For two seasons on ABC, The Rat Patrol gave viewers a thrilling taste of the war in the desert, as an extremely mobile four man team, took on the forces of Germany's Afrika Korps. Flying across the desert sands in jeeps armed with fifty caliber machine guns, the Rat Patrol could strike quickly, and were capable of delivering extreme firepower from almost any angle.
The Allied invasion of Sicily and Italy, would not have been possible without a secure footing in North Africa. But in the grand scheme of World War II, the war in North Africa is often overlooked. The Rat Patrol is the only prime time American series to be set exclusively in the North African theater. Created by Tom Gries, this fast paced, action packed drama, is all about delivering excitement, suspense, and thrills. The Rat Patrol consists of Sergeant Sam Troy (Christopher George), and privates Mark Hitchcock (Lawrence Casey) and Tully Pettigrew (Justin Tarr) of the US Army, and Sergeant Jack Moffitt (Gary Raymond) of the British Army, Scots Guard.
The production values of The Rat Patrol are generally outstanding, and some scenes look like they could be from a feature film. In the first season, about half the episodes were filmed in Spain, and featured some spectacular scenes in the desert, and other Spanish locales. The opening title sequence, features some examples, opening with thrilling images of jeeps flying over a sand dune (and a stuntman almost breaking his neck from whiplash), and a tremendous wide aerial shot of the jeeps racing across the desert, all to Dominic Frontiere's magnificent theme music. The episodes shot in Spain were quite special, but production costs apparently caused the program to be relocated to America. The second season was filmed exclusively in California, and while the geography of the desert is not the same, and the cinematography may not be as breathtaking, it is often still very impressive. The large amount of shooting done on location, or on the studio lot, as opposed to a sterile indoor set, adds to the realistic look of the program. The staging and execution of many of the battle scenes is remarkably well done, given the budgetary limitations, and availability of equipment. In general, the stuntwork is outstanding. To save costs, battle footage and scenic shots were reused where possible, which required creative editing to produce acceptable looking results.
The episodes are all entitled as some kind of `raid'. Often a crisis will arise that briefly slows things down, setting the stage for an exciting and often explosive conclusion. It is a simple, but effective formula, that works time and again. The Rat Patrol is not big on sentimentality. There is death and tragedy, but it simply isn't dwelt upon, and character development isn't very deep. There are a couple of forays into personal lives, but romance is not something the series writers are very adept at.
Although the level of entertainment is high, the level of historical accuracy is probably low. However the writers clearly understood that two jeeps could not take on an army, and kept the battles to a realistic scale. There are some missteps, but for the most part the missions are credible, and totally outrageous situations are avoided. You won't find Troy and the boys trying to kidnap Rommel, or steal the secret of the atomic bomb.
Troy was as tough as iron, and his leadership truly held the group together. The Rat Patrol, made Christopher George a star, but tragically an injury he suffered to his heart, when a jeep flipped over during production, ultimately contributed to his untimely death in 1983 at age 52. George was married to actress Lynda Day George (Mission Impossible TV series), and Vanna White was his niece.
Sergeant Moffitt's ability to speak German, was invaluable to the team. His father was an archeologist, and having spent much time there, Moffitt had supposedly acquired specialized knowledge about the desert. This expertise was tapped into a few times in the early episodes, but faded from storylines later on.
Hans Gudegast (Eric Braeden) was born in Germany, and as Hauptmann Hans Dietrich of the Afrika Korps, he brought realism to his role, and dignity and character, to the opposing force. Without Dietrich, or the occasional guest star playing an officer, the Germans are mostly indistinct battle fodder. Dietrich's presence meant that the battle would be an honorable one. An ethical man, Dietrich was troubled by the fanatical side of Nazism. Tall, handsome, and with a deep rich voice, Eric Braeden is also well known for playing Victor Newman for more than twenty years, on the soap The Young and the Restless.
Whether it be racing across the sands under a blazing sun, with machine guns chattering, and sand spraying through the air, or surreptitiously creeping in the dark preparing to ambush the enemy, The Rat Patrol delivers suspense, and by the seat of your pants action, that looks and sounds fantastic on DVD. Dominic Frontiere's music is simply wonderful, and adds greatly to the enjoyment of the program. Any kind of bonus material would have been very welcome, but unfortunately there are none. With a total of 58 episodes, the series is very highly recommended to fans of World War II action. Get more detail about
The Rat Patrol: The Complete Series.
