell information identifying an FBI mole deep within an organized crime boss' inner circle.

Ok first episode of season six, though it's slow moving and drags a bit. Things pick up in the last fifteen minutes and the plan ends well as planned. But not with some hiccups before. There's a great performance from Peter Graves. Peter Brown guest stars.

Growing up, Mission: Impossible was my favorite show. Lynda Day George joins in Season 6 as Casey. Not Lisa Casey. She will always be Casey to me. The character's name is wrongly credited here.

This is how it came to pass. The first run of this show ended in 1973. Fifteen years later, the 1988 writers' strike led to a revival of Mission: Impossible. Actress Terry Markwell played a character also named Casey. She only lasted a single season before being killed off. But when Lynda Day George made a guest star appearance in 1989, on the episode 'Reprisal,' they decided to rename her Lisa Casey so as not to confuse viewers of the revival series who knew Terry Markwell as Casey.

It was a total mistake.

All us kids thought Casey (Lynda Day George) was cool, a solid replacement for Lesley Ann Warren. She may have won the role following her appearance (as the clever killer) in the pilot episode of CANNON, telecast earlier that year. Emmy nomination material.

Unfortunately, with the departure of Leonard Nimoy, the series ratings were terrible. CBS nevertheless continued to back the show. A smart move due to the fact MI would prove a blockbuster in tv reruns, to this day some 50 years later.

Here's the thing; CBS and Paramount should have renegotiated with Martin Landau and Barbara Bain to return, even for limited appearances. Back in the day, that was on the wishlist of most fans. Missed opportunity. It would come back to bite them.

On the plus side, Peter Graves took up the slack and moved into parts that generally went to Landau or Nimoy, and he was excellent. Phelps goes undercover as a drunken, ex-federal agent who wants to "sell" info. Adding more authenticity to his part, he undergoes hypnosis to appear to be blind, slipping into the inner circle of mob boss Lawton, slickly played by Harold J Stone. Fabulous in these type of roles.

Complicating matters is fellow agent Matula (Tom Bosley) who Phelps has to save while, at the same time, bringing down Lawton. Toss in Jason Evers (of course) as a smooth villain. What a set up, thanks to director Reza Badiyi, also directing MANNIX and HAWAII FIVE O at the time. Reza was senior story consultant for Five O, with the series for its entire 12 year run. He was the best.

FYI; Note Greg Morris and Peter Lupus now have co-starring roles. An especially good move for Lupus, who kind of took a back seat in earlier episodes.

Premier episode SEASON 6.

The entire series on dvd (2018), mega box featuring 47 discs. Pricey, so shop around. Green Season 6 box contains 6 discs.

Time to buckle up for our sixth season of MI adventures! This season was to mark a turn away from doing a lot of foreign-set missions. From now on, the team will focus mainly on battling organized crime in the USA. Lynda Day George joins as Casey, the newest IM force team member, and makes a fine addition. Notable in this episode: Peter Graves' standout performance as a blind man; Peter Brown excels as a cocky young hood attracted to Casey; Tom Bosley proves he can play any kind of role; and, for MI buffs, Barney does something which is very rare in this series. Watch and find out!

"Blind" is the first episode of "Mission: Impossible" without an agent like Roland or Paris. Instead, in seasons 6 and 7, Jim Phelps takes on more of these sorts of roles...and this one focuses almost exclusively on him. This is also the first episode with Lynda Day George as a cast member...which she'd remain for the next two seasons.

Phelps is pretending to be a federal agent who was blinded in an explosion. To make the effect work, he receives surgery to put eye coverings over his actual eyes...and he really is blind through the episode. His character also is supposed to be a mess following his discharge from the service. He is a drunk and a mess...so much so that the mob thinks he can be used by them...which is exactly Phelps' intention. Now as an informant to the gang, he can funnel them false information. In particular, there already is an undercover agent in the upper levels of the mob...and Phelps is going to make the agent appear even more trusted to the gang as well as eliminating his chief rival within the mob.

The notion of surgery to make Phelps actually blind seems silly but otherwise an excellent episode. What I particularly liked were a couple of the guest stars...such as Harold Stone (who always plays angry men) and Tom Bosley. What is particularly interesting about Bosley is that he's supposed to be a member of the mob...a HUGE departure for the nice-guy actor.

This episode was able to work without Paris/Roland Hand...a big plus which isn't necessarily the case in later episodes. It also marks something most unusual for the show...one of the team actually killing someone (don't worry...the guy had it coming). Overall, a strane but enjoyable episode which is well worth your time...even though it's a mobster episode...and mobster episodes are often disappointing.