Players (TV Series 1997–1998) Poster

(1997–1998)

User Reviews

Review this title
7 Reviews
Sort by:
Filter by Rating:
The Best The Peacock Has Ever Had
logik2 January 2000
I have to agree with my fellow player: Why did this show get cancelled? Players was the best thing that ever happened to "The Peacock" (NBC). Here we had the perfect blend of comedy and drama a la con...sure the premise has been used before, but this show had undeniable character.

My hats off to the cast and crew of the show. We miss you dearly :)
12 out of 12 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
10/10
Brilliant!!!
sassheckscher19 January 2002
I loved this show. And thanks to sharp eyed friends have managed now to record all of it for posterity!

I like my television to be the kick-off-your-shoes-chill-out-on-the-sofa kind. And Players fits the bill perfectly. Great fun, great deceptive plots, three wholly believable leads with great chemistry, a sense of humour. It couldn't have been more tailormade for my enjoyment if it tried.
7 out of 7 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
10/10
Episode summaries
bpeck1313 October 2009
Warning: Spoilers
1. Confidence Man The cons check out Jeff Taylor, a self-help author/guru, for tax evasion. While investigating Taylor, they discover that he has killed three of his top investors who have left all of their estate to them.

2. Con Job The FBI director wants the cons to go up against the Cuban mob. Alphonse meets his son. They find out that Agent Cates is dirty and is responsible for the death of the former director and the cons go after him. Agent Cates tries to play the cons and the cons play him.

3. Con Law The cons meet Agent Christine Kowalski. The cons go after a lawyer who gets dirty clients acquitted and has paid informants in every police department.

4. In Concert A record company executive is book-legging his own CD's plus extorting his own clients. And he is not above murder. But not every one who is believed dead is actually dead.

5. Con Artist An art dealer hires Ice to steal masterpieces for him—his predecessor was also working undercover for the FBI and ended up dead. Things don't go as planned and the dealer gets the real Van Gogh instead of the fake.

6. Con-spiracy Supposedly the Mendoza syndicate is involved in bootleg gasoline and tax evasion. But the team cannot pin them because they have a mole in the FBI and are tipped off every time the FBI plans a raid.

7. Con-tamination The cons catch Hugh Stern who has possession of Rican powder. Then a call comes into the FBI from "Jericho" who also has Rican powder and attempts to extort the FBI. Jericho told Stern to contact with Charlie, but Charlie doesn't know any Jericho.

8. Con-undrum College student Barry Decker is killed for his computer program to help a company that is behind schedule. Charlie plays Barry's unknown partner. Alphonse plays a computer programmer/ hacker and "joins" the company.

9. Con-Vivants The cons are cut loose by the FBI to normal parole, but life on the outside isn't as easy as they think.

10. Con-tinental Ice helps a model and ex-junkie go after her clothing designer bosses who supply their models with drugs. Alphonse and Charlie chase after designer clothing counterfeiters. What they discover is that the clothes are not counterfeit, but they are made in sweatshops with cheap Asian labor.

11. Con-traband The cons go after gun runners but the bust doesn't go well. Chris is kidnapped by the runners.

12. Wrath of Con A convicted killer escapes a prison bus after killing two correctional officers and goes after the witness who put him in prison.

13. Con-strained A kid with a mobster grandfather is kidnapped from school. Although the father refuses help, the grandfather interferes with the investigation. One of the grandfather's men recognizes Alphonse and kidnaps Ice because he thinks the cons are in on the kidnapping.

14. Contact Sport The cons go after a counterfeiter. Ice's nephew is shaving points in his college basketball games. Alphonse is looking for a blonde who steals cars.

15. Con Amore While trying to buy missile cruisers, Ice runs into an old acquaintance that screwed him over years ago during a con. Ice busts her and she tries to con the FBI.

16. Rashocon The cons try to catch a mobster who uses the race track for laundering money and catch a crook named Axel Ducheck—who happens to be dead.

17. Three of a Con Quentin Belkey has been to prison, but now he is out and bilking people out of their life savings. The cons set up a poker game in order get him to tell them where his hid his cache. Chris tries to cover for the cons because they shouldn't be working this case.

18. Mint Condition Dudevitch loses a lot of money at craps and kills the patron who threw the dice. The Feds want him and his boss,Pappas. Pappas hides his assets in very clever ways (such as Charlie Chaplin's cane which is worth $100,000 but looks like an ordinary cane). He is now in the market for a very rare baseball card.
4 out of 4 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Why'd this get cancelled?
Gislef11 December 1998
Players was a 90's update of the Sting-like con artist/scam series, which dates back to shows like Mission Impossible and

Switch. The three characters were an interesting mix, and the cons were both complex enough to be believable but simple enough that you didn't sit there later and go, "Huh?" NBC basically under-promoted it and subjected it to frequent pre-emptions in

its Friday time-slot. Boo.
12 out of 13 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Above Average
Mac-594 March 2001
I kind of like this show. I must admit that I rolled my eyes once or twice when I saw that Ice T was in the lead, knowing that rappers usually aren't the best actors in the business. But I soon noticed that this guy has a appealing quality: he's willing to abandon (partially) his tough-guy gangsta rapper routine and make a jerk of himself.

Something Ice Cube ought to do. Every time I see him, even as a comic relief (Anaconda), he always seems to frown and tough himself up like he's afraid he'll lose his rep in the hood or something. At least Ice T take a few risks, drops the bull, and looking appropriately goofy every know and then and I think that makes him more appealing to a wider range of people. This along with the series clever plots and direction, I can think of worse ways to spend my evening.
6 out of 6 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
A smart, funny program with a dynamic cast and brilliant writing!
callalily13 July 2000
Players was gem of a program amongst a sea of muck. The writing was fabulous -- clever, well plotted out, intelligent. The three leads -- John, Ice-T, Costas -- had such superb on-screen chemistry. Despite their obvious physical and personality differences, it wasn't at all hard to believe that these three would have found each other and hooked-up. I especially liked the plotlines which conned the audience as well as the bad guys. There are far too many shows which condescend to the audience instead of drawing it in. Too many shows which assume the audience is either brain-dead or permanently stuck at age thirteen. This show could have been a stupendous hit if the people in charge had not done what they always seem to do -- not advertise, not promote, shift time slots, pre-empt.... Intelligent shows need an audience which can find it week after week. When will the tv execs realize that?
4 out of 4 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
9/10
Underrated gem
safenoe27 April 2024
Warning: Spoilers
I became a fan of the series Players when it debuted in 1997, so almost 30 years ago, and it's a real shame that the network axed Players well before its time, and why? Seriously why would NBC do such a thing, because the chemistry was perfect with Ice-T as Isaac Gregory, Greek-Australian actor Costas Mandylor as Alphonse Royo and Frank John Hughes as Charlie O' Bannon. I loved the fast pace, the action, the storylines, the sense of satisfaction that I was watching a fine series that deserve to run at least four seasons init. Thankfully some episodes are on social media so at least we have that.
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

See also

Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews


Recently Viewed