MI-5, Vol. 3

Moving into its Third Season MI-5 is still simply one of the smartest, most intelligent, and most dramatic shows you'll ever see. The show centers around a group of citizen individuals who join "5" to help "defend the British realm." MI-5 is that branch of the British secret service that is focused on domestic threats, be they economic, terrorist, civil uprisings, or any externally originating threat that has found its way back to the UK; a sister branch, MI-6, not a part of this show, deals more exclusively with external threats to the country. The series introduces us to all kinds of real-world threats--both potential and operationally real--and shows how the members of 5 must react in order to counter and/or eliminate these threats. The series is so well written, produced, directed, filmed, and acted that each episode is more of a 60-minute movie than a television episode. The drama, intrigue, intelligent stories, and, yes, action, establish the series as a standout among even the often high-achieving BBC (already the producer of many world-class shows), making it with little doubt one of the best shows of this nature ever made.Because of the complexity and the intellectual development of characters (as well as the plots themselves), it is best to watch MI-5 in order by episode, with no skipping of episodes, and this makes the DVD release of the show perhaps the very best manner in which to view the production. The DVDs allow you to step your way through each season, episode by episode, thereby viewing the show in the manner in which it was intended to be viewed. This gives you the ability to watch how characters are developed, and to better gain an understanding of how the MI-5 Section D group works. With the exception of the very first episode of Season One (the first episode is really not up to the standards of all the remaining ones, an issue attributable to the difficulties inherent in plot development) the shows are incredibly exciting, but also intelligently written in a way that will make you re-think the issues surrounding the role of the security forces in countries, what actions should and should not be allowed, the best way to address classes of threats, the implications for a free society when eliminating threats, the intersection of political and security concerns, and much more. You might at first glace think that MI-5, as an entertainment production, would be no more than that; but MI-5 is certainly more than a simple entertainment show. Be prepared to be entertained, but also mentally stimulated.Season Three has some significant changes in how 5 and the story lines surrounding it is constructed, and since I never want to give out plot spoilers, I will not say anything more than that. As we move into the Season Three and Four episodes, we see with ever more intensity how the members of 5 are asked to sacrifice in all kinds of ways, and we also see the toll that their service takes on them as they do so. The earlier Season Two brought the level of drama and emotional intrigue so high as to make it seem unsustainable: yet, Season Three, and then Season Four, moves the bar even higher. Its one of the rarest of shows that keeps building on its success, stays more than fresh, and meets the challenge of surpassing previous seasons. I liken it to one of those plate twirlers who gets a plate spinning up in the air at the top of one of those skinny sticks, and while you are trying to understand how he is doing it, starts another plate stirring on a second stick while keeping the first going. And then, to your incredulity, he adds yet a third plate on a third stick, and now maintains all three plates. You scratch your head with amazement even as you watch him keep all three plates twirling on those sticks, and yet he does it right in front of you. That's what MI-5 is like as you enter the third season.This is a truly amazing show. It's easily seven stars out of five. And the prices of the discs have come down dramatically from earlier years. But don't forget: you need to watch these IN ORDER. If you haven't seen it yet, start with Season One, work your way through that first not-so-good episode, and then watch the thing take of a like a jet. You'll be hooked by the time you get to the end of Season One.The Seasons:MI-5, Volume 1MI-5, Volume 2MI-5, Volume 3MI-5, Volume 4MI-5: Volume 5MI-5, Volume 6MI-5, Volume 7MI-5: Volume 8Mi-5: Volume 9Volume 10 not yet released (Dec 2011)

MI:5 gets better every season. The writers seem to have worked out the kinks from the first two series and have made MI:5 an incredible journey into the good and bad sides of humanity. Series 2 (as the Brits call Season 2) ended with a daring cliff hanger. Has agent Tom Quinn turned into a rogue spy? The evidence is against him especially after he seriously and intentionally wounded his superior. I couldn't wait to see how this all turned out. MI:5 didn't disappoint on any level. In series 3, we see dramatic changes in the cast of the show. Several major players leave and new ones are introduced. The characters are fleshed out to a greater degree and in series 3, we see it become more of a psychological thriller as the spies question their jobs and their lives.How does a spy have a personal life? What do you tell a potential love interest once they have been "vetted" and cleared?Series 3 takes us on a fascinating journey into the minds of the agents. Nothing or no one is ever as they seem. Adam Carter enters as a new top spy "borrowed" from sister spy agency MI:6. Soon his exotic and daring spy wife also joins the team. There's no chance of not taking their work home between these two.The final 2 episodes of series 3 take a deep look into the psyche and morality of the "good guy" spies. How far would they go to save the nation from a terrorist attack? Is torture ever justified if innocent lives are at stake? Is it just "collateral damage" to destroy an innocent life or two to save hundreds or thousands? These issues ring true today in a world that has changed in the last few years.The series does not end with a cliffhanger but there is a shocking and surprise ending that will leave fans stunned. Yet the ending fits the show and makes it all the more interesting.

This season continues the MI-5 tradition of gut-wrenching suspense and spy action drama. The standard remains superior. The writing and acting is excellent.One of the things I liked about the prior seasons is that while the show plumbs the dark side of espionage it was tempered by the close-knit, intense camaradarie of the MI-5 team. This was, unfortunately, lost in this season, making the exploration of even darker psycho/political themes hard to endure. I need to care about the characters when I go into the abyss with them. The writer of the show is making a statement with the introduction of colder less passionate characters--post 911 espionage is playing in a harsher realm. But I miss the passion and vulnerability of the characters in former seasons and find myself not really liking the new characters.Several of the episodes this season were filled with violence and torture that made it difficult to watch--prior seasons had more implied rather than explict violence.Still worth watching but needs more human interest to keep me going through another season.

Producers and writers are always needing to examine their programs with the intention of keeping them fresh. They sometimes take drastic measures, but it is usually a mistake to replace popular and competent leading men and ladies, because as most of us know, the characters (and the actors who portray them) are who viewers come to care about, not the series itself.So MI-5 has strolled off the end of the pier: in one season we have lost Tom, Zoe, and Danny, and their replacements, though possibly competent, are definitely NOT Tom, Zoe, or Danny. I may not return either.