The Avengers 5.01 - The Fear Merchants

Last year I watched the fourth season of the Avengers. I didn't write complete reviews. I divided the season into three parts and wrote my general thoughts. A year later, I feel braver. I feel more able to write complete reviews of each episode after gaining experience with "Smallville" and "Masha and the Bear". Whether I'll have time to write reviews is a different matter. I'm already falling behind with things that I want to write.

Each episode in the fifth season begins with this screen, announcing that the Avengers is in colour. This was relevant, because the first four seasons of the Avengers were all made in black and white. As far as I know, this screen was only added to the American television broadcasts. This season was broadcast from 14th January to 18th November 1967, but colour television wasn't available in the UK until 15th November 1969. (Apart from some experimental broadcasts, mostly on BBC2). It's a shame that the text on the screen was written by someone who didn't know how to spell "colour".

Everyone already knew that Diana Rigg was a beautiful actress, but she looked stunning in colour. Only the Americans profited from this. I watched the episodes every week in black and white, and my parents didn't buy a colour television until 1980. The prices of colour televisions were prohibitive at the time. The first time I saw the Avengers in colour was in 2003 when I bought the series on DVD. The Avengers series was one of the main reasons that I invested in my first DVD player. But I don't watch the DVDs any more. In 2015 the series was rereleased on Blu-ray, and it looks better than ever.

The episodes were included on the DVDs in their broadcast order, but on the Blu-rays in their production order. It doesn't make much of a difference, because the episodes were all standalone stories that can be watched in any order. I'll review the episodes in their production order.

Sadly, the first episode is one of the weakest episodes in the season. It has a premise that doesn't stand up. It's called "The Fear Merchants", because it's about a company which sells fear to its customers. Does that sound strange to you? It's easy to explain, but difficult to believe.

The company is called Business Efficiency Bureau. They promise customers that they'll make them successful by eliminating the competition. For instance, Jeremy Raven is the owner of a ceramics company. It's the largest ceramics company in Britain, but there are seven competing companies, individually smaller than his, but in total holding more than 50% of the market share. He proposes mergers, with himself as the head of the new companies, but they all turn him down. He turns to the Business Efficiency Bureau for help. Their fee is 50% of the increase  in profits.

The BEB sends a market research questionnaire to the owner of each of the seven competitors. Based on the results, a psychiatrist calculates what the person's greatest fear is. For instance, a businessman who suffers from agoraphobia is drugged and then carried to Wembley Stadium, where he wakes up the next day. The shock drives him mad. Another man is scared of spiders, and the appearance of a giant spider in his room gives him a mental breakdown.

The problems are manifold. What if a company chief refuses to answer the questionnaire? Is it certain that he's also afraid of something? If he is, what are the chances that he's so terrified of <fill-in-the-blank> that being exposed to it will drive him mad?

The head of the BEB is Pemberton, played by the veteran actor Patrick Cargill. He was best known for playing comedy roles, but in this episode he has the air of a Bond villain.

Every Bond villain needs a muscle-bound henchman at his side. That's Gilbert.

The brilliant but evil psychiatrist is Dr. Voss. Oh wait! I've just decided that she's my biggest fear. If I woke up in the morning and found her lying naked in bed with me I'd scream at the top of my voice.

What was Jeremy Raven thinking? If I walked into a business meeting and were confronted by characters like this, I'd turn and leave immediately.

Pemberton and his cronies are no match for John Steed and Emma Peel. All it takes is for Steed to swing his umbrella at them and Emma to aim a few karate chops.

Here's a gratuitous rear view of Emma Peel and John Steed.

I hope you enjoy it. There are also naked feet in the episode, but I'll save treats like that for a future review.

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