You Should Watch “The A-Team”
This is one of my favorite comfort shows, and it’s nowhere near as popular as it deserves, so I’m gonna ramble about it in the hopes that maybe something I say will pique your interest.
Overview
The A-Team is a tv show that aired from 1983-1987, starring George Peppard as Colonel John “Hannibal” Smith, Mr. T as B.A. “Bad Attitude” Baracus, Dwight Schultz as Captain H. M. “Howling Mad” Murdock, and Dirk Benedict as Lieutenant Templeton “Faceman” Peck. Hannibal, B.A., Murdock, and Face are Vietnam war veterans who served together as a commando unit. Upon their return from the war, they were accused of a crime they didn’t commit and locked away in a maximum security stockade. They escaped, and now they’re constantly on the run from the law. Along the way, they stop to help people who are being pushed around and bullied by criminals and other bad guys.
It’s very episodic, with each event being resolved in the same episode, or two or three at most. You can pick it up pretty much anywhere and not be lost. It doesn’t take itself too seriously— in fact, it’s incredibly cheesy— and its primary goal is to entertain, not to beat you over the head with a moral or a message.
Wanna know the best part? It’s all good, clean, wholesome fun. Nobody dies. There’s no coarse language. The good guys (the team) always win. In my opinion, it’s an excellent escape from reality.
Alright, that’s a rough overview, so let me move on to my favorite part— the characters.
Colonel John “Hannibal” Smith
Hannibal is the leader of the A-Team, and, to me, the least interesting member, though by no means does that mean he’s boring.
He’s an aspiring actor, despite his life on the run, and is often the team’s initial point of contact with people who want to hire them. He’s a master of disguise, and if there’s a role to play on a mission he’ll be all over it.
Hannibal is also an adrenaline junkie. He comes up with insane plans that leave him smirking and giggling to himself, much to the chagrin of the rest of his team. B.A. refers to this state as Hannibal being “on the Jazz.” But they usually work, so they all go along with it anyway.
Hannibal is one of the colder members of the team, being their leader, but he really does care about his boys, and that is proven time and time again throughout the show. He also cannot take injustices against civilians sitting down, and has flat-out stated “I don’t like bullies.”
Lastly, Hannibal has an excellent dynamic with the rest of the team. He hits a nice balance between keeping them in line and playing into whatever shenanigans the other three are up to.
Next, we have
Lieutenant Templeton “Faceman” Peck
Or just Face for short. Face is the conman of the group, tasked with getting everything from supplies to airplanes at little to no cost to the team. He’s also our resident pretty-boy and womanizer.
Face was an orphan without much in the way of material comforts pre-war. Now, post-war, he makes a life for himself by scamming whatever he can off of others— that is, until Hannibal ropes him into yet another crazy scheme that puts him back on the run until the heat dies down again. He’ll often be seen wearing nice clothes and driving around his red corvette, usually with a woman on his arm.
He also happens to be one of the most expressive members of the team, if not the most.
Face pairs well with all of the team, but I find him to be at his most entertaining when partnered with either Murdock or Hannibal. Murdock is an excellent scamming partner, and they bounce off of each other well. They’ve probably got the friendliest dynamic out of the four, and Face is usually the one to pick Murdock up for missions. More about them later.
Hannibal, for his part, brings just a touch of paternal vibes to the plate. He looks out for Face and is always ready to offer guidance, but also never misses out on an opportunity to tease him relentlessly.
Face can be a bit of a coward, but if his team needs him he’ll be there. That’s his family, even when they’re ruining his chances with a pretty girl.
After Face, we have…
B.A. Baracus
B.A. supposedly stands for “Bad Attitude,” and he lives up to the nickname, being the most outwardly prickly member of the team by leaps and bounds. Yet, underneath the tough exterior, he’s really just a big softie. B.A. adores children and would do anything for them, and he can be surprisingly gentle with the people the team are helping when he wants to be.
B.A. is our resident tank, as well as our mechanical expert and our driver.
It was just B.A. and his mom while he was growing up, before the war took him away and put him with the team. Now that the war is over, he spends most of his time on the run with the others. But when he has the chance, he likes to spend time working in his garage and keeping an eye out for the children in the area.
Personally, I find his dynamic with Murdock to be the most enjoyable. It’s very much so big brother and little brother, with Murdock deliberately getting on B.A.’s last nerve and B.A. being ready to punch him the instant he even breathes in B.A.ms direction (and then getting mad when someone else beats up on Murdock.)
Last but most certainly not least…
H. M. “Howling Mad” Murdock
My personal favorite member of the A-Team, and who I would consider to be the most entertaining by far. Murdock served as a helicopter pilot during the Vietnam war and worked with the rest of the team, but unlike the other three, Murdock did not wind up in the stockade. Instead, Murdock was placed in the Psychiatric ward of the V.A. Hospital, and that is where he spends his days until Face comes by to break him out for their next job.
Murdock is an absolute wild card, and you never know what you’re going to get from him during any given episode. Maybe he has a talking sock puppet, or maybe it’s an invisible dog named Billy. Maybe he’s planning his presidential campaign, or he could be pretending to by a well known psychologist. Whatever it is, Murdock commits to the bit 100%. It’s left up to speculation whether he’s actually got a couple screws loose or whether he’s faking it for the room and board, but that’s part of the fun anyway.
Don’t let the antics fool you though— Murdock is incredibly intelligent. On occasion he’ll be brought in to save the teak from a sticky situation on his own. He’s also still a highly skilled pilot, however crazy he may seem and how many loopty-loops he might do in the air.
The team all have different reactions to his antics. B.A. gets mad more often than not and wants to keep Murdock as far away from himself and the driver’s seat of his van as possible. Hannibal is usually content to let Murdock be Murdock, and every once in a while will throw in his two cents and play along. Face tends to be the most likely to go along with whatever the day’s shenanigans are, much to B.A.’s chagrin.
Here they are petting Billy.
Finally, Murdock seems to be the most outwardly kind-hearted member of the team. Though all of them are well-intentioned, good guys who are fighting for good of others, Murdock radiates happiness and warmth, while the other three hide those things under a couple layers. He’s a genuine sweetie, if a bit mischievous, and I love that about him.
So, what do you say? Any of that pique your interest?
If you do give it a try, let me know what you think, as well as who your favorite is!
