DIVISION -4 - "Soldiers" – 1969
The enormous success of the long running (1964-77) Australian Police series, Homicide caused the same production company to try a second Police series. This one was also set in Melbourne, and followed the Detectives and uniformed police of a local station. The Detectives were played by Gerard Kennedy, Chuck Faulkner and Terence Donovan while the uniform bunch included, Frank Taylor, Ted Hamilton and Patricia Smith. The series was a hit and ran for 300 episodes between 1969 and 1976.
This episode is the first of the run. The local area crime stats are taking a beating with, robberies, beatings, break ins and stolen goods all taking a dramatic turn for the worse. The Police put out extra patrols but the crime wave continues.
The Police catch a break when they stop a car on a traffic stop. The car has three ex cons just out the pen inside. They are brought in for a bit of questioning at the station. Senior Detective Faulkner recognizes the men as members of an old teenage gang called "The Soldiers" The gang had been quite the pain back a decade or so. It seems they have all returned from various prisons to the area.
The Police have nothing to connect the three, Graham Rouse, Ron Ferrier and Roger Ward to the recent crimes. They let the men go but decide to keep an eye on them in the future. As it turns out, the three are indeed behind the local crime wave. They had put their prison time to good use, picking up pointers from the other convicts.
The three thugs manage to stay one step ahead of the Police till they pull a booze warehouse job. They load up a truck and then hightail it to their lock-up. However, the warehouse guard catches them making their getaway and puts a shot into the truck. The truck engine starts to sputter and start and lose power. They start down a hill just as a Police patrol car heads towards them.
Ward and Rouse bail out of the truck and make a dash to safety on foot. Ferrier however gets trapped in the truck as it crashes at the bottom of the hill. He is pulled out of the wreck with various broken bones etc and arrested.
The Police pull out all the stops as they hunt down the remaining gang members. They are soon corralled and cuffed. This time they will be staying inside for a much longer stay.
There is a pair of subplots about Detective's Kennedy's pregnant wife, as well as several teenage runaway girls.
This is a pretty good opening episode with a nice pace, some well-handled violence and gritty black and white photography. Well worth a look.
The enormous success of the long running (1964-77) Australian Police series, Homicide caused the same production company to try a second Police series. This one was also set in Melbourne, and followed the Detectives and uniformed police of a local station. The Detectives were played by Gerard Kennedy, Chuck Faulkner and Terence Donovan while the uniform bunch included, Frank Taylor, Ted Hamilton and Patricia Smith. The series was a hit and ran for 300 episodes between 1969 and 1976.
This episode is the first of the run. The local area crime stats are taking a beating with, robberies, beatings, break ins and stolen goods all taking a dramatic turn for the worse. The Police put out extra patrols but the crime wave continues.
The Police catch a break when they stop a car on a traffic stop. The car has three ex cons just out the pen inside. They are brought in for a bit of questioning at the station. Senior Detective Faulkner recognizes the men as members of an old teenage gang called "The Soldiers" The gang had been quite the pain back a decade or so. It seems they have all returned from various prisons to the area.
The Police have nothing to connect the three, Graham Rouse, Ron Ferrier and Roger Ward to the recent crimes. They let the men go but decide to keep an eye on them in the future. As it turns out, the three are indeed behind the local crime wave. They had put their prison time to good use, picking up pointers from the other convicts.
The three thugs manage to stay one step ahead of the Police till they pull a booze warehouse job. They load up a truck and then hightail it to their lock-up. However, the warehouse guard catches them making their getaway and puts a shot into the truck. The truck engine starts to sputter and start and lose power. They start down a hill just as a Police patrol car heads towards them.
Ward and Rouse bail out of the truck and make a dash to safety on foot. Ferrier however gets trapped in the truck as it crashes at the bottom of the hill. He is pulled out of the wreck with various broken bones etc and arrested.
The Police pull out all the stops as they hunt down the remaining gang members. They are soon corralled and cuffed. This time they will be staying inside for a much longer stay.
There is a pair of subplots about Detective's Kennedy's pregnant wife, as well as several teenage runaway girls.
This is a pretty good opening episode with a nice pace, some well-handled violence and gritty black and white photography. Well worth a look.