# Who was the best Bond? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [September 10, 2020, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259 "2020-09-10T13:20:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/1 "2020-09-10T13:20:15Z")
Obviously I mean after Roger Moore could have been if he was younger and in a good Bond movie. Most common answer I’ve heard - “Sean Connery because I saw him first”. But now plenty of other Bonds have been seen first and the same thing is said about them. I’ll say the Connery played the character like an American would, and he’s a pretty limited actor who couldn’t convey the tongue and cheek aspects successfully. Roger Moore as The Saint is my idea of what a 60s British secret agent would be but he was too old by the time he got a chance, and his Bond movies were pretty lame. They seemed to have TV movie production values. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/2 "2020-09-10T13:30:19Z")
What? Connery was better than Moore in every way. Moore was far too soft to ever be a successful Bond. Connery played the role with a hardness tempered with a worldliness that made his Bond films so amazing. And Connerys quips were better than Mooress. ‘My name is Pussy…Pussy Galore.’ ‘I must be dreaming.’ ‘Im Plenty. Plenty O’Toole.’ “Named after your father perhaps.” IMO, the best Bond film was On Her Majesty’s Secret Service because it was the one Bond film where we got so see a more personal side of the man. George Lazenby was very good and had the athleticism and toughness to be a great Bond. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/3 "2020-09-10T13:41:36Z")
When we ask who the best Bond was, do we really mean which actors? As far as I’m concerned, Craig isn’t playing the same character as Connery did. Moore came closest to Connery’s Bond. Fleming’s literary Bond (again, a different character) couldn’t have carried the franchise past the second film. The further you get away from the Connery incarnation, the further you get away from what (mostly fun) made the character such a phenomenon in pop culture. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/4 "2020-09-10T15:55:28Z")
Connery, then Craig, then Brosnan for me. Some previous threads on this topic: > [@I can't be the only one who thinks Pierce is the best Bond, can I?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-be-the-only-one-who-thinks-pierce-is-the-best-bond-can-i/282442): > > Seriously, he’s the epitome of the suave, unflappable British gentleman who still looks like he can kick ass and bed enemy agents at will. After having finally read Dr. No, I can see how Connery was a good choice, but seriously, if you’re going to be making a sophisticated superspy why have a guy who would be better as an action hero? > [@Roger Moore was the best James Bond!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roger-moore-was-the-best-james-bond/185623/): > > Before the bricks start flying let me splain-\> As a devout fan of Bond, I grade each James bond that comes along according to several factors: Britishness - Is he an Iconic Briton. Suave - How gracious and sophisticated is he. Secret Agent - How cloak and dagger is his performance. believability - Does he pull off the role well. and Tact - Does he have a keen sense of what to do or say when in sticky situations. Or with the iconic final scenes with the ladies. I have to admit Sean Connery… > [@Best/Favorite James Bond Actor?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-favorite-james-bond-actor/613687/): > > If there is a previous poll on this, I apologize. I know we’ve had threads, but I’m not sure if I have seen an actual poll on it. I worded it as “best/favorite”, though I admit that you may have a favorite you acknowledge is not the best. When in doubt, choose the one you think is genuinely the best Bond. > [@Bond vs. Bond vs. Bond vs. Bond vs Bond:Which one is best?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bond-vs-bond-vs-bond-vs-bond-vs-bond-which-one-is-best/20994/): > > Who is your favorite James Bond ? I think Connery rules out for total coolness. But Brosnan has sex appeal and more human. I never cared for Moore and Dalton was too moody and one dimensional. Can’t really say much about Lazenby as I can’t remember anything about him. > [@Your favorite James Bond?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-james-bond/508343/): > > You’ve got 7 choices… Sean Connery David Niven George Lazenby Roger Moore Timothy Dalton Pierce Brosnan Daniel Craig A list and bio [here](http://www.klast.net/bond/actors.html) for your reference. Roger Moore is my favorite James Bond, probably because he’s the star of my favorite Bond films (Moonraker, Live and Let Die, and Octopussy). Dr. No and Goldfinger were pretty awesome, so Connery is my second choice, but sort of before my time. I was just a pup when Roger Moore took the Bond role, so his early appearences are before… ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/5 "2020-09-10T16:51:50Z")
Connery is the one true Bond. I don’t even feel like Craig is playing Bond. _Some other agent using the James Bond name to confuse the enemies of the UK?_ For the other actors, I thought Lazenby was OK. I liked Brosnan but overall he had crappy scripts. Moore started strong in Live and Let Die but then got cartoonish fast. Dalton is a really good actor but never clicked as Bond. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/6 "2020-09-10T17:01:27Z")
Since the question has been asked, again… The best “Bond” is Tom Cruise. The Mission Impossible movies are terrible MI movies, completely missing the point of the series (the Big Con), but they are by far the best Bond movies. People who lurves Connery seem to gloss over all his movies’ faults. In Dr. No he gets menaced by a tarantula. Scary! In Goldfinger he gets led around by the nose and doesn’t actually do anything. The ending of Thunderball is ridiculous, and You Only Live Twice and Diamonds are Forever (and Never Say Never Again) should be relegated to the Moonraker pile of stupid assed Bond movies. The Connery worship is like a cult. Brosnan would have been good, but he was stuck with the “Phantom Menace/Star Trek V” series of movies. As a matter of fact, they ALL have bad movies (except Lazenby, who had the benefit of only making one (which ws probably hated when it was new, because he wasn’t Connery)) There’s a thread about Star Wars popularity, but one should be made about Bond movies. Why do they have such a fan base, considering how many of them are stupid or on the other side of the line of “spy spoof” movies? What’s the difference between Our Man Flint, Out Of Sight, The Silencers, and Moonraker? Not much. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/7 "2020-09-10T17:20:59Z")
Pierce Brosnan. It would have been Dalton, but then _Licence to Kill_ was such a shitshow it retroactively dragged _Living Daylights_ down with it. But Remington Steele was great. ---
**Author:** ![Chingon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chingon/32/17645_2.png) [@Chingon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chingon)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/8 "2020-09-10T17:29:36Z")
Daniel Craig ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/9 "2020-09-10T17:30:26Z")
I’m going to say Pierce Brosnan, only because I used to hear “hey, you look just like Remington Steel!” all the time at college parties and such, so I was hoping he’d become the next Bond, and was happy when he did. For some reason by the time he did get the Bond part I didn’t hear “hey, you look just like James Bond!” nearly as much. Probably because by then I had graduated from college awhile back. (for the record, I never thought I looked much like Brosnan; I just had the very dark, almost black hair, and blue eyes). ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/10 "2020-09-10T17:31:36Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Some previous threads on this topic: Yeah, but this time we’re going to get it resolved. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/11 "2020-09-10T17:33:58Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > Yeah, but this time we’re going to get it resolved. You’re damn right. It’s Daniel Craig. /EOT ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/12 "2020-09-10T17:38:45Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > > [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > > > Some previous threads on this topic: > > Yeah, but this time we’re going to get it resolved. And about fucking time, I’d say. ---
**Author:** ![Boycott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boycott/32/6741_2.png) [@Boycott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boycott)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/13 "2020-09-10T17:51:21Z")
If it is about whose portrayal was most accurate to Fleming’s books, it is Timothy Dalton. If it is about whose portrayal oozed masculinity it’s Sean Connery. If it about whose portrayal catered to all ages it’s Roger Moore. George Lazenby only did one and with the benefit of time passing on and no longer being judged against Connery as he was in 1969, he’s become a more respected Bond rather than the punchline he used to be (after Diamonds are Forever came out in 1971 the comics said “Connery is the best Bond since Connery”). On Her Majesty’s Secret Service has aged very well too. It is very accurate to the book, the cast around Bond was good and Lazenby was good. It did not rely on fancy gadgets and effects that became more prevalent (too prevalent) in the Moore years. I wish Lazenby did more films. Pierce Brosnan was fine but the criticism that dogged him all the time was his films were generic action films and he was playing a generic action hero. He ticked boxes but never really owned the role. Daniel Craig I think has owned the role. Casino Royale and Skyfall were excellent films. Spectre not so much. Hopefully he signs off well. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/14 "2020-09-10T19:17:50Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > People who lurves Connery seem to gloss over all his movies’ faults. In Dr. No he gets menaced by a tarantula. Scary! In Goldfinger he gets led around by the nose and doesn’t actually do anything. The ending of Thunderball is ridiculous, and You Only Live Twice and Diamonds are Forever (and Never Say Never Again) should be relegated to the Moonraker pile of stupid assed Bond movies. The Connery worship is like a cult. These are points in Connery’s favor. The question is who is the best Bond, not who was in the best movies. Connery managed to elevate the character above the second-rate productions he was in. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/15 "2020-09-10T19:25:01Z")
Well I think I’m older than those who picked Craig, who is very good but not the best. For me the top four in order are Connery, Craig, Brosnan, and Moore. I was born in 1961 and Connery introduced Bond to me. For athleticism, looks, tongue in cheek humor, and action, Connery set the standard and nobody came even close until Craig. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/16 "2020-09-10T20:46:33Z")
Come come now Mr. Bullitt. Daniel Craig wouldn’t be caught dead on that back stretcher contraption that Connery had to be rescued from, by a girl. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/17 "2020-09-10T20:53:32Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Come come now Mr. Bullitt. Daniel Craig wouldn’t be caught dead on that back stretcher contraption that Connery had to be rescued from, by a girl. Exactly. When Moore got trapped in the centrifuge, he got out of it all by his lonesome, using grit, determination, and a secret Q-gun. And he looked like he almost died when he got out. “Never let them see you bleed.” Oh wait - that’s for the lessons from Bond thread. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/18 "2020-09-10T20:56:55Z")
Moore was a pussy, and not galore either. Craig is a stud. But Connery woulda kicked the shit outta them both, left-handed, while holding a hot lady in his right hand while she was pouring a vodka martini down his throat. While kissing him. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/19 "2020-09-10T21:03:12Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > Fleming’s literary Bond (again, a different character) couldn’t have carried the franchise past the second film. I agree with this, mostly because it happened. Timothy Dalton was the closest they ever got to Fleming’s Bond, and he only made it through two movies. Great movies, IHMO, but not particularly popular. As to who is the best overall, why is this even a discussion? It’s Connery. Period. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259/20 "2020-09-10T21:04:52Z")
Period. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-best-bond/920259.md?page=2)