Search - Get Smart: Season 2 on DVD

Katherine G. from GLENDALE, CA
Reviewed on 3/24/2011...

Hilarious. Lots of physical, slapstick humor. Although this was made in the early '60s, it is every bit as funny today as it was then.

Getting smarter

E. A Solinas | MD USA | 12/07/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Smart. Maxwell Smart. The dumbest spy in the world, who fights on behalf of the forces of goodness and niceness, and succeeded in making democracy vs. communism a lot more entertaining. And the second season of spies, lies and kookiness only gets funnier, with Don Adams and Barbara Feldon continuing to save the free world.



Don Adams is Agent 86, Maxwell Smart, a not-so-bright spy with an endless arsenal of strange devices and odd sayings. The bumbling spy at a top-secret government agency called Control, which tirelessly works to keep the free world free. He's accompanied by his capable partner/love interest Agent 99 (Barbara Feldon), and overseen by the long-suffering Chief (Eward Platt) who puts up with Smart's constant mistakes.



The second season starts off rockily, with KAOS reprogramming Hymie to murder the Chief, and soon they step up their attacks against CONTROL: KAOS's new leader Siegfried (Bernie Kopell) kidnaps the Chief, and Max responds by kidnapping KAOS's top assassin... unfortunately sparking off a bunch of revenge kidnappings, until nobody is left at either organization.



As the season goes on, Max encounters new obstacles and plots against the free world -- he fakes his death, impersonates a safecracker, goes to Casablanca, tries to solve serial killings in the tropics, works in a circus, suffers amnesia, and is pursued by an evil big game hunter, a la "The Most Dangerous Game."



And what's more, and 99 have to deal with art thieves, submarines, mummies, beauty pageants, Arab princes, mouthy KAOS parrots, CONTROL being closed down, smiling killers, bronze paint, the Choker, going to jail, and a seductive woman who may be the dismantlement of Hymie.



The important development of "Get Smart's" second season is that Max finally gets a regular nemesis. As Holmes had his Moriarty, so Max has his Siegfried: a heel-cracking German with an exuberant sidekick, and a catchphrase of his own ("Ve don't ____ here!"). Siegfried isn't in every episode, but he crops up often enough to be worth noting.



Basically, the second season polishes up the kooky spy antics of the first, with more slapstick antics, delightfully weird problems (Max as head of the CONTROL workers' union?), and movie homages ("Goldfinger," "The Most Dangerous Game," "Casablanca"). Not to mention those wonderfully improbable gadgets ("Why hide a tape recorder in a camera and a camera in a tape recorder? Why not just take pictures with the camera, and record with the recorder?" "Because my mind doesn't work that way, that's why!").



Don Adams is the heart of the series, with his quirky face, nasal voice, odd body language and confident catchphrases ("And loving it!"). Max is not your usual inept spy -- he's confident that he's suave and competant, and somehow this carries him through to the end. Barbara Feldon plays a wonderful straight woman to Max's goofiness, while Edward Platt is just wonderful as the long-suffering Chief.



As for the new characters: Kopell is hysterical as "Zigfried," an excitable Germanic KAOS agent who is constantly thwarted by Max, which tends to upset him. David Ketchum is introduced as the aptly named Agent 13, an unlucky guy who is always hiding in tiny unpleasant spaces (garbage cans, freezers).



"Get Smart" didn't get smarter in its second season, but it definitely got better, especially with the introduction of Siegfried. Definitely a must see, for fans of spies and madcap comedy."

Predictable, corny.... and loving it!

In the AmaZone... | 02/19/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Another great season from the 'master' spy in one of TV's best sitcoms. Even over 40 years later, they are still as funny as they were back then. I rented this season while it is on pre-order at Amazon. More Max, more Seigfried, more laughs. Great comedy doesn't seem to get dated like some of the lesser shows do."

Smart Buy

TV Sam | Seattle | 04/21/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"One of the funniest, wackiest shows of all time. One of the smartest, too, although not usually given credit for that. Perfect casting, inspired writing, and wonderfully brought to life by Don Adams, Barbara Feldon, and Edward Platt. The price is very fair, I dislike DVD's that are triple the price that they should be. Great entertainment, great price, a laugh a minute and more. Bring on seasons 3,4, and 5.



DVD MENU PROBLEM: Just for accuracy I should add that the menu on disc #4 is slightly faulty, there's no way to go directly to the final episode because when you select it the DVD takes you to the next to last episode. You have to get to the last episode via the "PLAY ALL" method. Amazon replaced the entire DVD set, but the replacement set has the exact same problem. Still a great DVD set, so I gave it 5 stars."