History Series / TheAvengers1960s

A short-lived {{revival}} was attempted in 1976, titled '''''Series/TheNewAvengers''''', starring Macnee and Creator/JoannaLumley (who's better known for ''Series/AbsolutelyFabulous'', but had [[RunningGag earlier appeared]] in [[Film/OnHerMajestysSecretService a Bond film]]) as [[OnlyOneName Purdey]]. Oh, and Gareth Hunt, the guy from the Nescafe adverts (but who, in lieu of actual Bond films, appeared in the James Bond parody ''Licensed to Love and Kill'' instead), as Mike Gambit. Macnee later expressed his distaste for the revival in interviews, viewing it as sacrificing much of the Peel era's whimsical comedy in favor of emulating ''Series/StarskyAndHutch''.

Eventually Rigg, weary from the show's rigorous production schedule and frustrated by the staff's refusal to pay her proportionately for her leading role, left Steed for the [[Film/OnHerMajestysSecretService doomed embrace]] of Creator/GeorgeLazenby's Bond, and Steed took on his last partner, Tara King. Tara (played by Creator/LindaThorson, who has ''not'' appeared in a Bond film,[[note]]though she was apparently considered for ''Film/DiamondsAreForever'' for both Tiffany Case and Plenty O'Toole, and Creator/AlbertRBroccoli reportedly told Thorson she was never cast in a Bond film because she didn't have long hair... which ironically might be because of ''The Avengers''; she was asked to bleach her hair blonde to distinguish her from Diana Rigg's Emma Peel, but a dye failure ruined her hair, having to wear a wig for several episodes,[[/note]] but made up for it by being the only one of the bunch to appear on ''[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS6E18TheChase Star Trek]]'') was a more feminine character, though still an ActionGirl, but was nonetheless faced with the misfortune of fronting the show's most significant production disaster. Following the fifth season, the US ABC network, desiring more control over the show's production, fired showrunners Clemens and Fennell and reinstalled Cathy Gale-era producer John Bryce. Bryce's subsequent attempts to rewind the clock stylistically and return the show to a more hard-edged tone (even contemplating replacing Laurie Johnson's iconic theme with a rearrangement of Johnny Dankworth's theme from the first three seasons) proved catastrophic owing to his inexperience helming the revised production flow the show had adopted in his absence. With only three episodes completed far behind schedule, Bryce was dismissed and Clemens and Fennell were rehired to helm the season, despite Clemens' distaste for both Tara King as a character and the reduced production schedule (forcing scripts to be put to camera with fewer revisions than the Peel era). While the King era (comprising solely season 6) thus emerged as a modified variant on the Peel era's comedy-fantasy format, the show's doom was sealed by the ABC network scheduling it against the ratings juggernaut ''Series/RowanAndMartinsLaughIn'', vastly reducing the show's exposure in the U.S. Resultantly, the series was quietly cancelled, thus open-endedly launching Steed and King into the vacuum of space for its appropriately-titled finale "Bizarre". As of late 2020, Thorson and Julie Stevens are the last living main cast members, with both Honor Blackman and Diana Rigg having passed away earlier that year.

A short-lived {{revival}} was attempted in 1976, titled '''''Series/TheNewAvengers''''', starring Macnee and Creator/JoannaLumley (who's better known for ''Series/AbsolutelyFabulous'', but had [[RunningGag earlier appeared]] in [[Film/OnHerMajestysSecretService a Bond film]]) as [[OnlyOneName Purdey]]. Oh, and Gareth Hunt, the guy from the Nescafe adverts (but who, in lieu of actual Bond films, appeared in the James Bond parody ''Licensed to Love and Kill'' instead), as Mike Gambit.

Eventually Rigg, frustrated by the staff's refusal to pay her proportionately for her leading role, left Steed for the [[Film/OnHerMajestysSecretService doomed embrace]] of Creator/GeorgeLazenby's Bond, and Steed took on his last partner, Tara King. Tara (played by Creator/LindaThorson, who has ''not'' appeared in a Bond film,[[note]]though she was apparently considered for ''Film/DiamondsAreForever'' for both Tiffany Case and Plenty O'Toole, and Creator/AlbertRBroccoli reportedly told Thorson she was never cast in a Bond film because she didn't have long hair... which ironically might be because of ''The Avengers''; she was asked to bleach her hair blonde to distinguish her from Diana Rigg's Emma Peel, but a dye failure ruined her hair, having to wear a wig for several episodes,[[/note]] but made up for it by being the only one of the bunch to appear on ''[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS6E18TheChase Star Trek]]'') was a more feminine character, though still an ActionGirl, but the series never survived the loss of Rigg, major creative conflicts over the show's direction (culminating in Peel-era showrunner Brian Clemens being abruptly rehired halfway into the season's production) and being put up in America against the ratings juggernaut ''Series/RowanAndMartinsLaughIn''. The series finished after just one season with Tara King. As of late 2020, Thorson and Julie Stevens are the last living main cast members, with both Honor Blackman and Diana Rigg having passed away earlier that year.

The series was originally created as a vehicle for Creator/IanHendry (who would [[DeletedRole not-quite appear]] in [[Film/CasinoRoyale1967 a not-quite Bond film]]), to capitalise on the popularity he had developed during his previous show, the realistic crime drama ''Police Surgeon''. In the {{pilot}}, his character, the subdued and pragmatic practitioner Dr David Keel, was recruited by charming-but-hard-edged spy John Steed (Macnee) as a part-time expert assistant in return for Steed's help capturing the murderers of Keel's fiancée; this was pretty much [[ArtifactTitle the last time in the series any actual]] ''[[ArtifactTitle avenging]]'' [[ArtifactTitle took place]]. The ensuing first season (featuring Keel and Steed as rotating co-protagonists and collaborators more than a regularly-partnered duo) was generally a [[DarkerAndEdgier gritty and hardboiled]] (and decidedly low-budget) crime melodrama, centring around cases such as drug smugglers, arms dealers and urban gang warfare, often within the confines of a realistically-presented early-'60s London.

A TV strike delayed the start of the second season, so Hendry left to pursue a film career. Steed subsequently became the show's definitive central character and the production team started to explore other partnerships. The first, lasting just three episodes, was Dr. King, a blatant SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute of Keel. He was followed up by stories that alternately paired Steed up with nightclub singer Venus Smith (played by Julie Stevens, who has never appeared in a Bond film) and female spy and anthropologist Catherine "Cathy" Gale (arguably TV's first true ActionGirl, and played by Blackman, who, as noted already, would later appear in a Bond film). Cathy, who was initially written similarly to Dr. Keel (WordOfGod is that some of her early scripts were actually written for Hendry), proved to be the more popular and Venus was quietly dropped. With Steed now consistently partnered with his co-protagonist (instead of entering and withdrawing from their otherwise-mundane daily occupation on call), much of his initial guarded shadiness was removed in favor of a more affable and debonair characterization, although he would nonetheless retain elements of his ruthlessness and manipulative prowess, as demonstrated by his frequent tendency to both conceal information from Gale and abruptly throw her into elaborate, pre-emptively calculated cat-and-mouse ruses. Steed and Gale's relationship was resultantly cagier and more tenuous than that of the series' later leading duos, although a degree of underlying sexual tension began to form between the pair as of the third season.

Following the third season's conclusion in 1964, Blackman left to pursue a film career (playing Pussy Galore in ''Film/{{Goldfinger}}'', a Bond film). Following one-and-a-half unsuccessful (and never broadcast) episodes pairing Macnee with Elizabeth Shepherd, Steed was joined by Diana Rigg as Mrs. Emma Peel, described as a "talented amateur" (the Shepherd episodes were reedited and recycled into Rigg episodes). Buoyed by the national success of the Gale era, ABC banked on revamping the show to pursue American TV markets and procured a budget increase for the series, enabling the show to convert from videotape to the more cinematographically-versatile medium of 35mm film (and thus compete with its U.S. contemporaries visually). Brian Clemens, previously a writer on the show's first and third seasons, was likewise promoted to the head writer position, with newly-appointed producer Albert Fennell supervising the translation of Clemens' story ideas into physically and financially-feasible episodes. Owing to Rigg's energetic charisma (and chemistry with Macnee), Clemens' more whimsical, fantasy-oriented inclinations and its upgraded production values, the show resultantly became much more stylish, fast-paced and irreverent - even gaining a now-iconic new theme song - although it wasn't until the next season that it was produced in colour. Mrs. Peel -- whose husband didn't make an appearance until her final episode -- set the trend of the SpyCatsuit and continued the gentleman spy / ActionGirl setup, although the further evolution of Steed into a mannerly, [[QuintessentialBritishGentleman exaggeratedly British gentleman]] (as opposed to the less chaste alpha male of the Keel and Gale eras) gave this era's incarnation of the dynamic a decidedly more parodic flavour. Possibly due to the more international reach of their seasons as co-stars, Steed and Mrs. Peel became the show's most iconic pairing, with the fifth season's shift to colour accentuating their profile (and the show's popularity) further.

''The Avengers'' is a very popular British SpyFiction series that ran during most of TheSixties (from 1961 to 1969). It was created by Creator/SydneyNewman (a few years before he created ''Series/DoctorWho'') and produced by Associated British Corporation (or ABC, unrelated to the identically-abbreviated American TV channel) for Creator/{{ITV}}. The series aired a total of 161 episodes across six seasons and singlehandedly started the SpyCatsuit trope.

The series was originally created as a vehicle for Creator/IanHendry (who would [[DeletedRole not-quite appear]] in [[Film/CasinoRoyale1967 a not-quite Bond film]]), to capitalise on the popularity he had developed during his previous show, the social realist drama ''Police Surgeon''. In the {{pilot}}, his character, the subdued and pragmatic practitioner Dr David Keel, was recruited by charming-but-hard-edged spy John Steed (Macnee) as a part-time expert assistant in return for Steed's help capturing the murderers of Keel's fiancée; this was pretty much [[ArtifactTitle the last time in the series any actual]] ''[[ArtifactTitle avenging]]'' [[ArtifactTitle took place]]. The ensuing first season (featuring Keel and Steed as rotating co-protagonists and collaborators more than a regularly-partnered duo) was generally a grim-and-gritty (and decidedly low-budget) crime melodrama, centring around cases such as drug smugglers, arms dealers and urban gang warfare, often within the confines of a realistically-presented early-'60s London.

** The [[DiabolicalMastermind diabolical masterminds]] dominating the Peel era were entirely absent in the first two seasons in favour of more realistic criminals (such as urban gangsters, drug smugglers, corrupt businessmen and jewel thieves). While season 3 featured a handful of more conceptually-outlandish antagonists (including the two comically-corrupt [[Creator/CharlesDickens Dickensian]] lawyers in "Brief for Murder" or the outlandishly-ambitious "aspiring" Roman emperor Sir Bruno in "The Grandeur That Was Rome"), these portrayals either serve as isolated moments of absurdity within more sombre or hard-edged plotlines ("Brief" features Steed ostensibly assassinating Cathy Gale and confronting the ensuing legal ramifications) or are assigned noticeably more dramatic pathos than the more comedic antagonists of later seasons. The phrase "diabolical mastermind" is itself never spoken within the show until the fourth season episode "The Master Minds".

** The [[DiabolicalMastermind diabolical masterminds]] dominating the Peel era were entirely absent in the first two seasons in favour of more realistic criminals (such as urban gangsters, drug smugglers, corrupt businessmen and jewel thieves). While season 3 featured a handful of more conceptually-outlandish antagonists (including the two comically-corrupt [[Creator/CharlesDickens Dickensian]] lawyers in "Brief for Murder" or the outlandishly-ambitious "aspiring" Roman emperor Sir Bruno in "The Grandeur That Was Rome"), these portrayals either serve as isolated moments of absurdity within more sombre or hard-edged plotlines ("Brief" features Steed ostensibly assassinating Cathy Gale and confronting the ensuing legal ramifications) or are assigned noticeably more dramatic pathos than the more comedic antagonists of later seasons.

This [[ReTool retooling]] of the show became a massive smash. With a consistent AgentsDating format, the show gradually began to move away from more mundane villains and smaller-scale urban dramas in favour of pulpier, more bombastic plots centred on international espionage, political corruption and industrial sabotage, albeit while retaining a hard-edged and grounded tone; by its third season, the series had effectively evolved into an intricately-plotted (and mildly tongue-in-cheek) spy thriller as opposed to a sombre crime series. Partially owing to this genre shift, the show began to feature more overtly unrealistic concepts - among them criminal doppelgangers, electromagnetic weapons concealed within watermills and fanatical conspiracies to reignite the Roman Empire - during this period, although these were more the exception than the rule.

A TV strike delayed the start of the second season, so Hendry left to pursue a film career. Steed subsequently became the show's definitive central character and the production team started to explore other partnerships. The first, lasting just three episodes, was Dr. King, a blatant SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute of Keel. He was followed up by stories that alternately paired Steed up with nightclub singer Venus Smith (played by Julie Stevens, who has never appeared in a Bond film) and female spy and anthropologist Catherine "Cathy" Gale (arguably TV's first true ActionGirl, and played by Blackman, who, as noted already, would later appear in a Bond film). Cathy, who was initially written similarly to Dr. Keel (WordOfGod is that some of her early scripts were actually written for Hendry), proved to be the more popular and Venus was quietly dropped. With Steed now consistently partnered with his co-protagonist (instead of entering and withdrawing from their otherwise-mundane daily occupation on call), much of his initial guarded shadiness was removed in favor of a more affable and debonair characterization, although he would nonetheless retain elements of his ruthlessness and manipulative prowess.

This [[ReTool retooling]] of the show became a massive smash. With a consistent AgentsDating format, the show gradually began to move away from more mundane villains and smaller-scale urban dramas in favour of pulpier, more bombastic plots centred on international espionage, political corruption and industrial sabotage (sporadically interlaced with more overtly unrealistic concepts such as witchcraft and [[DiabolicalMastermind diabolical masterminds]]), albeit while retaining a relatively emotionally-grounded and hard-edged tone.

Following the third season's conclusion in 1964, Blackman left to pursue a film career (playing Pussy Galore in ''Film/{{Goldfinger}}'', a Bond film). Following one-and-a-half unsuccessful (and never broadcast) episodes pairing Macnee with Elizabeth Shepherd, Steed was joined by Diana Rigg as Mrs. Emma Peel, described as a "talented amateur" (the Shepherd episodes were reedited and recycled into Rigg episodes). Buoyed by the national success of the Gale era, ABC banked on revamping the show to pursue American TV markets and procured a budget increase for the series, enabling the show to convert from videotape to the more cinematographically-versatile medium of 35mm film (and thus compete with its U.S. contemporaries visually). Owing to both Rigg's energetic charisma (and chemistry with Macnee) and its upgraded production values, the show resultantly became much more stylish, fast-paced and irreverent - even gaining a now-iconic new theme song - although it wasn't until the next season that it was produced in colour. Mrs. Peel -- whose husband didn't make an appearance until her final episode -- set the trend of the SpyCatsuit and continued the gentleman spy / ActionGirl setup, although the further evolution of Steed into a mannerly, [[QuintessentialBritishGentleman exaggeratedly British gentleman]] (as opposed to the less chaste alpha male of the Keel and Gale eras) gave this era's incarnation of the dynamic a decidedly more parodic flavour. Possibly due to the more international reach of their seasons as co-stars, Steed and Mrs. Peel became the show's most iconic pairing, with the fifth season's shift to colour accentuating their profile (and the show's popularity) further.

The stories, meanwhile, eventually abandoned realistic crime altogether and became crazier and crazier -- Space plants from the moon! Assassination by laser! Invisible spies! Housecats brainwashed to kill! Politicians hypnotised into becoming children! A ShrinkRay! -- and typified the swinging cool of [[TheSixties 1960s]] Britain, particularly to American audiences of the period.

** The characterization of Steed in the first three seasons was markedly different to the chaste, comically-mannerly gentleman of the Peel era. In the first season, Steed is presented as an outwardly-charming yet hardboiled and mercurial figure (initially lacking his trademark bowler hat and umbrella in favour of a trenchcoat; both would debut circa episode 10) recurringly emerging from the underworld to draw the more pragmatic Keel into a given episode's plot. Upon his promotion to the lead role in season 2, Steed's characterization began to gravitate towards a LighterAndSofter image, becoming more affable and debonair, although he retained noticeable elements of his earlier brusqueness and lechery (note his initial appearances with Cathy Gale, in which his attitude towards her is conspicuously more sexually-aggressive than in her later appearances). Despite the increased personability of his dynamic with Gale, Steed arguably regained numerous elements of his earlier shadiness in season 3, with multiple episode plots hinging on either the possibility of him "going rogue" (as with "Brief for Murder" or "The Nutshell") or the ramifications of his tendency to rampantly conceal information from Gale. These traits would almost entirely evaporate in the following season.

* DiabolicalMastermind: The bread-and-butter trope of the series, which has no shortage of diabolical villains with plans. It may have even originated the term, and certainly was a TropeCodifier - the characters frequently actually refer to their opponents as "diabolical masterminds".

* EarlyInstalmentWeirdness: Or rather, an early instalment ''lack'' of the weirdness that most people associate with the series. The first season, with Steed paired with Keel, was a straightforward crime melodrama with a realistic, hard-edged tone unrecognizable to the show's later incarnation. Even the early Cathy episodes (in season 2) were pretty much just straight crime stories as well (along with those featuring short-term partners Venus Smith and Martin King). It wasn't till Cathy became Steed's only partner in season 3 that the bizarre and occasionally SF-tinged stories began, although these elements would only appear sporadically until Emma Peel's introduction in the following season.

** The characterization of Steed in the first three seasons was markedly different. In the first season, Steed is presented as an outwardly-charming yet hardboiled and mercurial figure (initially lacking his trademark bowler hat and umbrella in favour of a trenchcoat; both would debut circa episode 10) recurringly emerging from the underworld to draw the more pragmatic Keel into a given episode's plot. Upon his promotion to the lead role in season 2, Steed's characterization began to gravitate towards a LighterAndSofter image, becoming more affable and debonair, although he retained noticeable elements of his earlier brusqueness and lechery (note his initial appearances with Cathy Gale, in which his attitude towards her is conspicuously more sexually-aggressive than in her later appearances). Despite the increased personability of his dynamic with Gale, Steed arguably regained numerous elements of his earlier shadiness in season 3, with multiple episode plots hinging on either the possibility of him "going rogue" (as with "Brief for Murder" or "The Nutshell") or the ramifications of his tendency to rampantly conceal information from Gale. These traits would almost entirely evaporate in the following season.

* EarlyInstalmentWeirdness: Or rather, an early instalment ''lack'' of the weirdness that most people associate with the series. The first season, with Steed paired with Keel, was a straightforward crime drama. Even the early Cathy episodes were pretty much just straight crime stories as well (along with those featuring short-term partners Venus Smith and Martin King). It wasn't till Cathy became Steed's only partner that the bizarre and occasionally SF-tinged stories began.
** During the first season, Ian Hendry's Dr. Keel was the lead character, so much so that there are a few episodes in which Steed does not even appear.
** The characterization of Steed in the first two seasons was markedly different, with the character being more brusque and rough-and-tumble and less-friendly. His attitude towards Cathy in her early episodes is also more sexually aggressive than it became later.

This [[ReTool retooling]] of the show became a massive smash. With a consistent AgentsDating format, the show gradually began to move away from more mundane villains and smaller-scale urban dramas in favour of pulpier, more bombastic plots centred on international espionage and political corruption (sporadically interlaced with more overtly unrealistic concepts such as witchcraft and [[DiabolicalMastermind diabolical masterminds]]), albeit while retaining a relatively emotionally-grounded and hard-edged tone.

A TV strike delayed the start of the second season, so Hendry left to pursue a film career. Steed subsequently became the show's definitive central character and the production team started to explore other partnerships. The first, lasting just three episodes, was Dr. King, a blatant SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute of Keel. He was followed up by stories that alternately paired Steed up with nightclub singer Venus Smith (played by Julie Stevens, who has never appeared in a Bond film) and female spy Catherine "Cathy" Gale (arguably TV's first true ActionGirl, and played by Blackman, who, as noted already, would later appear in a Bond film). Cathy, who was mostly written similarly to Dr. Keel (WordOfGod is that some of her early scripts were actually written for Hendry), proved to be the more popular and Venus was quietly dropped. With Steed now consistently partnered and cohabiting with his co-protagonist (instead of entering and withdrawing from their otherwise-mundane daily occupation on call), much of his initial guarded shadiness was removed in favor of a more affable and debonair characterization, although he would nonetheless retain elements of his ruthlessness and manipulative prowess.

Following the third season's conclusion in 1964, Blackman left to pursue a film career (playing Pussy Galore in ''Film/{{Goldfinger}}'', a Bond film). Following one-and-a-half unsuccessful (and never broadcast) episodes pairing Macnee with Elizabeth Shepherd, Steed was joined by Diana Rigg as Mrs. Emma Peel, described as a "talented amateur". (The Shepherd episodes were reedited and recycled into Rigg episodes.) Buoyed by the national success of the Gale era, ABC banked on revamping the show to pursue American TV markets and procured a budget increase for the series, enabling the show to convert from videotape to the more cinematographically-versatile medium of 35mm film (and thus compete with its U.S. contemporaries visually). Owing to both Rigg's energetic charisma (and chemistry with Macnee) and its upgraded production values, the show resultantly became much more stylish, fast-paced and irreverent - even gaining a new theme song - although it wasn't until the next season that it was produced in colour. Mrs. Peel -- whose husband didn't make an appearance until her final episode -- set the trend of the SpyCatsuit and continued the gentleman spy / ActionGirl setup, although the further evolution of Steed into a mannerly, [[QuintessentialBritishGentleman exaggeratedly British gentleman]] (as opposed to the less chaste alpha male of the Keel and Gale eras) gave this era's incarnation of the dynamic a decidedly more parodic flavour. Possibly due to the more international reach of their seasons as co-stars, Steed and Mrs. Peel became the show's most iconic pairing, with the fifth season's shift to colour accentuating their profile (and the show's popularity) further.

The stories, meanwhile, abandoned realistic crime altogether and became crazier and crazier -- Space plants from the moon! Assassination by laser! Invisible spies! Housecats brainwashed to kill! Politicians hypnotised into becoming children! A ShrinkRay! -- and typified the swinging cool of [[TheSixties 1960s]] Britain, particularly to American audiences of the period.

Eventually Rigg left Steed for the [[Film/OnHerMajestysSecretService doomed embrace]] of Creator/GeorgeLazenby's Bond, and Steed took on his last partner, Tara King. Tara (played by Creator/LindaThorson, who has ''not'' appeared in a Bond film,[[note]]though she was apparently considered for ''Film/DiamondsAreForever'' for both Tiffany Case and Plenty O'Toole, and Creator/AlbertRBroccoli reportedly told Thorson she was never cast in a Bond film because she didn't have long hair... which ironically might be because of ''The Avengers''; she was asked to bleach her hair blonde to distinguish her from Diana Rigg's Emma Peel, but a dye failure ruined her hair, having to wear a wig for several episodes,[[/note]] but made up for it by being the only one of the bunch to appear on ''[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS6E18TheChase Star Trek]]'') was a more feminine character, though still an ActionGirl, but the series never survived the loss of Rigg, major creative conflicts over the show's direction (culminating in Peel-era showrunner Brian Clemens being abruptly rehired halfway into the season's production) and being put up in America against the ratings juggernaut ''Series/RowanAndMartinsLaughIn''. The series finished after just one season with Tara King. As of late 2020, Thorson is the last living main cast member, with both Honor Blackman and Diana Rigg having passed away earlier that year.

* TonightSomeoneKisses: Fans who love the palpable sexual tension between Steed and Peel probably are all too thrilled when they pull out their DVD of the episode "Who's Who?" for the first time and see an image of their favorite couple engaged in not just one of Emma's playful pecks, but a full-on sexy makeout session. Trick is "Who's Who" is a '''body swap episode'''. Emma and Steed have their minds in the bodies of the villains and are tied up in a warehouse somewhere, while the villains are the ones in Steed's flat, in Steed and Peel's bodies, getting comfy and kissing while they live it up and continue with their evil plot. Of course, since it's just the same sets of actors switching roles, that's STILL Creator/PatrickMacnee and Creator/DianaRigg full-on frenching each other, so do with that what you will. And we'll remind you this is while they are playing villains, and [[invoked]]EvilIsSexy.

* HuntingTheMostDangerousGame: In "The Superlative Seven," a mysterious invitation that strands him on a remote island, with six companions who are murdered one by one, makes Steed a Little Indian.

Eventually Rigg left Steed for the [[Film/OnHerMajestysSecretService doomed embrace]] of Creator/GeorgeLazenby's Bond, and Steed took on his last partner, Tara King. Tara (played by Creator/LindaThorson, who has ''not'' appeared in a Bond film, but made up for it by being the only one of the bunch to appear on ''[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS6E18TheChase Star Trek]]'') was a more feminine character, though still an ActionGirl, but the series never survived the loss of Rigg, major creative conflicts over the show's direction (culminating in Peel-era showrunner Brian Clemens being abruptly rehired halfway into the season's production) and being put up in America against the ratings juggernaut ''Series/RowanAndMartinsLaughIn''. The series finished after just one season with Tara King. As of late 2020, Thorson is the last living main cast member, with both Honor Blackman and Diana Rigg having passed away earlier that year.

* ArtefactTitle: The title of the series referred to the efforts of Dr. Keel to avenge his wife who was murdered in the first episode. The murderer was caught in the second episode, and Keel left the show altogether at the end of Season 1, but the title remained through all six seasons.

** John Steed appearing in Dr. Keel's flat sitting in an armchair and offering to help him avenge his wife's death, all the while not revealing his name.

* PlotTriggeringDeath: The series kicks off when Dr. Keel's wife is murdered by a drug gang in the first episode because she stumbled upon something she shouldn't have.

* DistressedDude:

Following the third season's conclusion in 1964, Blackman left to pursue a film career (playing Pussy Galore in ''Film/{{Goldfinger}}'', a Bond film) and, following several unsuccessful shootings pairing Macnee with Elizabeth Shepherd, was replaced by Diana Rigg as Mrs. Emma Peel, described as a "talented amateur". Buoyed by the national success of the Gale era, ABC banked on revamping the show to pursue American TV markets and procured a budget increase for the series, enabling the show to convert from videotape to the more cinematographically-versatile medium of 35mm film (and thus compete with its U.S. contemporaries visually). Owing to both Rigg's energetic charisma (and chemistry with Macnee) and its upgraded production values, the show resultantly became much more stylish, fast-paced and irreverent - even gaining a new theme song - although it wasn't until the next season that it was produced in colour. Mrs. Peel -- whose husband didn't make an appearance until her final episode -- set the trend of the SpyCatsuit and continued the gentleman spy / ActionGirl setup, although the further evolution of Steed into a mannerly, [[QuintessentialBritishGentleman exaggeratedly British gentleman]] (as opposed to the less chaste alpha male of the Keel and Gale eras) gave this era's incarnation of the dynamic a decidedly more parodic flavour. Possibly due to the more international reach of their seasons as co-stars, Steed and Mrs. Peel became the show's most iconic pairing, with the fifth season's shift to colour accentuating their profile (and the show's popularity) further.

[[caption-width-right:300:The series' most iconic couple: Mr. [[OverlyLongName John Wickham Gascoyne Beresford Steed]] and Mrs Emma Peel (née Knight)]]

''The Avengers'' is a very popular British SpyFiction series that ran during most of TheSixties (from 1961 to 1969). It was created by Creator/SydneyNewman (a few years before he created ''Series/DoctorWho''), mainly written by Brian Clemens and produced by Associated British Corporation (or ABC, unrelated to the identically-abbreviated American TV channel) for Creator/{{ITV}}. The series aired a total of 161 episodes across six seasons and singlehandedly started the SpyCatsuit trope.

''The Avengers'' is a very popular British SpyFiction series that ran during most of TheSixties (from 1961 to 1969). It was created by Creator/SydneyNewman (a few years before he created ''Series/DoctorWho''), mainly written by Brian Clemens and produced by Associated British Corporation (or ABC, unrelated to the identically-abbreviated American TV channel) for Creator/{{ITV}}. It had a total of 161 episodes across six seasons and singlehandedly started the SpyCatsuit trope.

Its most famous pairing, between 1965 and 1968, was Creator/PatrickMacnee (who would later appear in a Film/JamesBond [[Film/AViewToAKill film]]) and Creator/DianaRigg (who would later appear in a [[Film/OnHerMajestysSecretService Bond film]]). In earlier seasons (1962-1964), the female co-star was Creator/HonorBlackman ([[RunningGag who would later appear]] in a [[Film/{{Goldfinger}} Bond film]]).

A TV strike delayed the start of the second season, so Hendry left to pursue a film career. Steed subsequently became the show's definitive central character and the production team started to explore other partnerships. The first, lasting just three episodes, was Dr. King, a blatant SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute of Keel. He was followed up by stories that alternately paired Steed up with nightclub singer Venus Smith (played by Julie Stevens, who has never appeared in a Bond film) and female spy Catherine "Cathy" Gale (arguably TV's first true ActionGirl, and played by Blackman, who, as noted already, would later appear in a Bond film). Cathy, who was mostly written similarly to Dr. Keel (WordOfGod is that some of her early scripts were actually written for Hendry), proved to be the more popular and Venus was quietly dropped. With Steed now consistently partnered and cohabiting with his co-protagonist (instead of entering and withdrawing from their otherwise-mundane daily occupation on call), much of his initial shadiness was removed in favor of a more affable and debonair characterization, although he would nonetheless retain elements of his ruthlessness and manipulative prowess.

The series was originally created as a vehicle for Creator/IanHendry (who would [[DeletedRole not-quite appear]] in [[Film/CasinoRoyale1967 a not-quite Bond film]]), to capitalise on the popularity he had developed during his previous show, the social realist drama ''Police Surgeon''. In the {{pilot}}, his character, the subdued and pragmatic practitioner Dr David Keel, was recruited by charming-but-hard-edged spy John Steed (Macnee) as a part-time expert assistant in return for Steed's help capturing the murderers of Keel's fiancée; this was pretty much [[ArtifactTitle the last time in the series any actual]] ''[[ArtifactTitle avenging]]'' [[ArtifactTitle took place]]. The ensuing first season (featuring Keel and Steed as rotating co-protagonists and collaborators more than a regularly-partnered duo) was generally a grim-and-gritty (and decidedly low-budget) crime melodrama, centring around drug smugglers, arms dealers and other broadly-realistic cases, often within the confines of a realistically-presented early-'60s London.

The series was originally created as a vehicle for Creator/IanHendry (who would [[DeletedRole not-quite appear]] in [[Film/CasinoRoyale1967 a not-quite Bond film]]), to capitalise on the popularity he had developed during his previous show, the social realist drama ''Police Surgeon''. In the {{pilot}}, his character, the subdued and pragmatic practitioner Dr David Keel, was recruited by charming-but-hard-edged spy John Steed (Macnee) as a part-time expert assistant in return for Steed's help capturing the murderers of Keel's fiancée; this was pretty much [[ArtifactTitle the last time in the series any actual]] ''[[ArtifactTitle avenging]]'' [[ArtifactTitle took place]]. The ensuing first season (featuring Keel and Steed as rotating co-protagonists and collaborators more than a regularly-partnered duo) was generally a grim-and-gritty (and decidedly low-budget) crime melodrama, centring around drug smugglers, arms dealers and other broadly-realistic cases.

A TV strike delayed the start of the second season, so Hendry left to pursue a film career. Steed subsequently became the show's definitive central character and the production team started to explore other partnerships. The first, lasting just three episodes, was Dr. King, a blatant SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute of Keel. He was followed up by stories that alternately paired Steed up with nightclub singer Venus Smith (played by Julie Stevens, who has never appeared in a Bond film) and female spy Catherine "Cathy" Gale (arguably TV's first true ActionGirl, and played by Blackman, who, as noted already, would later appear in a Bond film). Cathy, who was mostly written similarly to Dr. Keel (WordOfGod is that some of her early scripts were actually written for Hendry), proved to be the more popular and Venus was quietly dropped. With Steed now consistently partnered and cohabiting with his co-protagonist (instead of entering and withdrawing from their otherwise-mundane daily occupation on call), much of his initial shadiness was removed in favor of a more affable characterization, although he would nonetheless retain elements of his ruthlessness and manipulative prowess.

This [[ReTool retooling]] of the show became a massive smash. With a consistent AgentsDating format, the show gradually began to move away from more mundane villains and smaller-scale urban dramas in favour of pulpier, more bombastic plots centred on international espionage and political corruption (sporadically interlaced with more overtly unrealistic concepts such as witchcraft and {{DiabolicalMastermind}}s), albeit while retaining a relatively emotionally-grounded and hard-edged tone.