Your guide to James Bond

Complete Guide to Bond
By Carolyn Bick, WTOP Intern

Dr. No (1962)

The Bond: Sean Connery

The Babe: Ursula Andress as Honey Ryder

The Baddie: Joseph Wiseman as Dr. No

The Gadget: Walther PPK 7.65 mm

The Song: "James Bond Maine Theme" by John Barry and Monty Norman

Summary: This is the very first Bond film, which introduces our favorite agent and his beloved Walther PPK 7.65 mm. Bond tracks the murder of a fellow agent to a Jamaican Island, where he learns of Russian SPECTRE terrorist agent Dr. Julius No's plot to disrupt an American rocket launch with a deadly radio beam.
From Russia With Love
From Russia With Love (1963)

The Bond: Sean Connery

The Babe: Daniela Bianchi as Tatiana Romanova

The Baddie: Eric Pohlmann as Ernst Stavro Blofeld, Robert Shaw as Red Grant

The Gadget: Briefcase

The Song: "From Russia With Love" by Matt Monro

Summary: SPECTRE No. 1 Ernst Stavro Blofeld wants to steal a Lektor cryptographic device, profit from its sale back to the Soviet, and kill Bond as revenge for the death of Dr. No. Spotting Bond's weakness for pretty, young things, SPECTRE hires an unwitting young woman to play a defector to SPECTRE, in order to assassinate Bond.
Goldfinger
Goldfinger (1964)

The Bond: Sean Connery

The Babe: Honor Blackman as Pussy Galore

The Baddie: Gert Fröbe as Auric Goldfinger

The Gadget: Aston Martin DB5

The Song: "Goldfinger" by Shirley Bassey

Summary: A very rich, very bored, kinda petty German man named Auric Goldfinger wants to irradiate the entire supply of gold at Fort Knox, thereby making it worthless and increasing the value of his own gold. And he might have gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for that meddling agent and his slick suits and shaken martinis. Gold-painted bodies and a killer theme song make this one a classic.
Thunderball
Thunderball (1965)

The Bond: Sean Connery

The Babe: Claudine Auger as Dominique 'Domino' Derval

The Baddie: Adolfo Celi as Emilio Largo

The Gadget: Bell rocket belt

The Song: "Thunderball" by Tom Jones

Summary: SPECTRE strikes again! This time, it's to the Bahamas with Bond, to stop evil playboy and deputy head of SPECTRE Emilio Largo from nuking the entire eastern coast of the U.S.
You Only Live Twice
You Only Live Twice (1967)

The Bond: Sean Connery

The Babe: Akiko Wakabayashi as Aki and Mie Hama as Kissy Suzuki

The Baddie: Donald Pleasence as Ernst Stavro Blofeld

The Gadget: Rocket cigarette

The Song: ‘You Only Live Twice' by Nancy Sinatra

Summary: Bond fakes his own death, and travels to Japan in order to find out who hijacked American and Soviet spacecraft. Turns out it's SPECTRE, yet again, but with a special treat: this is the first film in which we actually see Ernst Stavro Blofeld, the head of SPECTRE.
Diamonds Are Forever
Diamonds Are Forever (1971)

The Bond: Sean Connery

The Babe: Jill St. John as Tiffany Case

The Baddie: Charles Gray as Ernst Stavro Blofeld

The Gadget: Water sphere

The Song: ‘Diamonds Are Forever' by Shirley Bassey

Summary: Fear not, Sean Connery is back! With lasers. And diamonds. Bond again has to stop SPECTRE, which is involved in a smuggling operation, carting — you guessed it — diamonds to a research laboratory, where Blofeld plans to create laser satellites to blow up the nuclear weapons of China, Russia and the U.S., then auction off global nuclear supremacy.
The Man With The Golden Gun
The Man With The Golden Gun (1974)

The Bond: Roger Moore

The Babe: Maud Adams as Andrea Anders

The Baddie: Christopher Lee as Francisco Scaramanga

The Gadget: The Golden Gun

The Song: ‘The Man With The Golden Gun' by Lulu

Summary: Bond is pursued by a world-class assassin, who totes a phallic golden pistol and wants to test his skills against 007. Bond ends up saving the world from Scaramanga's dastardly plan to turn a solar plant into ... well, a very high-powered solar plant, capable of blowing things up. Did anyone tell Scaramanga that gold is a soft metal that would bend or dent when fired?
A View To Kill
A View To Kill (1985)

The Bond: Roger Moore

The Babe: Tanya Roberts as Stacey Sutton

The Baddie: Christopher Walken as Max Zorin

The Gadget: Razor butterflies

The Song: ‘A View To Kill' by Duran Duran

Summary: Bond is sent to retrieve a microchip designed to withstand an electromagnetic pulse from a dead agent's body. Upon inspection, it's discovered that the microchip is actually a copy of the one MI6 wanted, and was made by Zorin industries. Bond, naturally, investigates — and finds that Zorin plans to create an earthquake that will flood Silicon Valley, wiping out all his competition, thereby leaving him free to create and sell microchips for as much as he wants. You would think he'd just put all that energy into developing a better microchip.
The Living Daylights
The Living Daylights (1987)

The Bond: Timothy Dalton

The Babe: Maryam d'Abo as Kara Milovy

The Baddie: Jeroen Krabbé as General Georgi Koskov

The Gadget: Multi-use keychain

The Song: ‘The Living Daylights' by A- Ha

Summary: Timothy Dalton makes his debut as the second most attractive Bond (behind Daniel Craig). Bond is sent to aid KGB defector Koskov, but, as it turns out, Koskov is faking his defection in order to kill Pushkin, the man standing between he and an arms deal. Bond teams up with Koskov's girlfriend and Russian cellist, Kara Milovy, to stop Pushkin's murder and save the world from the threat of yet another Soviet attack.
Licence To Kill
Licence to Kill (1989)

The Bond: Timothy Dalton

The Babe: Carey Lowell as Pam Bouvier

The Baddie: Robert Davi as Franz Sanchez

The Gadget: Detonating toothpaste

The Song: ‘Licence to Kill' by Gladys Knight

Summary: Bond goes rogue in order to avenge the murder of his CIA friend Felix Leiter's wife, and the attempted murder of Leiter himself (being maimed by a great white shark is no joke). He uncovers a grand drug scheme of dissolving cocaine in petrol, which is then sold to Asian drug lords. And wouldn't you know it? The man responsible for the attack on the Leiters is in charge of it all.
GoldenEye
GoldenEye (1995)

The Bond: Pierce Brosnan

The Babe: Izabella Scorupco as Natalya Simonova

The Baddie: Sean Bean as Alec Trevelyan/Janus

The Gadget: Grenade pen

The Song: ‘GoldenEye' by Tina Turner

Summary: Bond watches his best friend and fellow agent, Alec Trevelyan a.k.a. Boromir, die at the hands of the Soviets — only to find out nine years later that Trevelyan faked his own death. He wants to create a crime syndicate to seek revenge on the British government for its involvement in his parents' deaths. Trevelyan's master plan? Steal all the money from the Bank of England, and erase its records, plunging Britain into economic collapse. (In retrospect, that really might have been a more exciting, faster alternative to the 2008 meltdown.)
Die Another Day
Die Another Day (2002)

The Bond: Pierce Brosnan

The Babe: Halle Berry as Giacinta ‘Jinx' Johnson

The Baddie: Toby Stephens as Gustav Graves

The Gadget: Sonic ring

The Song: ‘Die Another Day' by Madonna

Summary: This film has, by far, the coolest building of any Bond movie to date. Bond investigates the illegal trade of African conflict diamonds in North Korea in exchange for weapons. After being captured and tortured for 14 months, MI6 arranges a trade: Bond in exchange for Zao, the right-hand man in the illegal diamond trade. As if the tardy rescue wasn't enough, MI6 informs Bond that he's suspended from duty, as he may have leaked information under torture. Of course, Bond's suspension isn't permanent. Soon, he is back on the trail of Zao and the diamonds, and learns just how far gene therapy has come.
Casino Royale
Casino Royale (2006)

The Bond: Daniel Craig

The Babe: Eva Green as Vesper Lynd

The Baddie: Mads Mikkelsen as Le Chiffre

The Gadget: Aston Martin DBS V12

The Song: ‘You Know My Name' by Chris Cornell

Summary: This film introduces the most attractive Bond (Daniel Craig) and establishes a new Bond narrative. We see the grittier side of Bond, far more inexperienced, and more emotionally selfish and complex than any Bond to date. Though the plot is essential — Bond must stop a terrorist financier who makes money from poker and attacking his competitors' firms — Bond's character development is far more important. We see Bond come out of his cold, hard shell and learn to convey human emotion, only to be left bloodied, weeping, and completely broken. How many other Bond films have done that?
Quantum of Solace
Quantum of Solace (2008)

The Bond: Daniel Craig

The Babe: Olga Kurylenko as Camille Montes

The Baddie: Mathieu Amalric as Dominic Greene

The Gadget: Quantum Earpiece

The Song: ‘Another Way To Die' by The White Stripes and Alicia Keys

Summary: Bond seeks revenge for Vesper Lynd's death, and is joined by Camille Montes, also seeking revenge for the murder of her family. And wouldn't you know it? The same bad guy is involved. Despite Craig's excellent performance, the explosions, and the symbolism — the colors in this film are hard and bleak; interpret that as you will — this film is a rather disappointing follow-up to "Casino Royale."
Skyfall
Skyfall (2012)

The Bond: Daniel Craig

The Babe: Helen McCrory as Clair Dowar

The Baddie: Javier Bardem as Raoul Silva

The Gadget: Walther PPK/S 9mm short

The Song: 'Skyfall' by Adele

Summary: After Bond's apparent death, the identities of every active MI6 agent are leaked onto the Internet. As questions rise over M's ability to run the service, she grows more unstable in her position. But then someone attacks the service and — surprise! — Bond reappears. In pursuit of Silva, a man who claims to have ties to Bond and M, Bond finds his loyalty to M challenged by secrets from her past. Directed by Sam Mendes, Oscar-winning filmmaker of "American Beauty," expect this one to be a winner.
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