Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5606 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2008-10-21
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Box set, Black & White, Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 41
• Running time: 5620 minutes

Features

• Episodes: The Vulcan Affair The Iowa Scuba Affair The Quadripartite Affair The Shark Affair The Deadly Games Affair The Green Opal Affair The Giuco Piano Affair The Double Affair The Project Strigas Affair The Finny Foot Affair The Neptune Affair The Dove Affair The King of Knaves Affair The Terbuf Affair The Deadly Decoy Affair The Fiddlesticks Affair The Yellow Scarf Affair T

Album Description
It was the height of the Cold War, a time when most Americans had only the vaguest understanding of international espionage. Then, in 1964, the televised spy genre exploded on the screen in the U.S. and around the world when the groundbreaking series The Man From U.N.C.L.E. pulled the covers off of the spy game in what became must-watch television for the next four years on NBC. Here is The Man From U.N.C.L.E.: The Complete Series, beautifully packaged in a 60's style high tech attach‚ case, complete with all episodes along with hours of viewing extras.

Amazon.com
For Baby Boomers, owning a season or two of a fondly remembered TV series on DVD is enough to satisfy any nostalgic yearnings. The Man From U.N.C.L.E., though, warrants the full-series treatment. It's a wild '60s flashback to the Espionage era that was ushered in by Ian Fleming's James Bond adventures. According to a series retrospective that's just one of this cleverly packaged set's prodigious extras, Fleming himself was recruited to create a spy series for American television. His contribution was the name "Napoleon Solo," the moniker of a crime boss in Goldfinger. That movie, which would kick Bond and spy mania into overdrive, had not yet opened when viewers were introduced to Robert Vaughn's Solo and David McCallum's Illya Kuryakin, agents of the United Network Command for Law and Enforcement. This covert agency operated out of Del Floria's Tailor Shop in New York under the command of true Brit Alexander Waverly (Leo J. Carroll, playing much the same character he portrayed in North by Northwest). The Man from U.N.C.L.E. offered a bit of hope in Cold War America that an American and Russian could work together to stop a common enemy, THRUSH, a ruthless organization bent on world domination. The intriguing conceit of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. was to give audiences an empathetic surrogate who would be plucked from their humdrum lives for whirlwind adventures with Solo and Kuryakin. In the pilot episode, Patricia Crowley guest-stars as a housewife who acts as bait to foil the plans of her former college boyfriend, who is plotting the assassination of a world leader. In a series benchmark, "The Never-Never Affair," a pre-Get Smart Barbara Feldon stars as an U.N.C.L.E. translator who unwittingly becomes involved in actual espionage. Seasons one and two are the series' best, with a stellar roster of guest stars ("The Project Strigas Affair" features the first onscreen pairing of William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy), stylish direction by directors who would go on to some renown (Michael Ritchie, Richard Donner), smart scripts, and great action (a movie theatre shoot-out in "The Never-Never Affair"). In its third season, The Man From U.N.C.L.E. adopted Batman's campy and absurdist tone with shark-jumping results While this season has its share of groaners (in one episode, Sollo watusis with a gorilla), several "Affairs" stand out. Jack Palance and Janet Leigh as a long cool woman in a white dress are great villains in "The Concrete Overcoat Affair." Harlan Ellison wrote the witty "The Pieces of Fate Affair," in which he takes some sly digs at television and literary critics (a THRUSH operative is a book reviewer). Joan Collins makes like Eliza Doolittle in a dual role as a Bronx stripper and a countess in "The Galatea Affair." The series went back to basics in Season Four, but by then, The Avengers was a bigger hit and the writing was on the wall for this once trendsetting series. This lavish box set affair contains upward of ten hours of bonus features, including the unaired series pilot, a series retrospective, an interview with a reunited Vaughn and McCallum, dossiers on each season's guest stars, one of the U.N.C.L.E. feature films edited and expanded from a two-part episode, segments about the great gadgets and cool music, U.N.C.L.E. designs and blueprints, and season-specific booklets.This definitive box set does full justice to a series that had such an impact on popular culture (as witness the bonus Tom & Jerry cartoon, "The Mouse From H.U.N.G.E.R."). More than a blast from the past, The Man From U.N.C.L.E. is still a potent blend of "cloak and swagger." --Donald Liebenson

Customer Reviews

UPDATE to save you a little time...
What we know now about the contents is as follows.
DISC COLLECTION SEASON 1
EPISODE LIST

DISC ONE
1. The Vulcan Affair
2. The Iowa-Scuba Affair
3. The Quadripartite Affair

DISC TWO
4. The Shark Affair
5. The Deadly Games Affair
6. The Green Opal Affair

DISC THREE
7. The Giuoco Piano Affair
8. The Double Affair
9. The Project Strigas Affair

DISC FOUR
10. The Finny Foot Affair
11. The Neptune Affair
12. The Dove Affair

DISC FIVE
13. The King of Knaves Affair
14. The Terbuf Affair
15. The Deadly Decoy Affair

DISC SIX
16. The Fiddlesticks Affair
17. The Yellow Scarf Affair
18. The Mad, Mad Tea Party Affair

DISC SEVEN
19. The Secret Sceptre Affair
20. The Bow-Wow Affair
21. The Four-Steps Affair

DISC EIGHT
22. The Sea-Paris-and-Die Affair
23. The Brain-Killer Affair
24. The Hong Kong Shilling Affair

DISC NINE
25. The Never-Never Affair
26. The Love Affair
27. The Gazebo in the Maze Affair

DISC TEN
28. The Girls of Nazarone Affair
29. The Odd Man Affair

DISC ELEVEN
SPECIAL BONUS FEATURES include:
- Featurette--The Spy-Fi Tour: Archives, Art and Artifacts
- U.N.C.L.E. Feature Film--One Spy Too Many
- Bonus Feature: U.N.C.L.E. V.I.P.S.--A Celebration of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. Guest Stars

DISC COLLECTION SEASON 2
EPISODE LIST

DISC ONE
1. Alexander the Greater Affair, Part I
2. Alexander the Greater Affair, Part II
3. The Ultimate Computer Affair

DISC TWO
4. The Foxes and Hounds Affair
5. The Discotheque Affair
6. The Re-Collectors Affair

DISC THREE
7. The Arabian Affair
8. The Tigers Are Coming Affair
9. The Deadly Toys Affair

DISC FOUR
10. The Cherry Blossom Affair
11. The Virtue Affair
12. The Children's Day Affair

DISC FIVE
13. The Adriatic Express Affair
14. The Yukon Affair
15. The Very Important Zombie Affair

DISC SIX
16. The Dippy Blonde Affair
17. The Deadly Goddess Affair
18. The Birds and the Bees Affair

DISC SEVEN
19. The Waverly Ring Affair
20. The Bridge of Lions Affair, Part I
21. The Bridge of Lions Affair, Part II

DISC EIGHT
22. The Foreign Legion Affair
23. The Moonglow Affair
24. The Nowhere Affair

DISC NINE
25. The King of Diamonds Affair
26. The Project Deephole Affair
27. The Round Table Affair

DISC TEN
28. The Bat Cave Affair
29. The Minus-X Affair
30. The Indian Affairs Affair

DISC ELEVEN
SPECIAL BONUS FEATURES include:
- Featurette--The Cloak & Swagger Affair: The Untold History of The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
- "Solo"--The Original Color U.N.C.L.E. Pilot
- Bonus Feature: U.N.C.L.E. V.I.P.S.--A Celebration of U.N.C.L.E. Guest Stars!

DISC COLLECTION SEASON 3
EPISODE LIST

DISC ONE
1. The Her Master's Voice
2. The Sort of Do-It-Yourself Dreadful Affair
3. The Galatea Affair

DISC TWO
4. The Super-Colossal Affair
5. The Monks of St. Thomas Affair
6. The Pop Art Affair

DISC THREE
7. The Thor Affair
8. The Candidate's Wife Affair
9. The Come with Me to the Casbah Affair

DISC FOUR
10. The Off-Broadway Affair
11. The Concrete Overcoat Affair, Part I
12. The Concrete Overcoat Affair, Part II

DISC FIVE
13. The Abominable Snowman Affair
14. The My Friend the Gorilla Affair
15. The Jingle Bells Affair

DISC SIX
16. The Take Me to Your Leader Affair
17. The Suburbia Affair
18. The Deadly Smorgasbord Affair

DISC SEVEN
19. The Yo-Ho-Ho and a Bottle of Rum Affair
20. The Napoleon's Tomb Affair
21. The It's All Greek to Me Affair

DISC EIGHT
22. The Hula Doll Affair
23. The Pieces of Fate Affair
24. The Matterhorn Affair

DISC NINE
25. The Hot Number Affair
26. The When in Roma Affair
27. The Apple a Day Affair

DISC TEN
28. The Five Daughters Affair, Part I
29. The Five Daughters Affair, Part II
30. The Cap and Gown Affair

DISC ELEVEN
SPECIAL BONUS FEATURES include:
- Interview--Double Agents: The Robert Vaughn and David McCallum Reunion
- The Secret Tapes of Illya Kuryakin: Home Movies from the Set of The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
- Bonus Feature: U.N.C.L.E. V.I.P.S.--A Celebration of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. Guest Stars

DISC COLLECTION SEASON 4
EPISODE LIST

DISC ONE
1. The Summit-Five Affair
2. The Test Tube Killer Affair
3. The "J" for Judas Affair

DISC TWO
4. The Prince of Darkness Affair, Part I
5. The Prince of Darkness Affair, Part II
6. The Master's Touch Affair

DISC THREE
7. The Thrush Roulette Affair
8. The Deadly Quest Affair
9. The Fiery Angel Affair

DISC FOUR
10. The Survival School Affair
11. The Gurnius Affair
12. The Man From Thrush Affair

DISC FIVE
13. The Maze Affair
14. The Deep Six Affair

DISC SIX
15. The Seven Wonders of the World Affair, Part I
16. The Seven Wonders of the World Affair, Part II

SPECIAL BONUS FEATURES include:
- Featurette--MGM's Secret Operations
- Bonus Feature: U.N.C.L.E. V.I.P.S.--A Celebration of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. Guest Stars

PLUS...
The Man From U.N.C.L.E. Bonus Disc 1

The Man From U.N.C.L.E. Bonus Disc 2

The Man From U.N.C.L.E. Attaché Case

The Home Stretch Affair . . .
Fans had been waiting for The Man from U.N.C.L.E. to come to DVD for years, when Time Life finally released a megaset containing all four seasons (105 episodes) and extensive bonus materials, late in 2007. This boxed set is still currently being sold by Time Life for $249.95. Last week, Amazon was apparently selling this same `briefcase' set at a presale price of $139.95, which was a fabulous buy. This week however, the set is now listed as `unavailable' for preorder, and there is no sales price listed. This is not the first time Amazon has pulled this collection off the shelf. We will soon see what Amazon's price will be. Keep your fingers crossed, Best Buy's presale price for the set is $179.99.

Time Life also had exclusive rights to Get Smart, which is only now beginning to be released to the general public. Fortunately, it appears that the U.N.C.L.E. set will be made available much, much sooner. Rather than wait, I got my set through a private sale some months ago. It is a very attractive collection, and while the cardboard briefcase packaging is pretty cool, you may not want to test its durability, as 41 DVD's do weigh quite a bit. Each season is arranged in a separate binder, that can easily be stored like a normal multi DVD set. Two bonus discs are in cardboard sleeves. The photo of the contents of the set is a bit misleading, as some items are shown more than once.

Image and sound quality is very good for a program of this age, and all the episodes are subtitled. Series creator Norman Felton's original concept was to bring a James Bond like character to American television. He even consulted with Bond creator Ian Fleming in the development of the series, and it was Fleming that supposedly came up with the name `Napoleon Solo'. Some of the early episodes featured Solo (Robert Vaughn) operating as a lone agent in the field, however the popularity and charisma of David McCallum as the ultra-cool Russian Illya Kuryakin, led the writers to expand what was intended to be a supporting role. The special chemistry between the two leads, was one of the key factors in the meteoric rise in popularity of the show. The dashing and debonair Vaughn, is quite a gifted actor, and Leo G. Carroll as Mr. Waverly, rounds out the U.N.C.L.E. team. Some fans feel that the first season, which was shot in black and white, was grounded a bit more in reality than the later seasons, but elements of fantasy were very much present from the start. The program had a ton of fabulous guest stars, and a bevy of beautiful women.

The bonus materials total over four hours, and cover many facets of the U.N.C.L.E. universe, including the gadgets, the music, collectables, and the fabulous women that appeared on the series. Trailers, promos, interviews, TV clips, and photo galleries are also included. Those that are hooked on all things U.N.C.L.E. may also want to check out the various soundtracks from the series, as well as John Heitland's informative book, `The Man From U.N.C.L.E. Book: The Behind the Scenes Story of a Television Classic'.

After a long wait, it appears that we are in the home stretch, with the finish line in sight. Once this megaset actually becomes available to the general public, hopefully at an attractive price, those that have been waiting for so long, can put everything in the past, and we can all just enjoy this classic program. It took a while, but it will finally be U.N.C.L.E. time!

"Why not on DVD Affair"
The Man from UNCLE was the first and at times the best secret agent TV show on during the sixties.Cashing in on the James Bond craze of the mid sixties it went from cult show to top of the ratings in 1965 to losing it's focus on what made the show great
and eventual cancellation in January 1968.If you weren't around during this time believe me this show was much more popular than Star Trek. If this show had continued in reruns on syndication and promoted the way Paramount promoted Star Trek in the last 35 years we would be talking about UNCLE the Next Generation and UNCLE the Motion Picture. The only reason I can think of why all of the episodes (over 100) are not on DVD along with the inferior spinoff Girl from UNCLE is the poor management history of MGM who own the rights. If they are reading this why don't you put these out as soon as possible and generate yourself some cash revenues. You might want to tie-in David McCallum now on CBS's Navy NCIS with the promotion.Oh by the way Star Trek fans I wasn't putting it down I was just stating the facts and what can happen when something fans care about is promoted (Star Trek) or ignored (UNCLE).
I am updating my review from early 2004. At the time, I believed that MGM had the legal rights to "The Man from UNCLE" but learned that was no longer the case. That is not surprising with the long history of bad business practises MGM has had over the last thirty years. Norman Felton the producer of the show believed that he held those rights and hired Ember Entertainment to represent him. Plans had been made to release the first season set of DVD`s at the end of July 2006. When that was announced Warner Home Entertainment jumped in and stopped the release claiming they own the rights since they had acquired MGM . So now it is summertime 2006, we are back at square one, and Warners has no intention to release the DVD's in the near future. The only suggestion I can make is a write-in campaign to Warner Home Entertainment telling them that you want "The Man from Uncle " on DVD