SUMMARY: RUNNING TIME: 49 Min.
Televised on NBC on September 27, 1983, this Bernard McEveety-directed episode has the A-Team protecting a gentle Vietnamese chef, Lin Duk Coo, who had saved their lives at a brutal POW camp years before. They backtrack his abduction from a posh French restaurant to a local bread manufacturer, which is a front for ruthless L.A. narcotics distributor Tommy Angel (aka Tom Anderson). Conveniently, Angel was once a rogue American soldier at that same POW camp where his present-day supplier, brutal Asian drug kingpin General Chow, had reigned supreme.
Not only do Angel’s thugs and Chow want Coo dead, they want back the ‘china white’ shipment the A-Team inadvertently swiped from them. As far as both sides are concerned, it’s payback time with bullets.
Col. John “Hannibal” Smith: George Peppard
Sgt. B.A. Baracus: Mr. T
Captain H.M. “Howling Mad” Murdock: Dwight Schultz
Lt. Templeton “Face” Peck: Dirk Benedict
Amy Allen: Melinda Culea
Lin Duk Coo: Mako
Tommy Angel/Tom Anderson: Marjoe Gortner
General Chow: John Fujioka
Blonde in Car: Shawn Weatherly
Dr. Peters: Liam Sullivan
Joey: Jim Connors
Henri: Roy Jenson
Solly: Nick Dimitri
Ted: Jophery C. Brown
Parking Lot Attendant: Rob Hilgenberg
Opening Credits Voice-Over: John Ashley (uncredited)
REVIEW:
As one can expect, the outlandish plot isn’t remotely plausible, but it still delivers solid entertainment. Case in point: the underground garage shootout at a posh apartment building involving a stolen bread truck is a gem. Further, the A-Team’s interactions with Marjorie Gortner’s sleazy ‘Tommy Angel’ (including a golf course get-together) are top-notch fun. The humor angle is well-played, as the A-Team systemically scavenge the apartment building’s resources, not to mention tease ‘Face’ about the plush playpen he has already finagled under false pretenses.
Although the script gives them undemanding clichés to play, Mako and John Fujioka offer classy performances. The same applies to Gortner’s guest baddie as a charismatic ‘daddy’s boy.’ A rematch with his character would have made a fun sequel. Exuding prime A-Team formula, “Recipe for Heavy Bread” holds up impressively well for repeat viewings.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 7½ Stars
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