Danger Man "The Prisoner" #1.13 (1960) (TV)

A tired plot device, 30 September 2014

John Drake's Mission: Free an American being held captive in an American embassy in a foreign country.

I would most likely rate this episode higher had Drake come up with a different plan - almost any other plan - to free James Carpenter from the embassy. His plan involved the tired old plot device of a double who could pass for Carpenter. As another reviewer wrote, it's "cliched". It's been done a million times and never is it believable. The Danger Man script would have you believe Drake was able to find at least three (might have been four) candidates that were exact duplicates of Carpenter. Apparently, in the world of Danger Man, doppelgangers grow on trees. Like I said, any other plan to free Carpenter would have been more original than this one.

Still, if you accept the look-alike, The Prisoner is not half bad. Good action, interesting plot twists, a nice ending, and more good looking sets. Also, The Prisoner features William Sylvester in five or six different roles. He's always quite good whether battling monsters in Gorgo, matching wits with a hypnotist in Devil Doll, or playing someone's double in Danger Man, he always gives a solid performance.

I'm giving this one a 6/10.

6/10