User Reviews

"The Brothers" is a story about French brothers Leon & Marcel Paulon (excellently played by Fernando Lamas & Sal Mineo respectively) who help Lieutenant Hanley & King 2 recon German positions along the battle line. Leon is enthusiastic and ready to mix it up with the Germans while Marcel has reached complete battle fatigue and can no longer deal with fighting.

Irve Tunick wrote a good screenplay in which there is notable character development between Leon & Marcel; he was fortunate to have Lamas and Mineo cast for the parts. Lamas displays superb acting in a memorable barn sequence after realizing he's made a terrible mistake in forcing Marcel to be part of the recon team. Excellent combat scenes are interwoven into their recon mission and the ending sequence is top notch Combat. Ted Knight appears as SS Lieutenant Herlmoch while Paul Busch appears as the German sergeant at the farm.

Bernard McEveety did a fine job directing "The Brothers" which is not only evident in all of the combat scenes, but in outstanding close-ups as the moment of truth approaches both Marcel & Leon.

Makeup artists did a superb job with both brothers graphically portraying the aftermath of German SS torture.

"The Brothers" is very entertaining and a must for all Fernando Lamas fans. The ending combat sequence is one of the Combat series' best.

Lt. Hanley and his squad encounter the young Frenchman Maquis Marcel Paulon that will guide them to meet his older brother Leon Paulon, who is the brave leader of the resistance. Marcel will show the weak parts of the German forces to Hanley. Soon Hanley and his men realize that Marcel is a coward man frightened with the war. When they meet Leon, he insists to bring Marcel with their reconnaissance patrol with tragic consequences.

"The Brothers" is one of the most touching and dramatic episodes of "Combat!" with the story of two brothers, one a brave man and the other a coward. The conclusion is very sad and heartbreaking. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Os Irmãos" ("The Brothers")

Your usual action- and dilemma-packed Combat episode. The situation Hanley and the squad find themselves in is fairly original and the two brothers aspect adds an emotional touch.

Vic is off this week, so Rick is leading the patrol, with our heroes joined by a pair of brothers from the French resistance, Sal Mineo and Fernando Lamas (though neither one of them delivers a French accent).

It's set up as a reconnaissance mission to find weak gaps in the German lines, but from the outlet, Mineo is unreliable and Lamas is clearly untrustworthy when it comes to strictly following Rick's orders.

In a melodramatic twist, a German gets the drop on Mineo, and Sal has to stab him to death. The too-obvious story goes downhill from there, as Sal is portrayed as anxious to impress his gung-ho brother. Next twist has the Germans capturing everyone, and Ted Knight (of all people) is cast the mean German SS officer in charge of interrogating Rick for starters. He threatens the lives of Sal and Fernando, considering them terrorists since they aren't wearing uniforms.

Our POWs plot escape while Rick worries that Sal will break under pressure, and brother Fernando feels guilty for putting Sal in such danger. The brothers are about to be executed by firing squad when Sal breaks down and is willing to give Knight the information, leading to completely ridiculous plot twists.

It's a phony story from start to finish.