The subject of war never seems like a topic that lends itself to much hilarity, but one TV show that proved it was possible is streaming for free onFreevee, and has found itself climbing into the streamer’s Top 10. That series isHogan’s Heroes, the 1960s comedy series that managed to retain a 100% audience score across its six seasons and is hailed as probablythe funniest showto have ever been set in a Nazi P.O.W prison camp.
Like many older shows and movies,Hogan’s Heroeshas found itself being put in front of a whole new audience with its inclusion on Freevee. While the series is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, the show has actually been available on the platform for over 200 days, making its charge up the chart somewhat baffling and indicative of the way there is usually no rhyme or reason behind what becomes popular on streaming.
Hogan’s Heroesran for a total of 168 episodes between 1965 and 1971 on CBS. Starring Bob Crane as Colonel Robert E. Hogan, the series was in Stalag 13, a camp specifically for U.S. resistance fighters, overseen by bumbling Colonel Klink (Werner Klemperer). The series saw Hogan leading an international crew of prisoners as they attempted to interfere with the German war effort from within the prison, and like many such war-based sitcoms relied heavily on the ability tomake fun of a truly dark time in history– which it did impeccably.
‘Hogan’s Heroes’ Is a Rare Perfect Show in Audience’s Eyes
As an older TV series, critical reviews onHogan’s Heroesare in short supply, but the first season does have three to its name, one of which is “rotten.” That review, fromDetroit Free Press’ Bettelou Peterson, delivers a strange analysis of the series, calling out its“smudged carbon of jokes that were old when TV was born.”Considering this is a 60-year-old series, and jokes from the show have influenced many subsequent projects and been copied in many ways since, the criticism seems a little out of place.
The other critics’ reviews are more in tune with audience opinions on the series, which is reason enough to check out at least a few episodes ofHogan’s Heroesto see how they did it in the old days. As user Navy M says,“Classic comedy gold and fond memories of times with my dad watching TV together. If you have never seen it, you really should. Sometimes the older shows are the more enjoyable ones!”It is certainly hard to argue with that.
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As a series that many people would claim has no bad episodes, and with all six seasons available on Freevee, there has never been a better time to get acquainted with Hogan and his gang. While there have been mentions of the series being revisited in a movie format, so far that has not happened, and with such a reputation, it is probably for the best. Sometimes, you cannot mess with perfection, andHogan’s Heroesis one of those times.
Hogan’s Heroes
