Search - Combat - Season 5 Invasion 1 on DVD

What a shame it had to end!

T Man | NJ | 09/27/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Own all five seasons and hated to see it end.Combat was still rolling along when it was suddenly cancelled.Many blamed the
color version of season five helped kill the show,but that is
far from the truth.Season Five is/was terrific as well as the
first four.From what i understand,the producers back in the
60's wanted to get the show to syndication as quickly as possible
and thus the reason for cancelling.....more money!Today its just
the opposite,keep the show running to make more money.I am glad
i purchased this complete series,the only drawback was the time-
compressed issues of the first 4 seasons.Image claimed that
these time-compressed versions produced the best possible picture
quality and couldnt get hold of the original.I hope that this is
true,but wonder - how did they find Season Five?Also heard that
the entire series is going to be released in December in one
complete box package,better not be non-time compressed or i will
not be a happy camper!
To the person below - Time compressed basically is this:
The show (film)s speed is increased so more commercials can
be squeezed in once a show hits syndication.There isnt any
cutting or missing footage,however the extra time,say 2 or
3 minutes for commercials is made up by the films speed.The
film runs faster,usually barely noticed by the human eye,but
careful study you can sometimes see a slight difference
in lip sync to the words.In combat,its not all that noticeable
in most episodes."

Season 5 - The Final Combat! Theatre

Glenn M. Schoditsch | Richmond, Virginia USA | 05/16/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The most obvious change here in Season 5 was the switch to color film. I won't say that the show is diminished by this move but it really is different. A great comparison is the one experimental color episode of Perry Mason, which BTW just didn't work. The same effect happened with "The Fugitive" which also moved to color in it's final season and experienced the same apparent decline.

With the pallette change and a reduction of episodes produced (25), the show just feels so different with our attention now focused more on the visual rather than the expressive aspects. Even Saunder's broad range of facial expressions emoting a vast repertoire of emotions is different; not bad, just not the same.

As I am a strong opponent of "colorization" of B&W movies and TV shows, I almost would reverse myself this one time and have this season "grayscaled".

But regardless of my opinions on color, Combat! stills stands head above ANY TV show ever produced and ALL five seasons hold their own. I heartily recommend the complete 5 season set."

Color is not disappointing

Hiram Grant | 02/14/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"After watching the first 4 seasons, I was a bit apprehensive about the final season being in color. No problem! It was different, but just as entertaining.

The quality of the episodes held up well, although after 5 seasons there is a bit of repetition. You might be afraid that Morrow was getting tied of the part, but it does show on screen."

Combat - Season 5, Invasion 1

Harry Brewer | S'port, La. | 10/10/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Season five of Combat! had a considerable number of changes, most of them not very good. The most obvious change is the switch to color. Strangely, Combat! did not play as well in this medium. Some blame this change as a major reason for its decline. I feel it was a drop off in the quality of scripts. If your foundation is weak it's hard to build a strong building. The acting was still outstanding but the directors were now all second-line. And, let's face it, Combat! was beginning to get stale. The character of Kirby went through a major change also; he was no longer the complainer or dissenter, he was now spouting the company line. The character of Pvt. McCall (William Bryant) had been added on a semi-regular basis & he was the dissenter of the group.

This set opens with "The Gun" which was the premiere episode of season five. The squad is ordered to destroy a German fortified position. A tank is called in but it's put out of action by a German artillery piece. The squad goes after the artillery piece, capture it, then move it by hand across rough terrain. This episode features Wayne Rogers (M*A*S*H). In "The Losers" Saunders is forced to use four soldiers that are being held for court martial on a mission. Bill Bixby (My Favorite Martian, The Incredible Hulk) & Bill Gray (Father Knows Best) are guest stars. "A Child's Game" has the squad pitted against a squad of green teenage Germans. "The Brothers" features Fernando Lamas as the older of two French brothers in the French underground. Sal Mineo is the younger brother who isn't made of the necessary material to be in the underground. Unfortunately the older brother doesn't realize this until it's too late. "The Furlough" has Saunders traveling to London to see a woman who was engaged to a man who had been killed in action while in Saunders' squad. "Cry for Help" features Robert Duvall as a German medic who's been captured by Hanley. "Ollie Joe" features Robert Walker, Jr. as the title character & also has Claude Akins as a guest star. "Gadjo" features Ricardo Montalban as the leader of a group of Gypsies who wants Saunders to turn over a German SS officer that's responsible for killing many of them. "Anniversary" guest stars Telly Savalas who's sniping at Germans & Americans because he wants to be left alone.

None of these episodes are among the best of Combat! nor are any of them my personal favorites. It's sad because Combat! was a groundbreaking series that was done reasonably realistic. It had been a quality show up to this point.

There are bonus features with the set that include: Notes, Oddities & Bloopers by Jo Davidsmeyer for most episodes; a photo gallery; & audio commentaries on two episodes, ""The Gun" (Warren Stevens), "Cry for Help" (Conlan Carter); "Combat! This Season in Color, Part 1"."