The A-Team (TV Series) Pure-Dee Poison (1984) User Reviews

Pure-Dee Poison

[Prismark10 · 7/10 · 23 March 2021]

There are two strong guest stars in this story.

John Amos is Reverend Taylor, a black preacher in the south. He declares war on a moonshine operation run by Charles Drew (Bo Hopkins.) His poisonous stuff has killed several people but Drew runs the county so no one can touch him.

Drew is not going to take any provocation from the Reverend lightly. He also stands up to The A Team with some cunningly disguised listening equipment.

There is a good balance of comedy and action in this story. The A Team improvise with what they can find as weapons. Even stealing some nitrous oxide from a dentist to soup up their wagon.

Mr T finds a bit of romance with the Reverend's daughter. Tawnia gets to feel part of the team. Bo Hopkins is an effective villain.

When the Reverend meets Hannibal in his disguise. I am sure I was not the only one thinking that Hannibal looked the same when he took his wig off. He just had shorter hair.

A fine little episode

[Leofwine_draca · 7/10 · 20 January 2018]

PURE-DEE POISON is an episode of THE A-TEAM which is a lot of fun. It has a southern setting and plenty of action much in the style of a film like WALKING TALL. The excellent John Amos, a tough-guy actor you may recognise from DIE HARD 2, plays a preacher who is busy being oppressed by a moonshining operation led by a delightfully nasty Bo Hopkins, so the boys come in and tear up the place. This has action and laughs in spades, and everything you could want from an A-TEAM episode.

Shine On

[aramis-112-804880 · 3 March 2023]

John Amos is a pastor who wants to end Bo Hopkins' moonshining operation, which is poisoning and blinding drinkers. But to do it he has to call in the A-Team.

Hollywood has always been funny about Christianity. Even back on the days when it was respected (no more) it had curious treatment. It was mostly in small towns where everyone in town went to the same church (try that in any small town in America where we have freedom of religion . . . Or freedom of no religion, if you prefer; but that doesn't apply here).

All preachers and pastors have to wear a collar to segregate people who are professionally religious, the people who may be religious out of church hours.

The sermons, such as they are, are non-specific denominationally. The hymns are non-specific (the worst offender is "Sergeant York" where Walter Brennan leads the congregation in "Give Me Rhat Old Time Religion")

Especially on TV pastors have to be shocked easily, though in real life they come from various, often shabby, backgrounds before finding the Lord; and, in any case, preachers are often the first people folks come to when they have terrible admissions, and they've heard it all (again, that doesn't apply here).

The A-Team has already gone up against Hillbillies. Now it's their cousins, the moonshiners. Or is there more them than shine? They have lots of surveillance equipment to protect mere stills.