Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
The line is the series in miniature: a hero whose close calls are never close enough, delivered with total confidence and a pinched finger-and-thumb gesture. It outlived the show because it fits any near miss, from a missed penalty to a missed train, and Agent 86 revivals have kept it as shorthand for his brand of competent incompetence.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Get SmartShow the scene
Maxwell Smart, bumbling Agent 86 of the spy agency CONTROL, says it whenever someone, usually himself, lands just wide of the mark. The fan episode guide traces its first use to "The Day Smart Turned Chicken" (Get Smart, season 1, 6 November 1965): a KAOS agent leaps from a window towards a truck full of mattresses, Max looks out, turns back to the room and delivers the line with finger and thumb held a hair apart. It then recurs through the run, and producer Leonard Stern later named it the one catchphrase the writers deliberately set out to create and that really succeeded.
Sources (3)
- Would You Believe: Get Smart catchphrasesCatchphrase list, 'Missed it by that much!'Reference checked
- Get Smart Wiki: The Day Smart Turned ChickenEpisode infoboxReference checked
- Wikipedia: Get SmartLeadReference checked
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