User Reviews

In this episode a branch of the Luftwaffe is training in British RAF planes in a mission to sabotage the Allies with their own planes. And it just so happens that the fliers are stationed at Stalag 13 while undergoing training with the planes.

Hogan knows the problems that this will cause the Allies so he has a mission also- to destroy all the RAF planes. But it will not be an easy task as the planes are heavily guarded and General Burkhalter is on hand to assist in any need. Hogan is going to have to have some help from the underground in order strike back at the Germans.

This is a straight on story that well written and well performed. There was also some funny lines in the script with Klink and Burkhalter always having an interesting and humorous discussion. One notable thing about the show was the absents of Richard Dawson. Not sure the reason but it would have made a tighter script if the British officer was present when the Germans were flying British planes. However, the episode was still entertaining and made for an good watch.

In his review of "Some of Their Planes Are Missing," Guad42 makes an excellent point about the formula repetition of "Hogan's Heroes," which served up variations on a narrow, limited theme of an Allied intelligence and sabotage unit led by Colonel Hogan operating covertly from German prisoner-of-war camp Stalag 13 run by Colonel Klink.

That's the formula, and it soon became repetitive as even viewers at the time recognized: In its first season, the series was ranked ninth by Nielsen rankings, fell to seventeenth in season two, and was never again in the top thirty for its remaining four seasons.

And since "Hogan's Heroes" is simply variations on the same theme, it's helpful to evaluate an episode on how effectively it performs its variations. "Some of Their Planes Are Missing" performs very well thanks to Laurence Marks, the best "Hogan's Heroes" writer, with sure-handed director Gene Reynolds executing Marks's tight script with precision.

Need evidence? Here it is:

PLAUSIBILITY: The Luftwaffe is training pilots, based temporarily at Stalag 13, to fly British fighter aircraft that will blend in with actual British fighters to shoot down attacking bombers--"wolves in sheep's clothing." Upon discovering this, the Heroes undertake to sabotage the effort. Marks chooses a premise that is modest, plausible, and rooted in fact; look up "Operation Greif" during the Battle of the Bulge for a similar historical example.

CREDIBILITY: "Hogan's Heroes" is predicated upon the Germans being, at best, unwitting but more often gullible when not utter buffoons and outright idiots easily manipulated by the Heroes. Marks never forgot that the Germans were actually formidable foes.

Thus, Klink is vain and foppish but is also competent and even authoritative. In a neat twist to the standard "Hogan hoodwinks Klink" routine that even Marks uses, Hogan flatters the visiting squadron commander, Colonel Leman (John Doucette), into inviting him to the nightly shindig Klink hosts, which provides the alibi for Hogan during the sabotage mission. Firmly citing security concerns, Klink vetoes the idea--until Leman threatens to call General Burkhalter.

Because the Germans are credible foes, Marks scripts believable danger, such as when Hogan leads Sergeant Carter and Corporal LeBeau , all disguised as Luftwaffe soldiers, to the German base, where they run into guards who demand a password they don't have, leading to a tense situation that escalates in organic, not contrived, fashion.

Marks crafts a realistic believable narrative. His well-conceived script develops smoothly and organically from circumstance and doesn't employ the clunky, obvious hand-waving other writers use because they simply assemble a series of gags into a poorly-conceived story.

HUMOR: Because "Hogan's Heroes" is a situation comedy, Marks doesn't forget humor. Granted, he relies on wit and sardonicism rather than slapstick and farce although he uses Carter, the most naïve of the Heroes, as comic relief. And Klink, as usual, is the butt of General Burkhalter's barbed insults. Nevertheless, Marks works the humor into his always-sharp dialog so that it arises organically as part of the narrative exchanges between the characters, not as obvious setup-punchline contrivances so common to other writers.

Since "Hogan's Heroes" is (ahem) imprisoned by its narrow formula, what becomes crucial is watching the variation on a repetitive theme to see how well it is executed. By and large, viewers never notice, nor do they care about, who writes an episode, but if you pay attention to that credit, you know what you're going to get.

Frankly, Marks was repetitive. His scripts were always sensible and well-organized, so that's what you get with "Some of Their Planes Are Missing": a taut, well-executed tale from the best writer on "Hogan's Heroes."