Airdate: 2/16/77
Hollywood wants to produce a morale-boosting movie starring
four real war heroes, with all profits going toward war bonds. Steve, of course,
is chosen, along with a young army corporal, Jim Ames (Robert Hayes), who feels
undeserving of his hero worship. The film’s producer, Mark Bremer, turns out to
be a Nazi agent, who plans to capture the four soldiers, return them to
Germany, and then take over the American film industry. Oh, and a wild card:
Wonder Girl/Drusilla comes to the states to ask WW to return to Paradise Island
for the bi-millennial celebration, but winds up helping her big sister nab the
bad guys, and fawn all over the cute guys, namely Jim, in this case.
Fun way to end the first season! WW studio Warner Brothers is used by name as the (literal) backdrop
for the action, and having Wonder Girl return, again played by Debra Winger, is
icing on the cake. She really does an exceptional job playing fresh-faced,
doe-eyed innocence, and somehow it’s not too much of a stretch when she
transforms into her superhero persona and starts kicking butt. Although the
convention of the superhero/alter ego not being identified as the same person
is stretched to the limit here: Jim doesn’t suspect Drusilla’s secret identity
– and she doesn’t even wear glasses!
Also a hoot to see two future movie stars of the 80s, Hays
and Winger, sharing numerous scenes, and some great chemistry, together. His
main back-story, an incident in which he attempted to surrender but wound up
being lauded when his German “captors” actually turned themselves in, provides
a sort of Red Badge of Courage-esque
theme of cowardice and the search for redemption. You can bet that he will step
up to the plate by episode’s end, although WW does lend a hand in facilitating
this.
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