Combat! (TV Series) The Hunter (1964) User Reviews

Game of Cat and Mouse with Rushed Conclusion

[claudio_carvalho · 8/10 · 16 September 2017]

While in a reconnaissance patrol in an abandoned French winery, Saunders and Kirby stumble upon two Germans in an observation post. Kirby protects the radio in an empty building but is shot by a German officer called Heismann. Sunders kills one German soldier and Heismann rescues Kirby expecting to force Saunders to surrender. However the wounded Kirby destroys the German radio and Heismann uses his hunting rifle to hunt down Saunders. Meanwhile Saunders gets out of ammunition with the dangerous hunter seeking him out.

"The Hunter" is a good episode of "Combat!" with a game of cat and mouse between Saunders and a German officer that is a hunter. Unfortunately the rushed conclusion give a poor ending to a tense show. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "O Caçador" ("The Hunter")

Saunders meets his match

[nickenchuggets · 9/10 · 30 October 2022]

In Combat, German soldiers are typically shown to be expendable, and many of them end up getting gunned down by Saunders and his squad mates as they try to engage him in a firefight. I really like this episode because it changes this. In The Hunter, Saunders comes face to face with a desperate but enormously skilled german sharpshooter who comes very close to ending his life. The episode (believe it or not) features the smallest onscreen cast of the entire show, as all other squad members are absent from it except for Saunders and Kirby. It starts off with both of them approaching a large complex of various buildings, which Saunders says is supposed to be a winery. Once inside the area, things are too quiet and Saunders senses something isn't right. Searching some buildings, he eventually finds out germans are using a tower as an outpost. Saunders and Kirby shoot at them, while a german former hunter (whose name is later revealed to be Erich) returns fire. Saunders succeeds in killing the other germans, but Erich keeps ducking behind cover and shooting back at the Americans with vicious tenacity. Saunders tells Kirby to get on the radio and tell Lieutenant Hanley to blow this whole area apart with artillery, but before Kirby has a chance to, he's hit by Erich's rifle. Erich then drags Kirby into the building where he was shooting Saunders from, and says he better surrender or else he'll kill him. Even as a prisoner, Kirby is not done fighting. He breaks the german's radio, preventing them from calling for help. Saunders calls Erich's bluff and says american artillery is going to kill him soon, but he remains resolute. After Kirby defiantly tries to kill Erich, his rifle is smashed to pieces and he gets kicked hard. Erich later says he's not going to kill Kirby after all, because, being a hunter, the thought of killing something that won't fight back sickens him. After he says this, Erich climbs the ladder that leads into the tower above the winery to take up a sniping position. Saunders instinctively hides under a sheet next to an empty barrel to conceal himself. When Erich isn't looking, Saunders pushes the empty barrel away from him, and Erich shoots at the first thing he sees move. This buys Saunders enough time to get inside the winery and find Kirby. However, he can't carry him to safety just yet. Saunders and Erich then chase each other around the grounds of the winery, with neither spotting the other. Saunders has Erich in his sights at one point, but of course, his gun jams. Abandoning his Thompson, it's later found and discarded by Erich. Saunders tries to use his radio to contact Hanley about the artillery, but Erich is too close by. Erich says how he respects Saunders now for being able to hide so well, but his game is now up. Before running away, Erich breaks Saunders' radio. Heading back to the winery to rescue Kirby once and for all, Saunders tries to climb the ladder leading to the tower, but is found by Erich, who shoots the ladder's frame and sends Saunders falling to the ground. With his bitter rival on the floor totally defenseless, Erich prepares to finally kill Saunders, but just then, the american artillery starts hitting the winery as promised. Erich tries to escape by climbing up to the tower, but Saunders follows him. They fight each other on the ladder, and Saunders makes him fall to his death. Saunders then takes Kirby and loads him into a german truck, after which they bust through the locked gate and ride off. I was quite disappointed to see most other people didn't really like this episode, with some saying it's not very realistic. Maybe it isn't, but it's really enjoyable seeing Saunders face off against someone just as skilled as he is. One thing you'll notice about Erich is that he doesn't stay still at all. After firing a few times, he keeps changing locations, since a moving target is always harder to hit. You also have to observe the tactics of both combatants from a logical point of view. With the Tommy Gun being Saunders' weapon of choice, he wants the range between him and his target to be shorter, while Erich, being a proficient hunter, wants the range to be longer. Both these guns have pros and cons, but if Erich encounters Saunders up close, he's dead (and he knows that). Because of this, Erich has to be very careful with how he moves around the grounds of the winery. He can't afford to go into a building and suddenly run into Saunders. Conversely, Saunders can't let himself be stuck in a wide open area with long sightlines, or he'll be a sitting duck. Even though Erich totes himself as a great marksman, he only scores one hit in this episode (against Kirby), but he still fights savagely. I also liked how the first thing Kirby does upon entering the winery is check if there's any alcohol left. Overall, The Hunter might have a strangely abrupt ending for a Combat episode, but due to its inclusion of a character who's able to give Saunders' fighting skills a run for their money, I have to consider it one of my favorites.

Suspenseful But Far Fetched

[jmarchese · 7/10 · 4 July 2014]

"The Hunter" is laced with suspense inside an old winery where the Germans have set up an observation post. Saunders and Kirby stumble into the winery and after awhile a cat and mouse game evolves between Sergeant Saunders and German Officer Heismann (well played by Alfred Ryder) when Kirby is wounded and taken prisoner.

I'm critical of the scene whereby Saunders assumes Heismann will climb to the tower. The odds are too slim and in the event Heismann saw him take cover, Saunders would've been toast.

I'm also critical of the scene where stunt double Earl Parker climbs up the post while Heismann is right around the corner. Director Roley cut it to close to be believable.

In reality Kirby would have probably been executed along the way given his actions in the presence of Heismann.

Heismann's incessant dialog portrays his weakness. A real hunter would have been painfully silent and this would have put a severe encumbrance on Saunder's movements. Heismann also assumes Saunders does not carry a sidearm of any kind - another potential fatal mistake.

Even the ending sequence when the American artillery begins is highly unlikely.

In summary, the screen writing could have been noticeably improved before the final product was made.

Cast goes on vacation - a real clunker

[lor_ · 25 July 2023]

Alfred Ryder guest stars as a German who, with another soldier, man an observation past at an old former French winery, with Vic and Kirby as their adversaries. The episode notably has a tiny cast, with the rest of the show's regulars taking the week off.

Instead of battling among the four characters after Kirby's being wounded and taken prisoner early in the show leaving Vic mainly on his own, facing down Vic after the second German is killed.. Ryder is strictly a one-dimensional villain, given nearly all the dialogue as a stereotyped Nazi who fancies himel a superman.

Other than the interesting location, the segment has very little to offer, just action scenes and shootouts. No opportunities for acting by Vic or great moral issues. Title derives from egotistical Ryder boasting that he's a big-game hunter, as he yells at Vic to try and convince him to surrender.