1.10 - The Three-Handed Game

[shaunodan]

Although this is not their best episode it had some great moments. The ending scene I thought was very clever. Purdey fighting violent ballet and the beating the bad guy was choreographed really well.

Brought in a professional dancer for this I heard... not Joanna Lumley at all in action...true or false...!

[Timeless A-Peel]

Although this is not their best episode it had some great moments. The ending scene I thought was very clever. Purdey fighting violent ballet and the beating the bad guy was choreographed really well.

Brought in a professional dancer for this I heard... not Joanna Lumley at all in action...true or false...!

True. Joanna was unable to learn how to tap dance in the half hour they gave her at lunchtime to learn (I can't imagine why ). So they brought in a trained dancer, stuck a Purdey wig on her head, and sent her out. If you watch the scene, you can tell it's not Joanna--the dancer's build is different enough to be noticeable.

[shaunodan]

'I could Tap before I could walk ' says Purdey Obviously quite a few takes for this as Joanna slips in a few times in the fight sequence ! Yes, very noticeable when the action is slowed down, that the dancer had far more powerful legs than Joanna ! Wonder if this dancer was used a number of times in T.N.A. :

[Timeless A-Peel]

'I could Tap before I could walk ' says Purdey Obviously quite a few takes for this as Joanna slips in a few times in the fight sequence ! Yes, very noticeable when the action is slowed down, that the dancer had far more powerful legs than Joanna ! Wonder if this dancer was used a number of times in T.N.A. :

Just the once, I think. Joanna was rarely doubled, and when she wasn't, it was Cyd who was filling in, plus a couple of special doubles for her motorcycle scenes.

[Lhbizness]

Every once in awhile I go back to this episode and just stare at it - I find it compelling without actively liking it.

The Good: I like the initial plot set-up - it's quite a clever way to move information around. The brain-drain machine is an appropriately crazy idea well suited to The Avengers, and I can see the same idea working very well in earlier iterations of the show. There are some great scenes, like Steed beating the race car driver, Gambit posing for the artist, and Purdey's inexplicable decision to put on clown make-up. I actually like Terry Wood in this not-Soo-Choy role, and the same goes for the main villains.

The Bad: Despite the good set-up and a lot of opportunity to take the episode in many different directions, the writing fails to make the episode a cohesive whole. It takes far too long for our heroes to figure out the bit about the tap-dancer, despite being told the answer several times. They also seem to just wander off on their own, leaving their charges open to attack, as in the scene walking through the artist's gardens. Sometime The Avengers are really bad at their jobs, and this is one of those times.

Re-watching this, I thought it would have been an interesting step to implant Juventor's mind in Larry's body instead of the tap dancer's. The slight attraction between Larry and Purdey could have been played up, with the viewer knowing that the villain had stepped into the shoes of an agent. It might have made for a more dynamic, threatening episode.

[Rhonda]

Three of us (appropriately!) watched it last night, one of us for the first time, and we agreed that it seemed quite slow most of the time. We did like the car though!

I'm sure the titles said Three Handed Game (without The and a hyphen), but even on the Avengers Forever website its called The Three-Handed Game.

[dissolute]

I'm sure the titles said Three Handed Game (without The and a hyphen), but even on the Avengers Forever website its called The Three-Handed Game.

You're visiting the wrong sites, mine gets it right.

http://www.dissolute.com.au/the-avenger ... -game.html

[johnnybear]

Yes, but the actor who played Soo Choy popped up as a completely different character in Three-Handed.

That's right, Jay. I still wonder why on the role of the Soo Choy chose unknown Terry Wood. We even do not know his date of birth and nationality.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0940040/

Perhaps he starred for a penny. But if so - why was such a terrible economy? As far as I know they did not have good reasons for this.

It seems that it's the same Terry Wood!!!
JB