Airwolf (TV Series) Bite of the Jackal (1984) User Reviews

Cheesy but hey it's Airwolf!

[mm-39 · 6/10 · 2 January 2020]

Cheesy but hey it's Airwolf! Bite of the Jackal is full of plot holes. How did Airwolf fly home with no fuel, where does Airwolf get supplies and maintenance in a Cave? But hey it's like being critical of Batman! Bite of the Jackal has a plot twists of the helpful miners which adds to a the story. The usual story of a bunch of people trying to capture Airwolf with Saniti as bait, with a little girl in toe to boot. All plot devices, are in check with this episode. Will hum why would the secret gas missile not destroy Airwolf in a crash? Good question. Anyways, the air combat make Bite of the Jackal worth watching. Bite of the Jackal is a cool name too. Okay! 6 stars.

Bite of the Jackal

[Prismark10 · 4/10 · 7 May 2018]

In the previous episode Hawke has to rescue an Eurasian boy from the clutches of the Russians.

Now it is Santini's turn to be lumbered with a young girl, Phoebe Danner played by a young Shannon Doherty who is a stowaway in his chopper. The trouble is Santini is bait for an operative inside The Firm who want's Archangel's role.

Santini's vintage helicopter is on its way to Acapulco but crash lands when a bomb is triggered. Santini and the girl are surrounded by bad guys, all he can do is wait for Hawke to come to the rescue.

Hawke gets Archangel to assist him, they crash land in the Mexican desert where they need to get help from the locals, one of them has an eye for Hawke's rugged looks.

There are some nice action scenes at the end of the episode but maybe enough of the kids to lighten the episode because the leading man is so brooding.

Airwolf - Bite of the Jackal

[Scarecrow-88 · 5/10 · 15 September 2018]

A rival of ArchAngel's at the F.I.R.M, Mitchell Bruck (Scott Hylands), sees the chance to gain position over him by setting a trap to gain control of the Airwolf when sending out an agent to set a bomb on an aging chopper Santini would be piloting to Acapulco for a client named Queenie. While String decides to stay back at Dominic's headquarters, despite urgings from Santini to come with, the trip does indeed fall victim to the small bomb, setting the chopper down in the Socorro. Meanwhile, String and ArchAngel will join forces to find Santini, knowing that Mitchell (and a Mexican Colonel Arias' (Julio Medina) soldiers, along with two of the F.I.R.M's weaponized helicopters, ArchAngel fought hard for funding!) is waiting for them to arrive. Santini isn't alone, however...Phoebe Danner (Shannon Doherty herself!), a teenage girl looking for her father, had stowawayed in Santini's chopper, on route to Acapulco. So with Phoebe also to worry about, as well as, knowing String was certain to come to his rescue, Santini has plenty to worry about...it doesn't help that Mitch and Arias arrive with surrounding forces, telling them that any attempts to move from their area would result in death! String makes one close rescue but Mitch hits the rotor with a missile from a missile launcher, leaving the Airwolf "wounded". So String and ArchAngel fortunately find a farm on the "saltlands", occupied by friendly (but seeking financial "reward" in exchange for their help) locals led by Joachim Santos and his sister, Miriam (Rafael Campos and Ruth Britt), with the tools and fire needed to help repair the rotor while Santini also works on his downed chopper, with assistance from Phoebe. The results are obviously not in doubt as Mitch fails to capitalize on threatening to kill Santini and Phoebe if String doesn't comply, instead not utilizing the captives in his possession. Allowing String and ArchAngel to return yet again, his demise was most certain. You get Santini and Phoebe (Borgnine and Doherty) bonding, and inevitably she'll be reunited with her pops thanks to the F.I.R.M's resources...and this provides a final scene where String eyes his brother in a picture, setting up the possibility that in time St. John would be found. I must admit, this was quite a lengthy arc that could have been concluded at least at the end of the first season. I get the desire to keep it going as a series arc, but St. John's recovery doesn't seem like a story that should be stretched out over three seasons! Borgnine and Doherty have good chemistry and his exploiting Airwolf to get the F.I.R.M to find her father ended the episode on a satisfying if a schmaltzy note. Mitchell could have been an interesting first season adversary but his inability to use easy prey to truly secure the Airwolf left him looking rather foolish. As he recognizes his doom, throwing up his hands as a strike from the Airwolf closes in, once again a decent villain is nothing more than a victim in an exploding helicopter. Considering the ultimate failure despite having quite an advantage, the results of this episode--we always know that, in the end, String, Santini, and the Airwolf, will persevere, but still...--are a bit disappointing, even if expected.