Waterlog

[truepenny]

TIME: 50 min.
DISTANCE: 5.5 mi.
TOTAL DISTANCE: 95.4 mi.
DISTRACTION: "The Vulcan Affair" (The Man from U.N.C.L.E. 1.1)
NOTES: Napoleon Solo runs like a girl.
SHIRE-RECKONING: Old Man Willow! AIEEEEEEE!!!

---

Although I love all four seasons of The Man from U.N.C.L.E., I have to admit the first season episodes, with their moody noir atmosphere, beautiful B&W cinematography, and delicate moral ambiguity, are the ones I admire most. And I love this episode, in 1964, for letting the housewife rescue the spy.

Comments

[ellen-fremedon.livejournal.com]

"The Vulcan Affair" (The Man from U.N.C.L.E. 1.1)

I watched that two weeks ago and loved it. I'm only three discs into the series-- I haven't seen any of the later seasons yet, but so far I'm enjoying the black-and-white ones immensely.

[truepenny.livejournal.com]

I have to warn you--Seasons 2 & 3 are overall much campier than Season 1 (or Season 4, which returns to moral ambiguity and convoluted plots). This may or may not bother you, but I can imagine that if you're watching the show in order, it could come as a bit of a shock.

[clhollandwriter]

We picked up a few of the old VHS a while back and watched those, and noted at the time that the early b&W episodes seemed a lot darker in tone than the later ones. And Illya Kuryakin is more ruthless. :D

[oracne.livejournal.com]

MMMMMMMMMMMM, first season. I just watched "The Vulcan Affair" a few weeks ago. Napoleon, if on a tv show today, would likely be labelled a skeezy horndog for some of his antics....

[truepenny.livejournal.com]

On the other hand, he doesn't make a single move on Elaine. (I love the way that the post-trauma catharsis is laughter rather than sex.) Napoleon is a slut, but he's a slut with ethics.

[oracne.livejournal.com]

True. And he is often oddly gentle with the female guest characters.

[truepenny.livejournal.com]

He values their innocence. (The bit at the end where he's watching Elaine and her family and is clearly delighted--but not wistful. He likes his life.) Also, his taste in women--insofar as he discriminates, which isn't very far--seems to run toward the ones who could kill him, like Angelique and Serena.

[oracne.livejournal.com]

I always wondered if there WERE many women between cases for Napoleon. One would think yes would be obvious, but I don't think so...maybe not nearly as many as he pretends there are.