This first-ever episode of THE A-TEAM is a two-hour pilot which takes time to get to know the characters, their world, and the situation in which they find themselves. As a child of the 1980s, I know of this TV show very well, but this is the first time I've actually sat down to watch an episode. The first hour of this is quite slow, setting up the plot and coming across as quite cheesy, but the second half moves into the action quotient and has near constant fight scenes, showdowns, and various chases involving planes and trucks and the like. The characters are larger than life and funny, the plot is simplistic in the extreme, and the whole thing is dated in that "'80s excess" kind of way, but those are precisely the reasons I liked it.
7 Reviews
Silly, but still very fun to watch.
joshi_35921 January 2010
The A-Team isn't exactly the most deep show ever made, but it's pure fun. Sure it's a 80's show, and has corny lines, and a lot of action sequences, but for some reason that'm part of it's charm.
The idea behind the A-Team couldn't be simpler, they're a bunch of Vietnam veterans who has become soldiers of fortune. They do thing's their own way, and helps people not always for money, but because it's the right thing to do. I guess they have a sort of Robin Hood complex, as they always scam rich people to get what they need to help the less fortunate.
The A-team has a great time dynamic, and that's the heart of the series. We got George Peppard as John 'Hannibal' Smith, the leader and a master of disguise. Dirk Benedict as Templeton 'Faceman' Peck, the scammer of the gang. My favourite Dwight Schultz as 'Howling Mad' Murdock, the pilot who's a little mentally unstable. And the man who needs no introduction Mr. T as B.A. Baracus.
I'm looking forward to see more of the A-team and i tell you it's definitely worth watching. I give the pilot episode a 7/10.
The idea behind the A-Team couldn't be simpler, they're a bunch of Vietnam veterans who has become soldiers of fortune. They do thing's their own way, and helps people not always for money, but because it's the right thing to do. I guess they have a sort of Robin Hood complex, as they always scam rich people to get what they need to help the less fortunate.
The A-team has a great time dynamic, and that's the heart of the series. We got George Peppard as John 'Hannibal' Smith, the leader and a master of disguise. Dirk Benedict as Templeton 'Faceman' Peck, the scammer of the gang. My favourite Dwight Schultz as 'Howling Mad' Murdock, the pilot who's a little mentally unstable. And the man who needs no introduction Mr. T as B.A. Baracus.
I'm looking forward to see more of the A-team and i tell you it's definitely worth watching. I give the pilot episode a 7/10.
Mexican Slayride
Prismark1021 October 2017
I have memories of this being a great show when I was a kid but looking back at the pilot episode again, it comes across as rather cheesy and even slow moving. To think this series was rather notorious for its violence back in the day.
Tim Dunigan was Faceman for the first episode and he really was Babyfaced and rather lacks the charisma of Dirk Benedict.
The set up is journalist Amy Allen goes in for a protracted search for some mercenaries in order to rescue her fellow journalist in Mexico. Once she gets hold of Hannibal Smith and hires The A Team they end up helping out some poor villagers from an armed militia running the town by getting them to grow drugs. All the while the US military are out to get our crew.
It is fun to see some action actually taking place at the Universal back-lot with some actual scenes shot in Mexico. Dwight Schultz and Mr T were the breakout stars from this show. The most memorable scene in the pilot is Mr T having a punch out with a big Mexican.
Tim Dunigan was Faceman for the first episode and he really was Babyfaced and rather lacks the charisma of Dirk Benedict.
The set up is journalist Amy Allen goes in for a protracted search for some mercenaries in order to rescue her fellow journalist in Mexico. Once she gets hold of Hannibal Smith and hires The A Team they end up helping out some poor villagers from an armed militia running the town by getting them to grow drugs. All the while the US military are out to get our crew.
It is fun to see some action actually taking place at the Universal back-lot with some actual scenes shot in Mexico. Dwight Schultz and Mr T were the breakout stars from this show. The most memorable scene in the pilot is Mr T having a punch out with a big Mexican.
Rough start for the A-Team
70s_Connoisseur1 July 2023
The A-Team kicks off with Hannibal working as monster character at Universal Studios. To enjoy the show you have over look a lot common sense. None of the members of the A-Team are in hiding. Murdock lives in a military mental institution. Tim Dunigan plays Faceman but is replaced after the first show. One of most unbelievable moments comes at the end of show when Hannibal says he could use a cold beer. Faceman, after just finishing the combat mission, cracks open a beer from his pocket, and hands it to Hannibal. That scene made Tim Dunigan look ridiculous. B. A.'s character is full of one liners. Mr T is the only actor without any real acting experience. But he does well considering his acting experience. The downside of his character is he is treated like an unreasonable animal that has to be beat to comply. There are a least 4 episodes where he is hit in the back of the head with a blunt object. Almost guaranteed he had CTE or brain damage (and no VA benefits). You have to watch show the through the eyes of a 12 year old to enjoy it.
Pivotal scene cut from iTunes
onsmo28 December 2018
Warning: Spoilers
This is not a review so much as an FYI.
About 3/4 into this pilot episode (halfway through Part 2), BA gives the villagers a pep talk, a veritable monologue, remarkable in showing a side of BA we virtually never see again throughout the entirety of the series, and essential to the scene in terms of understanding how the villagers go from apprehensive to emboldened.
On iTunes, this pep talk is entirely and inexplicably excised from this scene. In fact, BA is omitted completely. We don't even know he's there. The scene is edited such that one villager says no, another says yes, they take a vote, and the yeses win. I don't know if this is unique to iTunes or if the scene is similarly altered elsewhere, but as a fan of the show, BA, and Mr. T, it's a travesty.
Please put the scene back in, iTunes. If you're cutting for time, please take it from other places. Mr. T is the single exception to an all-white cast, and this is one of the only scenes in the whole series where we glimpse beyond the awesome one-liners.
About 3/4 into this pilot episode (halfway through Part 2), BA gives the villagers a pep talk, a veritable monologue, remarkable in showing a side of BA we virtually never see again throughout the entirety of the series, and essential to the scene in terms of understanding how the villagers go from apprehensive to emboldened.
On iTunes, this pep talk is entirely and inexplicably excised from this scene. In fact, BA is omitted completely. We don't even know he's there. The scene is edited such that one villager says no, another says yes, they take a vote, and the yeses win. I don't know if this is unique to iTunes or if the scene is similarly altered elsewhere, but as a fan of the show, BA, and Mr. T, it's a travesty.
Please put the scene back in, iTunes. If you're cutting for time, please take it from other places. Mr. T is the single exception to an all-white cast, and this is one of the only scenes in the whole series where we glimpse beyond the awesome one-liners.
Awesome
bevo-1367829 March 2020
The A-Team begins
safenoe13 April 2024
Warning: Spoilers
For me, one of the best shows from the 1980s was The A-Team, and I remember recording the pilot, Mexican Slayride on video (VHS not beta) and watching it over and over again, and I also remember that Tim Dunigan played Templeton 'Faceman' Peck but unfortunately got replaced by Dirk Benedict, well maybe I don't know, because Benedict actually added some character to the role of Peck. Mr T. Pretty much became the central character of not only this episode, but also The A-Team, and I think this was much to the chagrin of George Peppard, who was the nominal lead actor in this series which really defined the 1980s entertainment landscape.
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