The Slave: Part 1

I wonder how Greg Morris felt about doing this two-part episode. Generally, his character, Barney, played behind the scenes or occasional bit roles. However, here he's a major character. Great, huh? Well...the script calls for him to play a slave! Yikes.

The episode is set in a fictitious Muslim nation where the slave trade is tolerated (something sadly true in some instances today). The King turns a blind eye to the industry and the team's mission is to change this. So they infiltrate the slave ring with Phelps and Barney.

Like MOST two-part episodes I've seen of various TV shows, this one easily could have been done in one and was stretched out quite a bit to shove it into two episodes. I think this hurt the show a bit, So did the hellishly bad scene involving incredibly fake looking bats. And, that Phelps was nearly killed a couple times and easily COULD have been! But it still pays off fine at the end and is worth seeing...even if Barney did end up getting a really, really crappy job!

By the way, the most interesting thing about the shows are a bit role, Kadi. He was played by Peter Lorre Jr....but he was NOT related to the famous actor in any way! This jerk called himself this to cash in on Lorre's fame but was unrelated and got sued by Lorre to stop him from pretending to be the man's son!! After Peter Lorre died, the faux Peter Lorre Jr. went back to using this pseudonym!

The episode takes place in a fictitious Muslim country, the "only one to have slaves". This shows how much the west is oblivious to what's happening, even today. The slave trade is very common in many Muslim countries, and millions of people are affected by it. This is so sad, and it leaves a bit of a bitter taste because guys, you haven't really solved anything. Maybe it fits the way the CIA was bumbling up on the 60s and 70s - they always thought that changing this regime or the other will solve the issue - but never was it the case.

Btw, I can also not imagine white women being sold as slaves in these countries. I can't imagine anyone buying them - the risk is too large. Why do it when you have many that the west doesn't care about?

Besides that - great 2 episodes, full of tricks and deceptions as the IM force knows how to make.

Watching this and other Season 2 episodes, there's so much to like! Martin Landau always brought a sharp intelligence, an alert edginess, to the part, which adds a great deal. He was one of those special actors: always interesting to watch, whatever he's he's doing. In this series, he's the secret agent par excellence. Barbara Bain was also outstanding; we were lucky to have them for three seasons.

What especially distinguishes this episode is the very fine set dressing: the Middle Eastern feel of the market, with lots of merchants, the occasional wandering goat, and so on. Also, as guest stars we have Antoinette Bower and Joseph Ruskin, two of the finest actors working in 1960's television. The Middle Eastern costumes, also, were very interesting and even lavish.

This episode shows our MI team using some clever ideas to advance their plan. The emphasis is not on high-tech gadgets this time out. One nice aspect of this episode, is that we get a lot of outdoor scenes. I was watching this and thinking, "this is as good as a movie." Fans will enjoy this two parter.

PART 1

I agree with the last reviewer the sets in this adventure are the real star. The studio production folks did their research thoroughly, making some realistic backgrounds and the costumes are impressive. This should have gotten a special Emmy for production values, but there probably was no category back in the day.

Lee H. Katzin directed with his usual style, which meant some fine performances from all. It's all about a nefarious king in the far East, a small country in the Persian Gulf, who trades slaves with a passion! Joseph Ruskin is just perfect as King Borca, who played so many crafty types in his long career. He had a distinct look, and an excellent actor at that.

Naturally, to bring the king down, Phelps enters the mix as a slave trader! (looking like a kind of pre INDIANA JONES) --and poor Barney (with a beard) has the terrible task of playing a slave. But that's what the team gets paid the big bucks for, right? Watch how this all comes down, another extremely clever fake out, and with some close calls!

Beautiful Antoinette Bower plays Amara, and Sid Haig as Musha, another great heavy in the tradition of Joseph Ruskin. Both actors had similar styles. An interesting note is that we get a glimpse of Peter Lorre, Jr, playing Kani. Lorre looked like the famous actor, but was absolutely NO relation (Lorre actually had a daughter) and was sued by him. Unfortunately, the real Peter Lorre died and the fake Lorre continued to use his name for the rest of his short career. He made two appearances on the series, and actually was not a bad actor. His downfall was his name and he should have changed it.

One of the best tricks in this episode is hiding underneath a truck! That goes back to the days of classic serial movies, and no doubt the writers watched a lot of those old films for ideas.

Also Rollin (Martin Landau) looks great undercover with curly hair, and Peter Lupus is a hoot selling robes in the market place. Barbara Bain (Cinnamon) plays a singer on tour! That's original. Popular actor Warren Stevens plays one of the no nonsense slave buyers. Warren was a natural in many cop shows.

It's true, this all could have been done in one episode, but the producers wanted to stretch it, for big ratings, which they probably got in the end.

SEASON 2 remastered (2007) Paramount dvd box set.