Cheap Wild, Wild West (Vol. 1: 'The Night of the Inferno') (Video) (Burt Kennedy) Price

Related Products

Customer Reviews of Wild, Wild West (Vol. 1: 'The Night of the Inferno')

The pilot episode of the James Bond of Westerns
"The Night of the Inferno," the pilot episode of "The Wild Wild West," establishes the formula for the television series created by Michael Garrison about the James Bond of the Old West that ran on CBS from September 17, 1965 until September 7, 1970. But while the formula is tried and true, adapting the super spy formula of exotic villains and grandiose plans to rule a significant portion of the American West, the tone of the series is not yet to be established. This is clear as soon as we meet our heroes "James" West (Robert Conrad) and "Artemus" Gordon (Ross Martin).

The pilot starts off with a great hook as condemned prisoner James T. West is dragged to a railroad train in the middle of the night--where he finds President Ulysses S. Grant (James Gregory), who is providing cover for his top undercover agent. Given the cover identity of a rich Eastern dandy with his own private train, Grant sends West out on his first mission to stop the power mad Mexican Juan Manolo who plans to be number one in the whole world. When West and Gordon arrive in Quemada, they find not only the crazy general (Nehemiah Persoff) and his little army but an inscrutable Chinese merchant, Wing Fat (Victor Buono) and one of West's old flames, Lydia Monteran (Suzanne Pleshette). Of course the lady starts shooting at West about a minute after she sees him, but that is to be expected.

Actually, all things considered this is a very decent pilot, which was written by Gilbert Ralston. The camera does spend a lot of time watching West load up on guns and gadgets before heading off to Quemada, but of course each and every one of those toys is going to pay off during the course of the episode. At one point the story is going pretty much right by the numbers, but that is just a set up for some really nice twists at the end. My biggest complaint (besides the fact Grant is rather skinny) is that the character of Gordon is really wasted in this first episode. Fans of the series will immediately recognize Artie's first appearance in the story, but the revelation that he is West's sidekick is tossed off in a meaningless gesture (however, he does turn out to be a mean shot in his own right). Juan Manolo is no Dr. Miguelito Loveless, but then who is?

Final Note: You might be surprsied by the differences in the title cartoon sequence (no hitting ladies this early in the game) and the order the end shots of each act replace the original frozen cartoon images. This still remains the coolest way of going to a station break in television history.

---

The Wild Wild's Best
Great movie, if you like black and white films. I thought it was good, and I would definitely recommend it. It was one of the "better" episodes, and I enjoyed it. Even though the show is old, it doesn't affect the quality of the tapes. In fact, everything is perfect. There was nothing wrong with mine, no fuzziness or tracking problems at all. The picture was clear as a bell, and even the little paper slip cases hold up well, so it isn't cheap. Great story, great "surprise" ending, and it is not a waste of money, even though the movie is only an hour long. I can guarantee you at least one night of good viewing...I've watched my copy at least ten times since I bought it. It is a little cheesy (in the best possible since), but so are all old movies. I would encourage you to buy it, because you will get your money's worth. I would talk more about how great the plot is, but you'll have to see that for yourself :)

---

An Enjoyable "WWW" Reunion
Though a bit too campy in spots, "Wild Wild West Revisited" (1979) recaptured some of the imaginative spirit of the original series. Since Robert Conrad and Ross Martin were older, it was impossible to continue in the same vein as the 1965-69 show. Still, it's great seeing James West and Artemus Gordon together again -- and the TV movie has a big-budget feel with its use of Arizona locations. "Wild Wild West Revisited" is nostalgic fun, but cannot hold a candle to the original show.