Image via NBC
The A-Team is making a comeback on the video-on-demand charts more than 40 years after its debut. The series’ renewed streaming popularity comes over a decade after it debuted on NBC in 1983.
Per Flix Patrol, The A-Team is currently in second place on the list of the top television shows and limited series available for VOD on iTunes. At the time of writing, Mad Men is in first place. Created by Frank Lupo and Stephen J. Cannell, the action series became an instant hit following its debut. The series starred George Peppard as John «Hannibal» Smith, Dirk Benedict as Templeton Arthur «Faceman» Peck, Dwigth Schultz as H.M. «Howling Mad» Murdock, and Mr. T as the infinitely iconic B. A. Baracus.
The group of former soldiers were imprisoned for an apparent crime carried out under orders from their superiors during the Vietnam War. After escaping from prison, the four became a part of the LA Underground, establishing themselves as a fighting force for hire as The A-Team. Over the course of its original run on television, The A-Team amassed 98 episodes across five seasons. The series held fairly strong ratings, although it suffered drastic drops in viewership in later installments.
Despite this drop off and some less-than-stellar reviews from critics, The A-Team continues to hold a special place in the wider realm of pop culture, and has been the subject of numerous attempts at a reboot or revival, not to mention countless homages and callbacks throughout other productions. In 2010, director Joe Carnahan reintroduced the world to The A-Team in a big-budget feature film produced by Dune Entertainment, Top Cow Productions, and Scott Free Productions.
The film starred Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Sharlto Copley, and Quinton «Rampage» Jackson as Hannibal, Face (shortened from Faceman), Howling Mad Murdock, and B. A. Baracus. Upon its release in theaters, The A-Team largely failed to impress critics, garnering a meager 48% rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. The film did manage to make over $177 million at the box office against a budget of around $110 million, though that wasn’t nearly enough to secure a sequel or to see the development of an A-Team reboot series.
The A-Team is currently available via VOD on iTunes.
