This has to be the textbook definition of "poetic license" for any M. I. episode, but still a whole lot of fun. Written by Richard M. Sakal, who only wrote two episodes for the series, and it's a shame, because he could write a tale.
Dedicated to chess players or those of us who just love to watch the game, and what a superior match this is.
Don Francks is perfect in the role of a very greedy gentleman named Nicholas, billed as the greatest chess player of all time -- also a master criminal.
Between games, he's planning a major gold heist, which has been transferred to the hotel where he's staying at and where the chess match is being held.
Naturally, to beat him at his own game, enter rival chess champ Rollin, who challenges Nicholas with the help of a "secret" revolutionary computer of computers. Upstairs, all purpose Barney is working the controls. You have to love this, and the intricate plan to follow.
MISSION IMPOSSIBLE fiction at its best. We kids were addicted to it.
Yes, I agree with the last reviewer 100-percent. Chess players, in later years, have taken on computers and have won. This episode truly may have inspired further computer research in the late 60s, at least the challenge was there. It also reminds me of the famous episode where the team worked an amazing money making machine; these dream machines were what made the show so fascinating.
Credit also due to technical supervisor John "Jonnie" Burke, who handled the special effects for the series for years, also for MANNIX. He was behind the revolutionary inventions, triggering the blinking lights and interesting sounds. My vote still goes to the mini mini tape recorder that self destructs in a cloud of smoke. What an idea!
Skillfully directed by actor Alf Kjellin, who headed such shows as the MAN FROM UNCLE and HAWAII FIVE O.
Don Francks is something to marvel, the arrogant guy you love to hate, and waiting for him to get it. Francks was a popular dramatic movie and tv actor, a career spanning decades. At the time he co-starred in FINIAN'S RAINBOW.
See this for the acting, Martin Landau and Francks make sensational opponents. SEASON 2 EPISODE 17 remastered color CBS/Paramount dvd box set. 7 dvds 2007 release.