Mission: Impossible

:This article is about the American TV series which aired from 1966 to 1973. For information on the more recent movies of the same name, see . For the games based on the franchise, see .

Series overview

Written, created, and produced by Bruce Geller, the concept of the series was heavily influenced by spy fiction (in a flashy, fictional manner somewhat similar to the James Bond series). Its initial premise was centered around the existence of the "Impossible Missions Force" (IMF), a team of secret agents employed by the United States government, and sent on covert missions to fight dictators, evil organizations, and crime lords.

Related Topics:
Bruce Geller - Spy fiction - James Bond - United States - Dictator

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Although a Cold War element was present throughout the series (the idea of the United States working from behind the scenes to further its agenda across the nations of the world is common among many conspiracy theorists), the actual "Cold War" between the United States and the Soviet Union was not directly mentioned or referenced over the course of the series. However, in the early years many of the targets appeared to be the leaders of Slavic or Baltic countries; major named enemy countries included the "European People's Republic" and the "Eastern European Republic"; apparently attempts to imply a connection between the IMF's opponents and communism without explicitly saying so. Additionally, fictitious, Slavic-seeming languages were used; police vehicles were often labelled as such with words such as "polǐiçia"; and "pőĮįia". Uniforms of the target regime frequently included peaked caps, jackboots, and Sam Browne gear, hinting at prior connections with Nazi Germany or the Warsaw Pact.

Related Topics:
Cold War - Conspiracy theorists - Soviet Union - Slavic - Baltic countries - Communism - Police - Sam Browne - Nazi Germany - Warsaw Pact

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The I.M. Force was also assigned to bring down corrupt politicians and dictators of Third World countries unrelated to the Cold War. A new direction was demonstrated when the IMF became involved in a plan to bring down a particularly brutal practitioner of apartheid; by the time the series reached its final season, the stories largely involved activities against organized crime and spies within the United States, the format having changed, at least in part, due to protests against the Vietnam War.

Related Topics:
Third World - Apartheid - Organized crime - Vietnam War

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Each episode of the series began with the team leader (Daniel Briggs for the first season, then Jim Phelps from 1967 until the finalé) receiving a secret, pre-recorded message containing his mission. This sequence became famous (and often imitated and parodied) as every message would then "self-destruct," leaving no evidence (supposedly) of the actual existence of the mission. This sequence was often filmed on the Paramount back lot. Jim Phelps would then choose his teammates for the mission from a group of candidates' photographs and bios (except for occasional guest stars and cast changes, he always chose the same team), and they would prepare an elaborate plan to conduct their mission and defeat the bad guy of the week. This ritual remained virtually unchanged through the show's run, although the self-destructing tape recorder would not become the usual vessel for receiving orders until later in the series. In early episodes, Briggs/Phelps would receive orders on everything from phonograph records to slide-tape projectors. In some cases Briggs or Phelps was asked to destroy the tape in 'the usual manner'. The 1980s series used miniature compact discs almost exclusively. There were a handful of exceptions to the tape recording from the secretary - in a couple of cases the mission was already underway and something went wrong, in others it was a personal matter where a teammember asked his colleagues for unofficial assistance. Later seasons dropped the team selection process as redundant. Peter Graves, (who played the role of Jim Phelps) once said the entire seasons' worth of "tape scenes" were usually filmed all at once prior to production of the rest of the episodes, and that he never knew which tape scene would appear with which episode until broadcast.

Related Topics:
1967 - Self-destruct - 1980s - Peter Graves

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Each episode would usually involve the agents concocting an elaborate scheme to fool criminals or traitors into the hands of the law. The intricate, detailed planning of each episode's mission was the hook that drew Mission: Impossible viewers back for each episode. The series differed from most other adventure series in that the good guys' actions were planned down to the last detail, and they would almost always execute their plan flawlessly. The suspense of each episode came as audience members would wonder how the I.M. Force would outsmart their enemies and remain undercover.

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Almost all team members were masters of disguise and somehow almost always someone on the team had the proper facial structure to replace a member of the target's staff, sometimes even the target himself, by donning an elaborate rubber mask and the proper makeup. The subsequent unmasking scene was usually a show highlight.

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The series is known for its opening theme tune by Lalo Schifrin which accompanied the opening title sequence in which an animated burning fuse moved across the screen. The sound track for each show subtly incorporated elements of the theme music throughout -- except during dialogue sequences -- and most of the show's enthusiastic fans could recognise the show instantly upon hearing any portion of the music from any episode.

Related Topics:
Theme tune - Lalo Schifrin

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The series' popularity began to wane by the early 1970s and the series was cancelled in 1973. It remains the longest-running espionage-based TV series ever produced for U.S. television, and reruns of the episodes are still shown daily on some TV stations. A North American DVD release of the series has yet to occur, however there are occasional reports that Paramount Pictures is considering doing so, possibly in conjunction with the upcoming release of the third feature film in the M:I franchise.

Related Topics:
1970s - 1973 - Rerun - Paramount Pictures

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