Diagonaldi Very well executed

StunnaKrypto Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

Bea Swanson This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Stephanie There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

Desmond Pereira How could you not resist singing along to Tony Christie's wonderful rendition of "Avenues & Alleyways"? I love this series not for the plots that went nowhere, but for the great cast of Robert Vaughan, Nyree Dawn Porter (deceased) in a pseudo-Italian accent and the very handsome Tony Anholt (deceased) who looked decorative, spoke with a French accent and was always elegantly attired). A special mention needs to be made for Yasuko Nagazumi who plays Harry Rule's talented and elegant personal assistant. Check out her hairstyles and creative costumes!This series epitomised the stylish early 70's when men wore fitted suits, silk neck-scarves and sexy shoes, when women wore outrageous dresses, make-up and very high, creative hairstyles.Another Gerry Anderson production (I'm a fan of his work, especially UFO), this series was very much like "The Persuaders", set all over continental Europe and featuring some interesting guest stars of the day. The locations alone are worth watching for.Watch this series just for the fun and the retro memories. Don't take the story lines too seriously - it was just the early 70's; and that's what mattered!

perwilvil I have seen various ITC shows in reruns on television, but not this one until recently. I wasn't expecting much after seeing another short-lived ITC show, The Baron (awful), but this one really shines. The production values on this show really show, with some fantastic cars (Citroen SM, Rolls Royce Slver Shadow, and Jensen Interceptor), stylish clothes, and actual location shooting. Granted some of this is 1970's kitsch, but it looks pretty glamorous compared to the excellent Saint series, which in my opinion was compromised somewhat by its lack of location work. Even big budget American shows like Mission:Impossible shied away from location work. It was always filmed at the studio, and the sets always looked familiar . . . but not The Protectors. The half-hour format format really lends itself to tight stories without excessive dialog. And Gerry Anderson really pulled together some great talent on this one, particularly the writers. One of the let downs is Robert Vaughn, who is okay, but doesn't seem very interested in what he is doing. Nevertheless, he is head and shoulders above Steve Forrest in the Saint ripoff, the Baron, though significantly short of the stylish Roger Moore. Its a shame this show didn't last longer as ITC had a good formula on its hands.

aimless-46 "The Protectors" was a British television show (ITC) back in 1972-74. It was an attempt to capture the spirit of "The Avengers" and "The Saint", and to capitalize on Robert Vaughn's fading "The Man From UNCLE" popularity. The best part of the show was its catchy "Avenues and Alleyways" theme song played at the beginning and ending of each 24-minute episode. New viewers will find even 24 minutes too long as the low budget and lack of talent (both writing and acting) doom things from an entertainment perspective, unless you can find unintended humor in the idea of an action adventure show in which action and adventure are conspicuously absent. Vaughn plays Harry Rule, a member of a three-person team of freelance troubleshooters based in Europe. A fair amount of each 24-minute episode is taken up by scenic "establishment" shots to make it appear that the show was produced on location in a variety of exotic European locales. Harry appears to be the leader of the group, if only because he has the most screen time. Tony Anholt plays the gadget guy (today he would be the team nerd). He is definitely a third wheel, rarely starring in an episode and by the second season rarely even appearing. My theory is that "The Protectors' target audience was nursing home residents with bad hearts, who wanted to see a secret agent type show but could not survive exposure to things like action, suspense, humor and hot romance. Which is about the only way to account for the casting of Myree Dawn Porter as a character called the Contessa di Contini. Despite her exotic name, the Contessa was about as antiseptic and sterile as a wax figure. It is likely that the character was meant to be a slightly more sophisticated version of Emma Peale, but the Contessa avoids all action and contributes nothing in the humor, parody, or seduction departments. Since the popularity of this type of show requires a fair degree of sensual energy, the nursing home explanation is the only way to account for the casting of an actress in her late 30's, especially one clearly showing a lot of mileage. She was certainly no Alexandra Bastedo ("The Champions") and the show's frequent close-ups of her face were not a good idea. If you have nothing better to do than watch this series, watch for the absence of young attractive actresses (a staple of every Saint and UNCLE episode) as villains or heroines. Apparently Porter had a contract clause specifying that no "featured" actress could be younger than her; and they wonder why these things don't get better ratings. Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

robertconnor What opulence! The cars, the clothes, the interior designs, the DOG! Could a seventies show BE any more seventies? From the sublime Jensen Interceptor, to Anholt's neck scarves and Nyree's exquisite trouser suits, from Vaughan's eyebrow acting to the fantastic multi-Euro locales (did an episode ever NOT feature a European airport?)... pure snazz! Who cared that 30 minutes weren't enough? Who gave a damn about the back projections, Nyree's dodgy accents (Italian? British? KIWI??)...? This is a deluxe show, where EVERYONE has a drinks bar inside a big globe, and no matter what is going on, there's always time for a scotch - "drink?" And the yellow car in the opening credits? A FIAT 850 Coupe... so now you know.Altogether now, "All the low are living high!" Groovy!