Buck Rogers in the 25th Century "The Plot to Kill a City" #1.4-5 (1979) (TV)

Yet another two-parter, 14 March 2008

"The Plot to Kill a City" is actually another two-part episode (how many does that make so far?). Buck goes undercover as a criminal named Raphael Argus to infiltrate a group known as the Legion of Death. Fortunately for Buck, none of the other members have actually met Raphael Argus – they only know him by reputation. Buck learns that the group plans to get revenge for one of their members who was killed by the Defense Directorate. Unfortunately, Buck's cover is blown and he'll have to save his own skin if he's to save New Chicago from destruction.

Overall, these aren't two of the better episodes of Buck Rogers in the 25th Century that I've watched so far (okay, I know I've only watched seven episodes, but these two would rank fifth and sixth out of seven). There are several problems, but the big one for me is the whole Legion of Death concept. The silly name, the even sillier hand signal, and following the orders of Frank Gorshin do not make for a very intimidating band of assassins. Gorshin is terrible in the part of the group's leader, Kellogg. Besides not looking the part, he continually does some weird thing with his hands that's terribly distracting. John Quade as Quince (what alliteration!) and Nancy DeCarl as Sherese fare no better. That's especially true of Quade who looks ridiculous in his sheep's wool get-up. In fact, other than a lot of boisterous talk, the group of would-be terrorists doesn't do much of anything. Buck should have been able to handle this group with his eyes closed. Without effective bad guys, you don't get a very effective episode (or episodes as the case may be).

Even with the problems, this is still Buck Rogers and there's still some fun to be had. From the always enjoyable cheese of the special effects to the outfits worn by Erin Grey (and in these episodes, Markie Post), there's enough here that qualifies as entertainment to keep "The Plot to Kill a City" from being a total disaster. So a 6/10 seems about right.

6/10