Ollie Joe
- Episode aired Sep 27, 1966
IMDb RATING
7.9/10
87
YOUR RATING
Sergeant Saunders' squad is disrupted by Ollie Joe Brown, a young soldier determined to be "GI Perfect."Sergeant Saunders' squad is disrupted by Ollie Joe Brown, a young soldier determined to be "GI Perfect."Sergeant Saunders' squad is disrupted by Ollie Joe Brown, a young soldier determined to be "GI Perfect."
Photos
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Featured review
Fine acting, but lousy script
The serenity of the California fields in Color aren't as atmospheric as the traditional black & white backdrops for "Combat!" in this episode, which spotlights one of my favorite actors of the period, Robert Walker Junior. He was immortalized in Georges Lautner's incest classic "Road to Salina" four years later, and here is the epitome of an innocent thrust into adulthood - a role he often played.
The story premise is that his character Ollie Joe is nothing short of perfection in battle with the Germans. No-nonsense Vic is taken aback by the kid's sentimentality at first, but there's no question about his ability. His enthusiasm for being a soldier is the opposite of infectious, coming off as unnatural.
Rick assigns the squad to take a bridge and hold it, and Ollie is raring to go, with his older pal Claude Akins filling us in about he kid's lonely background prior to his getting drafted and finding his true calling. On their way they have a skirmish with Germans, and the squad quickly becomes tired of how thrilled and effusive Ollie is with everything -something of a pain in the neck.
Frank Moss's script is a bit one-note, constantly reinforcing the obvious near-fanaticism of Ollie's attitude and behavior, as we wait patiently for something to give. Steady as a rock Vic has no time to waste on the kid's oddball behavior, and the sense that this guest star will end up in a body bag is overwhelming.
Things come to a head when the squad comes in sight of their bridge destination occupied by a large group of Germans who need to be dislodged. The battle is one-sided, with Vic's troops knocking the enemy off like ten pins with zero casualties on the American side. That is, until Ollie's rifle jams and he can't shoot, allowing a German to kill his only surviving pal Claude Akins to be fatally wounded. Ollie blames himself and is out of control, no longer following Vic's basic orders.
There's no time to molly-coddle the boy, as a German half-track with more soldiers is approaching and needs to be dealt with immediately. Gung-ho Ollie suddenly cracks up, even threatening Vic, confusing him with his dead lieutenant. Though wounded, Ollie heroically destroys the half-track with a grenade, proving his mettle as a soldier, though dying in the process.
Fine acting by both Walker and Vic is wasted on the contrived, predictable script.
The story premise is that his character Ollie Joe is nothing short of perfection in battle with the Germans. No-nonsense Vic is taken aback by the kid's sentimentality at first, but there's no question about his ability. His enthusiasm for being a soldier is the opposite of infectious, coming off as unnatural.
Rick assigns the squad to take a bridge and hold it, and Ollie is raring to go, with his older pal Claude Akins filling us in about he kid's lonely background prior to his getting drafted and finding his true calling. On their way they have a skirmish with Germans, and the squad quickly becomes tired of how thrilled and effusive Ollie is with everything -something of a pain in the neck.
Frank Moss's script is a bit one-note, constantly reinforcing the obvious near-fanaticism of Ollie's attitude and behavior, as we wait patiently for something to give. Steady as a rock Vic has no time to waste on the kid's oddball behavior, and the sense that this guest star will end up in a body bag is overwhelming.
Things come to a head when the squad comes in sight of their bridge destination occupied by a large group of Germans who need to be dislodged. The battle is one-sided, with Vic's troops knocking the enemy off like ten pins with zero casualties on the American side. That is, until Ollie's rifle jams and he can't shoot, allowing a German to kill his only surviving pal Claude Akins to be fatally wounded. Ollie blames himself and is out of control, no longer following Vic's basic orders.
There's no time to molly-coddle the boy, as a German half-track with more soldiers is approaching and needs to be dealt with immediately. Gung-ho Ollie suddenly cracks up, even threatening Vic, confusing him with his dead lieutenant. Though wounded, Ollie heroically destroys the half-track with a grenade, proving his mettle as a soldier, though dying in the process.
Fine acting by both Walker and Vic is wasted on the contrived, predictable script.
helpful•00
- lor_
- Oct 20, 2023
Details
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content
![Combat! (1962)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMWE2NDczNDktNjlkMy00OGIzLThjZGEtYTc3ZTNlYTA5NjJmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTM1OTEzNjEz._V1_QL75_UY133_CR53,0,90,133_.jpg)