Mission: Impossible - Season 5

The disappointing ratings from Season 4 of Mission: Impossible meant changes had to be made. The most glaring hole in the show in Season 4 was the lack of a female regular in the cast, since Barbara Bain had left so abruptly. While the cast and creator/executive producer Bruce Geller favored promoting frequent Season 4 guest star Lee Meriwether to permanent cast member, Paramount went younger and cast 23-year old Lesley Ann Warren. Geller had nothing against Warren professionally or personally, but thought she was wrong for the part, given her age and her look. (Hair and makeup didn't do her any favors by giving her pigtails in the first episode of Season 5.) But casting a younger actress was part of solving another issue with the show, that it had gotten stale and repetitive. Producers, including Geller, realized that there were only so many schemes the IMF can pull, so they either had to mix it up on the show or find a new audience. The solution was eventually a combination of the two.
Peter Lupus had been making noise about his salary and his role on the show, so Paramount decided to kill two birds with one stone by gradually phasing out the character of Willy Armitage and bringing in another younger actor, 25-year old Sam Elliott, as Doug Robert to replace him. Geller once again opposed the move, believing there wasn't much that could be done to mix up the role of the fifth member of the team and that Lupus brought something unique to the table with his strength and size. The two ended up sharing the screen in only two episodes and splitting the rest of the episodes nearly equally between them. The youth movement was paired with a move in the schedule from Sunday nights at 10:00 to Saturday nights at 7:00, hoping to find a new and younger audience. New writers were also brought in to mix up the plots, with more domestic missions against gangsters and drug dealers rather than Cold War enemies. (The legal and moral ramifications of using the IMF in a law enforcement capacity was lost on a pre-Watergate American audience.) Some episodes also dealt with the personal lives of team members, which had never been touched on in the past, and missions sometimes went awry, requiring improvisation, in sharp contrast to the perfect missions of the past. The producers toyed with the structure of the show, removing the tape scene, apartment scene and dossier scenes in some episodes, and adding in a pre-credits prologue, and actually tweaking the credits itself with remixed theme music. 
Some of the change worked, while others didn't. Sam Elliott, while a better actor than Peter Lupus, was wasted in the role of Dr. Doug Robert, since the fifth cast member didn't have much to do no matter who played the role. The show only had four full-time roles, team leader, master-of-disguise/impressionist, token female, and tech guy, with the fifth cast member just filling in wherever needed, thus the numerous times Willy was no more than a driver or just Barney's assistant. Combine this with Peter Lupus' surprisingly large (and vocal) fanbase, and it was decided to keep Willy on and drop Doug. Doug appeared in one Season 6 episode before leaving the show. (Doug is conspicuously missing from the DVD cover, despite appearing in over half of the episodes, see right.)
The season was the last for Leonard Nimoy, who felt out of place as a replacement cast member and was frustrated by the character of Paris, or lack of one, as well the general direction of the show and his own career. Paris, like Rollin Hand before him, wasn't really much of a character, since their entire character was to play other characters. Although one episode explained a bit of his backstory, and another hinted that he still worked as a stage magician (or, given the costume, murdered East End prostitutes) part-time, there wasn't really room for character development the way the show was structured. Nimoy convinced Paramount to let him out of his five year contract, and once the season was over, starred in a few movies and plays, and studied both still photography and directing, two pursuits he found acclaim in. 
Like Nimoy, Lesley Ann Warren felt out of place as well and was also frustrated by her character. She was also able to convince Paramount to let her out of her contract, and like Sam Elliott, went on to have a successful career in Hollywood. Like Dan Briggs, Rollin Hand and Cinnamon Carter, neither Paris, Dana Lambert or Doug Robert were ever seen or mentioned on the show again, and no explanation was ever given for their departures. 
Season 5 was also the last season for creator/executive producer Bruce Geller, who was barred from the Paramount lot partway through the season. Although he retained his executive producer credit till the end of the show and continued to appear as the hand that lit the match in the opening credits, he no longer had any input in the running of the show. Paramount had enough of clashing with him over the budget, and finally did something about it. Geller produced a few movies and television series after being banished from Paramount, but none were ever as successful as Mission: Impossible or Mannix, the other hit show he created for Desilu/Paramount. He was busy working on more projects for Twentieth Century Fox when he died flying his own plane in 1978, a crash the NTSB later attributed to pilot error. As the creator of the series, however, he still got writing credit for the 1988 revival of the series and the movie adaptations.
The changes worked for the most part, bringing the ratings back up, with the show ending the season ranked 33rd, which was comparable to where the show ended Season 2. Now that Paramount had fulfilled its obligation to CBS and had enough episodes to sell for syndication, many felt that this would be the end of the show. But despite the need to fill to spots in the cast, CBS was happy about the rebound in ratings and renewed the show for a sixth season.
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=Handguns=
==Tokarev TT-33==
Tokarev TT-33s appear in several episodes throughout the season.
==Smith & Wesson Model 36==
The Smith & Wesson Model 36 is a frequent handgun used by IMF agents and gangsters in the series.
==Colt Detective Special==
Colt Detective Specials are seen throughout the season.
==Astra 400==
The Astra 400 is a frequent handgun used by the IM Force and various characters.
==Smith & Wesson Model 10==
Smith & Wesson Model 10s of various barrel lengths were seen throughout the season.
==M1911A1==
The M1911A1 is another weapon seen in the series.
 
==Colt Official Police==
Colt Official Police revolvers are seen throughout the season.
 
==Smith & Wesson Safety Hammerless==
Meerghan (Tony Giorgio) fires a Smith & Wesson Safety Hammerless in a flashback in "My Friend, My Enemy" (S05E06).
 
==Luger P08==
In "The Amateur" (S5E09), Eric Schilling (Anthony Zerbe) is armed with a Luger P08. Vincent Sandler (William Smith) is armed with one in "A Ghost Story" (S05E21).
==Walther P38==
Walther P38s are seen throughout the season.
==Beretta M1934==
Beretta M1934s are seen throughout the season.
==Walther PP==
Arthur Norris (Denny Miller) uses a suppressed Walther PP in "The Field" (S05E17).
==Smith & Wesson 1913==
Paris draws a Smith & Wesson 1913 in "Kitara" (S05E20).
==Walther PPK==
Mrs. Foster (Marion Ross) draws a Walther PPK in "A Ghost Story" (S05E21).
=Rifles=
==Lee-Enfield No.4 Mk.I==
Guards are armed with Lee-Enfield No.4 Mk.I in "The Innocent" (S05E03).
==Sporterized M1903 Springfield==
A Sporterized M1903 Springfield is seen on a gun rack in "Homecoming" (S05E04). Willy Armitage uses one in "Squeeze Play" (S5E12).
==M1 Carbine==
The M1 Carbine is another frequently used weapon by foreign guards and soldiers in the series. 
==Beretta BM59==
The Beretta BM59 is a frequent weapon seen in the hands of guards and soldiers in the series. 
==M1 Garand==
The M1 Garand is a frequent weapon seen in the hands of guards and soldiers in the series. 
==Mauser Karabiner 98k==
The Karabiner 98k rifle is seen used by a firing squad in "The Hostage" (S5E13).
== Remington Model 700 ==
A Remington Model 700 is seen being handled by IMF Agent Dana Lambert (Lesley Ann Warren) "Takeover" (S5E14).
==M16/SP1==
Dave Klinger (Kevin Hagen) uses an M16/SP1 in "Blast" (S05E18) before Jim Phelps takes it away from him and unloads it. Klinger then tosses the empty rifle to Lee Sheels (Laurence Haddon). Henchmen are armed with M16/SP1s in "The Merchant" (S05E23).
=Submachine Guns=
==Madsen M50==
The Madsen M50 is seen in the series often carried by foreign troops. 
==MP40==
Enemy agents are armed with MP40s in "Decoy" (S05E08).
=Machine Guns=
==Browning M2 Aircraft==
The Browning M2 Aircraft is seen mounted on the back of a jeep in "The Hostage" (S05E13). Another one is seen in "The Field" (S05E17).
=Shotguns=
==Remington 870==
Police officers are armed with Remington 870s in "Takeover" (S05E14).
==Coach Gun==
A Coach Gun is used in "Cat's Paw" (S05E15).
=Other=
==M8 flare pistol==
An M8 flare pistol is seen in "Flight" (S05E05).
==Palmer Cap-Chur Short Range Projector==
A henchman (uncredited) uses a Palmer Cap-Chur Short Range Projector in "My Friend, My Enemy" (S05E06). Willy uses on in "Cat's Paw" (S05E15).
==M9 "Bazooka" ==
A rebel is seen with what appears to be a M9 "Bazooka" in "The Hostage" (S05E13).
==Federal Gas Riot Gun==
Federal Gas Riot Guns are seen in "Takeover" (S05E14).
==Mk 2 Hand Grenade==
A box of Mk 2 Hand Grenades are seen in a weapons cache in "Takeover" (S05E14).
==Webley No. 1 Mark 1 flare gun==
The Lieutenant (Erik Holland) uses a Webley No. 1 Mark 1 flare gun to launch a flare in "The Field" (S05E17).
Category:Television
Category:Espionage