Ep 19. The Condemned

The Condemned is the nineteenth episode of the second season of the popular television series Mission: Impossible. The episode first aired on February 10, 1968, on CBS.

The episode begins with Jim Phelps (played by Peter Graves) and his team being briefed about their latest mission. In this episode, the team is tasked with helping a political prisoner named Anton Karidian, who is about to be executed in a remote island prison. The team must rescue him and get him out of the prison before it's too late.

Phelps and his team come up with a plan to get Anton out of the prison by faking his death. They plan to make it appear as if Anton has died of natural causes and smuggle his body out of the prison. The team also plans to use a decoy body to fool the prison guards.

The team arrives at the island prison and begins to execute their plan. They manage to successfully fake Anton's death, but they soon discover that their plan has hit a snag. The prison warden, who is a sadistic and cruel man, has decided to keep Anton's body and display it in front of the other prisoners as a warning.

Phelps and his team must now come up with a new plan to get Anton's body out of the prison without being caught. They manage to pull off a daring rescue mission and get Anton onto a boat waiting on the shore. However, they soon realize that they are not out of danger yet.

The prison warden has discovered that Anton is still alive and is determined to capture him. He sends his men after the team, and a tense chase ensues. The team manages to outsmart the prison guards and escape with Anton.

As the episode draws to a close, Anton is finally reunited with his family, who had believed him to be dead. However, the events of the mission have taken their toll on the team, especially Jim Phelps. The episode ends on a bittersweet note, with the team reflecting on the difficult decisions they had to make during the mission.

The Condemned is an intense, action-packed episode that keeps viewers on the edge of their seats. The performances by the cast are exceptional, with Peter Graves delivering a standout performance as Jim Phelps. The episode also highlights the dangers and ethical dilemmas faced by spies and intelligence agents working in the field. Overall, The Condemned is a gripping episode that showcases the best of Mission: Impossible.