The Checklist: The A-Team (S4 Eps 1 & 2) “Judgement Day”
Season 4 of The A-Team kicked off with a special two-hour season premiere that aired on September 24, 1985.
The episode titled “Judgement Day” had The A-Team on a “globetrotting” adventure (courtesy of stock footage and Italian inspired music) as they attempt to rescue the daughter of a judge who is presiding over a case against a high profile mobster named Joe Scarlett.
A precedent was set last August when I put a two-hour season premiere of Knight Rider to The Checklist test. And that precedent was… a super-sized episode requires a super-sized Checklist and that is exactly what I have in store for “Judgement Day”…
#1. Is this a Col Decker episode?
It doesn’t take long for this question to be answered as Col. Decker (Lance LeGault) and his team of MPs surround the high rise building where John “Hannibal” Smith (George Peppard) is meeting with Judge Leonard Mordente on a window washing scaffold on the side of the building… Hannibal agrees to take the job and rescue Mordente’s daughter from Joe Scarlett’s goons, but has to make a quick exit via parachute to once again evade the Military Police… this was actually the first of two appearances for Col. Decker in this episode, but one is all he needed to get the point. 1/1
#2. Was Hannibal in disguise?
Technically Hannibal posing as a window washer could have qualified for him being in disguise, but we get full blown Hannibal in disguise when he poses as one of Scarlett’s goons named Augie, who looked like George Peppard in disguise, so this was going to be a real easy look for Hannibal to achieve. And if you love disguises, fear not… there are more to come. 2/2
#3. Was there a montage?
There is a brief montage of The A-Team preparing an RV for their daring rescue plan of Lori Mordente at the Pleasant View Motor Park. Things do not go exactly as planned in small part because Col. Decker makes his second appearance, but in larger part to the helicopter that shows up and flies Lori out of there before The A-Team can save her. 3/3
#4. Did they have to knock B.A. out to get him to fly?
After B.A. (Mr. T) and Murdoch (Dwight Schultz) find out from Joe Scarlett’s lawyer that Lori Mordente has been taken to Italy where Joe’s brother Gino (the local don) will hold on to Lori for safe keeping until the trial is over. B.A. instantly makes it known he is NOT flying to Italy… the next time we see B.A. he is in fact waking up in Italy after being sedated… and as you can imagine he is none too happy. And that’s bad news for the bad guys, because it is fighting time! 4/4
#5. Was there a quality cliff hanger?
While “Judgement Day” started off as a two-hour season premiere, it would spend the rest of its existence in syndication and on streaming as a two part episode. That means you want to end Part 1 with some sort of hook to get everyone all amped up to tune in for the conclusion on the next episode. As Part 1 comes to an end, The A-Team has managed to rescue Lori and they get to the truck they have on standby and they are on the run… not only is that a quality way to end Part 1, it also means Part 2 starts off with a car chase, featuring a tommy gun shooting Gino, exploding gas cans, a car jump, a fence smashing and most importantly B.A. making sure he will not have to fly back to the United States when he drives the truck THROUGH the plane that is going to take them back to America! 5/5
#6. Did Face have to use his con man skills?
With flying not being an option, The A-Team will now be returning to the United States by boat… specifically a cruise ship. But Face (Dirk Benedict) turns on the Templeton Peck charm and gets the team aboard… but not without a cost. Face has to pose as the doctor’s assistant and Hannibal gets a spot as the new pool boy?!?! But the pleasure cruise gets a lot less pleasurable when Gino and his crew make their way on board after the ship has already sailed! Gino wants the girl dead and he is willing to blow up the entire ship if need be! 6/6
#7. Were there any notable guest stars?
Michael DeLano of Fists of Iron and Commando fame plays Johnny Angel, the cruise ship’s egotistical crooner… Also, I didn’t mention it earlier but Judge Mordente was played by Dana Elcar, who was a regular on another 80’s action adventure series, MacGyver. 7/7
#8. Did Face’s libido get him in trouble?
Face managed to get himself in a jam with a lovely young lady when they were caught in the act by her angry muscle head boyfriend, Bull… but fortunately some quick thinking kept Face’s face intact. 8/8
#9. Were there any obvious stunt doubles?
The Augie vs. Augie battle in Part 1 certainly had to be done with an obvious stunt double. And I’m thinking that wasn’t George Peppard skydiving at the start of this epic two parter or Peppard, Mr. T, Dirk Benedict and Dwight Schultz repelling down the side of the cruise ship either. High definition TVs have definitely ruined some of the magic that a tube TV could hide. 9/9
#10. Were any catchphrases used?
I am beginning to think a previous fear I had when putting a Season 4 episode of The A-Team to The Checklist test is true… the guys were sick of saying the same lines over and over again for years, because over the course of two episode… no “jibber jabber”, no “plans coming together” and no Hannibal “on the jazz”. I will say listening to Murdoch sing his own rendition of “Funiculi, Funicula” did help me cope with the lack of catchphrases. 9/10
- Final Score = 9/10 (90%) This was a fun two parter and a good start to the show’s penultimate season… a season that would feature some of my favorite episodes and really the last season that resembled the show’s original formula.
