The Checklist: The Master (S1 Ep7) “Juggernaut”
This edition of The Checklist will take a look at an episode of the short lived and unsung action adventure series, The Master, starring Lee Van Cleef, Timothy Van Patten and Sho Kosugi… sometimes.
- Synopsis: John and Max stop off in a small town for the night, but end up aiding a group of farmers who are being strong armed by the owner of a trucking company.
#1- Was this a Shô Kosugi episode?
We may as well get the bad news out of the way early, “Juggernaut” was a “credit only” episode for Shô Kosugi.
Kosugi’s character Okasa in The Master is not unlike Lance LeGault’s character Col Decker on The A-Team. Each episode has a stand alone story, but there is an overall story arc with Okasa chasing after John Peter McAllister (Lee Van Cleef, Escape from New York)… some episodes Okasa catches up with McAllister, other episodes he does not. 0/1
#2- Were there any notable guest stars?
Max (Timothy Van Patten, Zone Troopers) is only in town a few minutes when he finds himself on the wrong end of a one sided bar fight that results in Max being thrown through the White Line Bar’s window. The defenestrator is our first notable guest star… William Smith of Eye of the Tiger and Conan the Barbarian fame. Smith plays Kane one of the heavies that is employed by the Transcontinental Trucking Company.
Robert Tessier plays one of Kane’s co-workers, Steamhammer… which is a pretty awesome name if you ask me. I always remember Tessier from his work in the Charles Bronson films, Breakheart Pass and Hard Times.
I would also like to point out Britt Leach (The Last Starfighter), who plays Joe, a turncoat farmer who supplies information to Transcontinental Trucking. When Joe sold out his fellow farmers I started thinking of horrible ways he could be punished, I eventually landed on Joe being struck by lightning 66 times… IN THE HEAD! 1/2
#3- Did Max Keller get the girl?
Max is something of a ladies man on the series, but he gets off to a rough start with Cat Sinclair (Tara Buckman)… in fact Cat is the reason Max got into the bar fight. Max tried to reason with Kane but he wasn’t having it, then Cat saw Max get his ass kicked, what she didn’t know is moments before entering the bar, Max promised McAllister that he wouldn’t get into any fights. However as the show progressed, Max was able to redeem himself and by the end of the show, Cat was in the van with Max and McAllister ready to go on their next adventure.
But wait there’s more… Cat’s mom Maggie Sinclair (Diana Muldaur) gets off to a rocky start with McAllister… as in she greets him with a shotgun after Max and McAllister bring Cat home after the bar room brouhaha. But it isn’t long before McAllister comes up with a plan for Maggie and the other farmers to form a juggernaut (DING!) and stand united against Transcontinental Trucking. Next thing you know Maggie doesn’t want to spend the night alone, if you know what I mean!
Not only am I rewarding Max with a point, that sly fox John Peter McAllister deserves a point too. 3/3
#4- Were there obvious stunt doubles?
In my previous coverage of The Master, I said and I quote, “Ninjas may be undetectable, but Van Cleef’s stunt double is detectable, all the time and every time.”
I stand by that statement, in fact Van Cleef’s stunt double may have been even more obvious in “Juggernat”. 4/4
#5- Did we get any shurikens?
A ninja without some shurikens is like a day without sun. Fortunately, we do get to see McAllister throw some shuriken when the Transcontinental goon squad find out about the meeting Maggie had with the other farmers (Thanks to that narc Joe) and show up on her property looking to intimidate her. 5/5
- Final Score = 5/5 (100%) The lack of Kosugi hurt this episode, but the difference maker was the surprise factor of John Peter McAllister being the Daddy Mac and giving “Juggernaut” a perfect score.
