Every TV series is going to have plenty of episodes that are entertaining to their fans, though not especially memorable; what you might call average type episodes. This is one of those. Why isn't it better? I think there are two main reasons. First, the villains: our MI teams is at their best when they are contending against one or more brilliant and ruthless adversaries. When the bad guys are rather dull and plodding, as they are here, it holds down the potential of the story. The two main villains here are definitely the plodding type! Mark Lenard, who is also a bad guy, was a very good actor, but he doesn't have much to do here in his bad guy persona.
The other reason that the episode isn't as interesting, has to do with Cinnamon's role in this adventure. When the plot calls for her to be enticing or seductive, there's just nobody better than Barbara Bain in giving provocative, subtle glances and innocuous-seeming remarks, usually directed at a villain, that are loaded with under-the-surface flirtatiousness. This quality of Barbara's adds a lot of spice to many of the episodes that feature her in seasons 1 to 3. Here, the story just doesn't call for that, and the character Cinnamon is playing comes off as not particularly interesting. That, along with the bland villains, reduces the energy of the story.
Those two big drawbacks aside, this is a typical MI episode, which means it will be fairly or moderately enjoyable to fans who are always glad to see Jim Phelps and his ace team doing their thing. So, it's worth watching, but you probably aren't going to be in any hurry to watch it again.
The other reason that the episode isn't as interesting, has to do with Cinnamon's role in this adventure. When the plot calls for her to be enticing or seductive, there's just nobody better than Barbara Bain in giving provocative, subtle glances and innocuous-seeming remarks, usually directed at a villain, that are loaded with under-the-surface flirtatiousness. This quality of Barbara's adds a lot of spice to many of the episodes that feature her in seasons 1 to 3. Here, the story just doesn't call for that, and the character Cinnamon is playing comes off as not particularly interesting. That, along with the bland villains, reduces the energy of the story.
Those two big drawbacks aside, this is a typical MI episode, which means it will be fairly or moderately enjoyable to fans who are always glad to see Jim Phelps and his ace team doing their thing. So, it's worth watching, but you probably aren't going to be in any hurry to watch it again.