Spy Game (TV series)

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Spy Game was a short-lived American action-adventure television series that aired on the ABC network for 13 episodes during the spring and summer of 1997. The series was created by screenwriter and physician Ivan Raimi.

The series starred Linden Ashby as Lorne Cash, a retired secret agent who reluctantly agrees to get back into the "spy game" and work for a secret government agency. Cash is an "old-school" agent who is more apt to rely on his wits and his fists rather than the latest high-tech gadgets, which occasionally puts him at odds with his gadget-happy (but no less capable) partner, Max London, played by Allison Smith. Despite initial friction, the two quickly establish a rapport (with the usual romantic overtures). Some of the show's humor is generated from Lorne's reluctance to use modern gadgets, as well as the occasional revelations about his past and his high connections. In the premiere episode, for example, Lorne calls the president who is a personal friend and is given a security clearance higher than his boss'.

The series was a throwback to the stylish spy series of the 1960s, with particular comparison being made to The Avengers and The Man from U.N.C.L.E., while at the same time poking fun at the genre. (The opening credits were a parody of the opening credits of The Avengers.) The show's first episode featured cameos by numerous stars of spy shows of the past (including Patrick Macnee and Robert Culp).