Romo Shows

Avengers '66: Vol. 4
$19.95
Melding mod style and British tradition, the 1960s spy spoof `The Avengers' concluded its black-and-white era with these three episodes. For those who don't want to invest in a complete set, these episodes offer a good overview of the show's many strengths and occasional weakness. As usual, well-tailored Patrick Macnee is on hand as gentleman spy John Steed. While Macnee is great with all his partners, his chemistry is tops with thin, arch Diana Rigg as capable woman-about-town Emma Peel. Trend-setting visuals, stylish fashions and snappy patter made this show unique. Even more striking at the time, Emma and other leading ladies were strong and competent, as capable of rescuing Steed as vice versa. This season saw the writers put Rigg into a series of notorious costumes that irked censors at the time, although they're fairly tame by current standards. `A Sense of History' sends our heroes to university, researching economic theory and murder. It's not quite a top episode, but Macnee and Rigg swap good lines. For some reason, Emma winds up in a Robin Hood costume that shows off Rigg's long legs. The diabolical mastermind is one of the series' patented eccentrics. Speaking of eccentric, writer Brian Clemens' misogyny bleeds through his script for `How to Succeed... at Murder.' There are some nicely atmospheric scenes, and good guest turn by Christopher Benjamin and his, um, magnificent beast. But while ridiculing feminism and women in general, this episode puts Rigg and other young women in bodystockings for much of the time. Vastly better, `Honey for the Prince' is one of the great comic adventures of this or any other TV show. The fond rapport between the two leads is obvious from the opening. A wonderful gallery of supporting eccentrics makes this a romp, while the plot about great power maneuvers for oil remains timely. Patrick Macnee fans will enjoy seeing their hero a bit mussed after a fight, and nonplussed when Steed's arranged fantasy turns out to be chief eunuch in a harem. That's the cue for one of Emma's briefest costumes, although her tiny bustier isn't a good look on the tiny-busted Diana Rigg. Rigg offsets her lack of cleavage with a lot more exposure to the rear in a pair of low-cut, diaphanous Turkish trousers. She keeps the spotlight with a very mild dance of six veils as well as more energetic swordplay. Like our heroine, the A&E discs availabe in the US don't offer a lot of extras, but what's on display here will please most viewers.

Avengers '66: Vol. 3
$19.95
You'll love these black-and-white Avengers episodes but buy the set for a much better deal:

Avengers '66 - Set 2, Vols. 3 & 4

Avengers '65: Vol. 1
$19.95
With a provocative swat on her leather-clad bottom, John Steed (Patrick Macnee) first clashes swords with his new partner, Mrs.?Emma Peel (Diana Rigg), in "The Town of No Return," the episode that launched the fourth season of The Avengers. "Town" begins on a characteristically surreal note as a figure emerges from the sea in what looks like a giant Hefty bag. Out pops an impeccably dressed gent who notes to a nonplussed fisherman, "Looks like rain," which brings us to Bazeley-by-the-Sea, a quaint but odd village where four agents have disappeared. Will Steed and Mrs. Peel be numbers five and six? Like one of the treats Steed offers Peel on their Bazeley-bound train, this episode is "a marzipan delight." In "The Gravediggers," Steed and Mrs.?Peel dig up a sinister plot to sabotage Britain's radar defense system. But this doesn't quite explain how Mrs.?Peel finds herself tied to a train track with a miniature locomotive chugging toward her! "The Cybernauts" was the first episode to air in the United States. Steed and Mrs.?Peel are up against automated assassins made by an inventor who plots to create an electronic dictatorship. A highlight is an elegantly dressed Mrs.?Peel's karate fight. All three episodes are in glorious black and white. --Donald Liebenson

The Avengers '65: Set 2 [VHS]
$19.95
Very,very poor customer service. Received email that claims item was ready to be shipped over 5 weeks ago. Item was never received and two emails were sent asking where the item was and if it had actually been shipped. Seller never even bothered to respond back. Would not recommend this seller at all.

The Avengers '65: Set 2 [VHS]