Set in Washington, D.C., Get Smart features Maxwell Smart or Agent 86 (Don Adams), his partner and later wife Agent 99 (Barbara Feldon) their boss, The Chief (Edward Platt) and a bunch of other agents, both good and evil. Agent 86 and agent 99 (her real name is never revealed) work for CONTROL, a secret U.S. government spy agency. The pair investigate and thwart various threats to the world, though Smart’s incompetence invariably causes complications. Despite his deficiencies, Maxwell has considerable skills when it comes to hand to hand combat and he’s a good shot. That combined with Agent 99’s smarts and generous helpings of good luck; usually helps Maxwell solve his cases.
So, really when you look at it, the concept of the series was fairly simple. Take the image of a suave super-spy–since the 1960’s was the height of James Bond’s popularity, that was a no-brainer–complete with sexy femme fatales, ingenious gadgets and devious archvillains, and replace the suave guy with an over confident klutz. To make that work though, you have to have the right actors. Don Adams played the role of Agent 86 with utter seriousness. He had a voice like a 1940’s style noir film detective and the look of a CPA. But in order to laugh at a character, they have to have self-respect, and Maxwell has it in every hidden pocket.
Barbara Feldon as Agent 99 is the intelligent member of the team. She uses her astonishingly good looks to her advantage as she continually prevents Maxwell from getting killed. For some odd reason, she’s also very attracted to 86 and the feeling isn’t entirely reciprocated. Paired with Adams, she’s half of an unusual, yet effective comedy duo, showing the kind of give and take that looks effortless and makes for consistently funny material.
Edward Platt, who plays The Chief, shouldn’t be overlooked. Long suffering because of Maxwell’s mistakes, something makes him want to keep 86 around anyway. Platt is perfect as the leader of the agency and each time he reaches his breaking point, is a stand out moment of each episode. As the season progresses, we get to meet more and more of CONTROL’s agents, including the poorly-named K-13, Max’s dog Fang; the always complaining Agent 44, who gets some of the worst assignments imaginable; and the Chief’s assistant, the abused Hopkins (played by recognizable character actor Bryan O’Byrne.)
Get Smart – Season One was filmed in 1965, so there are some references in the series that might be considered politically incorrect: The Craw, a stereotypical Chinese crime lord, or Harry Hoo, the Charlie Chan clone. As a big Mel Brooks fan, I’m not sure he would change those things even today. He might have used the characters differently, but he’s never been afraid to be politically incorrect, if it means getting a laugh.
The full-frame transfers have been remastered, and look tremendous for their age. Aside from the black-and-white pilot, the series’ color is quite vibrant. The audio is presented as Dolby Digital 2.0 tracks, with closed captioning bur no subtitles included.
Though the packaging fails to mention it, Get Smart – Season One does include some interesting extras. There are audio introductions for each episode by Barbara Felton, Agent 99 herself. The set also includes three audio commentaries. Series co-creators Mel Brooks and Buck Henry each provide a track for the show’s pilot episode, “Mr. Big,” while Feldon offers up her thoughts on “Kisses for KAOS.”
Also included with the set is a four-page insert, with an episode list and a essay/history by Rory Mach.
