Wanted: Dead or Alive - Season One (1958) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)One of the most memorable and famous characters of the '50's Western genre was Steve McQueen's "Josh Randall", who spoke softly (with the Southern drawl he cultivated in his early days roaming around the South, particularly Myrtle Beach, S.C.) and carried a Big Gun, the sawed-off Winchester lever-action rifle then known as the "Mare's Laig". I remember the excitement each week eagerly waiting for each episode of this great Western.
One of my fondest childhood memories was the weekend I spent with my Dad, helping him to hand make my own custom-made leather belt rig from scratch for my toy "Mare's Laig" in time for use as part of a Halloween costume when the plastic original proved to be a poor replica.
With all the second-rate wastage flooding the DVD market lately, it's really great to see New Line Ent. bring back such a great actor in a great Western!

Click Here to see more reviews about: Wanted: Dead or Alive - Season One (1958)

John Randall was not a typical rough-hewn bounty hunter of the Old West; he was a consummate gentleman who always gave half - or even all - of his reward money to charity. He was a man of few words and unlike most bounty hunters he carried a modified 1892 Winchester rifle which he wore on his belt and fondly called his "Mare's Lady." Randall's catch phrase "Let's go" launched him into unforgettable classic Western adventures. Steve McQueen stars in the classic hit TV series. Extras include documentary featurettes 3 colorized episodes photo galleries bios and more.System Requirements:TRT: 968 Mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre:TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS Rating:NR UPC:787364766499

Get 85% OFF

Click here for more information about Wanted: Dead or Alive - Season One (1958)

Read More...

The Outer Limits - The Original Series, Season 2 (1963) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I grew up with this show, as many of you have I suspect. It would be easy to review this in a nostalgic haze and give it 5 stars "just because". However, I have taken a step back and have reviewed each episode rationally, based on budget, cast, writers, etc. Along the way, it may appear as though I am overly concerned with the "not-so-special-effects" of the series but trust me, it is a point of minor contension. Still, since great effect based movies like 2001: A Space Odyssey and Planet of the Apes are barely three years away, I can't shake the notion that if the purse-strings were relaxed a little and it would have paid off big for a show that seemed doomed from the start. Often, the show could rise above it all, with superb acting, like in the first seasons "The Mutant", but why make a show work harder than necessary and potentially leave an accomplished actor looking foolish and silly?
Picture/sound/packaging: 4/5 Dissappointing yet predictable lack of 5.1 DD remastered sound. Original Star Trek seems to have proven to be the exception and not the rule in so far as sound. The picture is often nice, but varies from scene to scene on certain eps. I have no problem with the way the packaging is put together. So many complaints about the two sided discs? None here. And I think the packaging color scheme is an excellant compliment to Season One. My only real complaint is the cancellation of this series in the middle of season two, gosh, at least let the season finish!
--Episodes--Season 2--
(I consider 3 and above good, 2 or below poor.)
Soldier: 5/5
Cold Hands, Warm Heart: 2.5/5
Behold Eck!: 1/5
Expanding Human: 2.5/5
Cry of Silence: 3.5/5
Demon With a Glass Hand: 3/5
Wolf 359: 4/5
I, Robot: 4/5
The Invisible Enemy: 1/5
The Inheritors 1&2: 5/5
Keeper of the Purple Twilight: 3.5/5
Counterweight: 2/5
The Brain of Col. Barham: 1.5/5
The Premonition: 2.5/5
The Duplicate Man: 3.5/5
The Probe: 2.5/5
Wrap-up:
Still, in spite of all the hokey props, there lurks delicious camera angles, glorious sound, odd lighting, and most importantly, a fun sense of adventure that has all but since evaporated from the airwaves. In spite of the 3 stars, I cannot reccommend this set enough. Not because I'm caught like "the enemy" in the never-never, but because I'm trapped in a time period that uses "effects" to convey awe and mystery instead of imagination. The Outer Limits is a welcome look back at a future gone by.

Click Here to see more reviews about: The Outer Limits - The Original Series, Season 2 (1963)

You hold in your hands an artifact from a time now vanished forever – a compendium of portals into worlds unknown. A three-disc set that controls over 14 hours of transmission from the 1964-65 series, this vessel has sought you out for one specific purpose: to expand your mind to "The Outer Limits"!

Get 8% OFF

Click here for more information about The Outer Limits - The Original Series, Season 2 (1963)

Read More...

The Outer Limits: Volume 1 (1963) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)This "redundant" DVD re-release is absurd and unfair and doesn't do justice to the show. It's a disgrace and a real swindle that a major and "wealthy" Studio release a vintage show in two volumes. With today's technology, you could, at least, obtain a complete restoration from the original 35 mm prints. The first DVD release was cheaply cleaned up and featured no extras and worst: no language options. I advise all "Outer Limits" diehard fans to read a full account of the lowdown first DVD edition by getting this publication serving as an evidence for the future: "Video Watchdog", n° 89 and n° 102, November 2002 and December 2003, articles by "Outer Limits" expert David J. Schow. I reject this vulgar 2007 DVD edition that deserves to be dumped into the "Pit" (Cf. "It Crawled out of the Woodwork")! I believe that the right action from the Studio would be to re-release the entire season in one single set including:
- 32 restored copies
- the two "restored" alternate pilots ("Please Stand By" and "The Unknown")
- restored trailers and promos
- audio commentaries by expert David J. Schow
- interviews with "Outer Limits" cast and crew
- isolated scores
- languages options (dubbings and subtitles: English, Spanish, French)"When this passion called aspiration becomes lust, then aspiration degenerates, becomes vulgar ambition, by which sin the angels fell."
--End Narration from "The Bellero Shield".

Click Here to see more reviews about: The Outer Limits: Volume 1 (1963)

"The best program of its type ever to run on network TV!" ?Stephen KingPerhaps marked for its opening sequence and eerie voice-over "There is nothing wrong with your television set. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. We are controlling transmission", The Outer Limits pushed the boundaries of television and viewers minds by introducing a new caliber of science fiction.

Get 62% OFF

Click here for more information about The Outer Limits: Volume 1 (1963)

Read More...

The Outer Limits - The Original Series, Season 1 (1963) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)With talents like Joseph Stephano and Leslie Stephens as producers, some of the best Sci-Fi Writers and a lot of talented 60's actors and even actors that went on to great fame like Robert Culp, David McCallum, Sally Kellerman, Robert Duvall and Martin Landau, this was one of the first quality Sci-Fi series.
Twilight Zone was out there, but at times it was not really pure Sci-Fi, often more mysterious and horror, Thriller hosted by Boris Karloff (PLEASE PUT THESE OUT on DVD) were pure horror and the long running Alfred Hitchcock Present was straight mystery, so SCI-FI fans were captivated from the opening line with that mysterious voice telling you your telly has been taken over for the next 60 minutes. The acting was top notch, the writing literate and thought provoking, and you will even see many of the episodes were later cannibalised later to make movies, such as SOLDIER with Michael Anshara, repackaged in the 80's as The Terminator. To think you get 32 original episodes on 4 double-sided discs is just amazing.
There are a few puppies in the series...In the second year of the series Stephano played a less controlling interest. He believed in thoughty mind twisting Sci-Fi, while Stevens wanted the monster of the week, so some monsters did get a little Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea-ish (Think they even shared a couple with monster doing double time!). But all in this in one super buy is a must for all those Baby Boomers that would once more would like their telly taken over.
Warning to those who have not seen the series, these are vintage, high quality Black & White episodes. I think it adds to the spookiness as they could film in lower light, creating those sinister shadows.

Click Here to see more reviews about: The Outer Limits - The Original Series, Season 1 (1963)

You hold in your hands an artifact from a time now vanished forever - a compendium of portals into worlds unknown. A four-disc set that controls over 27 hours of transmission from the 1963-64 series, this vessel has sought you out for one specific purpose: to expand your mind to "The Outer Limits"!

Click here for more information about The Outer Limits - The Original Series, Season 1 (1963)

Read More...

The Avengers - The Complete Emma Peel Megaset (2006 Collector's Edition) (1966) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews) The immensely popular ABC series called "The Avengers" has long since achieved legendary status since it appeared back in January 1961. Since then there have been 161 episodes, which break into four major sections. We have the early episodes (1-26) with Patrick Macnee as John Steed and Ian Hendry as Dr. Keel. Then the "Cathy Gail" series (27-78) with Honor Blackman as Cathy Gale, the man-tossing, leather-covered intellectual who broke new ground for female characters on television. Even more popular was the black and white series (79-104) with Diana Rigg and Emma Peel (read "M[en] appeal "), which led not unexpectedly to the color series with Rigg (105-129). Then the final section with Linda Thorson as Tara King (129-- in which she co-starred with Rigg-161).
As of this writing, the early episodes in the Gale series and all of the King series are not yet available. However, A&E has just released all of the Rigg entries, both the black and whites and the color, in a wonderful boxed set called "The Avengers: the Complete Emma Peel Mega-Set." And Mega, I suppose, is as good as any adjective to describe the enjoyment value of the contents therein. We have here all the Rigg episodes, including the transition entry in which Tara takes over for Emma, on 16 DVDs, each holding 3 episodes with an occasional 4th as a "bonus."
Those who have never seen them before will want, of course, to watch them in order. Others will want to jump to their favorite episodes, which is pretty easy on DVD. You will notice that the black and whites were less studio-bound and the sets in general more realistic. With the first color episode, the series took a strong science fiction bent; and the sets, as the producers admitted, were more a view of England as the Americans would like to think it is.
You will also have a lot of fun spotting stars-to-be. There is Donald Sutherland, Brian Blessed and Charlotte Rampling in "The Superlative Seven," Peter Bowles in "Dial a Deadly Number" and "Escape in Time," Geoffrey Palmer in "A Surfeit of H2O," and Christopher Lee in "Never, Never Say Die." It was a policy that no actor could appear more than once a season, so Bowles and Lee, for example, would have to wait for the King series to play other characters. In fact, the only characters as such to reappear in the color Rigg series from the black and whites is the bumbling Brodny (Warren Mitchell) who can be found in "Two's a Crowd" and "The See-Through Man" and the evil assistant (Frederick Jaeger) to the Cybernaut-master.
And for more fun, see how many actors from "Are You Being Served?" you can spot? There are three in all.
The most frequent repeat actor seems to be comedian Roy Kinnear, who also has the honor of being in the very last King episode in the role of Bagpipes Happychap. And then we have rotund Patrick Newell who was murdered in the very first Rigg entry, drugged in a color one, and wound up as Mother in the King series.
But all in all, it is the interplay between Macnee and Rigg that really made this program work. Unlike Cathy Gale, who seemed actively to dislike Steed when she was not merely tolerating him, Mrs. Peel had a genuine fondness for him and was not averse to stirring his tea (anticlockwise, as he preferred it). And as for the question of Peel and Steed being lovers, recall that they are fictional characters and have no life off the screen.
The dialogue was light hearted, and you seldom if ever saw blood after a mere trickle in their third episode. You also never saw a policeman, an element that for some reason the producers thought would be a jarring note. (You figure out why; I cannot.)
The best episodes? There is no question that "The House That Jack Built" leads the pack. This is the one in which Emma finds herself in a house designed to drive her mad and Steed appears only at the start and end. The worst? Possibly "Silent Dust." The silliest? That has to be "Epic." The most serious? "Murdersville." So what if the package costs a small fortune? You could purchase them separately, of course; but think of what you would be missing.

Click Here to see more reviews about: The Avengers - The Complete Emma Peel Megaset (2006 Collector's Edition) (1966)

She is the perfect balance of sexiness and sophistication, wit and whimsy. The object of many prepubescent lads' desires, Mrs. Emma Peel dazzled television screens on both sides of the Atlantic from 1965-1967. Starring Dame Diana Rigg as Peel and Patrick Macnee as John Steed, the Emma Peel era of THE AVENGERS was the high-water-mark of the groundbreaking series, with adventures more fantastic than ever.A one-stop haven for DVD collectors, this special 17-disc Collector's Edition features all 51 digitally remastered Emma Peel episodes plus a new bonus disc containing three "lost" episodes from the debut season of THE AVENGERS, a ‘making-of' documentary film, a classic Emma Peel cameo episode from THE NEW AVENGERS ‘77, and more.

Click here for more information about The Avengers - The Complete Emma Peel Megaset (2006 Collector's Edition) (1966)

Read More...

Prisoner: Cell Block H (1979) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I've purchased Prisoner: Cell Block H; and boy was I so happy when they released it on DVD. This show brought back alot of memories for me. I first watched it when it first appears on Channel 11 here in NYC in the late 70's and watched it religiously until they took it off in 1980. I was so pissed that they took it off, but now that I got it on DVD, I watch it all the time. I love Meg, Bea, Doreen, Lizzie, Myra, Rita..and yes, even Joan the Freak Ferguson. I am hoping and praying that they release all the episodes on DVD in an ultimate box set or individual sets (I don't care how they do it, just as long as I can purchase it!!). If you're watching the review, PLEASE CONSIDER DOING THIS. I know for a fact that there are lots of Prisoner fans here in NYC that would love to see Episodes 1 - 692 on DVD. Thank you for hearing me out.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Prisoner: Cell Block H (1979)

Go deep inside Wentworth Prison - meet the women behind bars and the staff that keeps them there.A cross between the dark and campy Dark Shadows and a daytime soap opera, PRISONER: CELL BLOCK H has achieved global cult-legend status with its 692 serial

Get 88% OFF

Click here for more information about Prisoner: Cell Block H (1979)

Read More...

Wanted Dead or Alive - The Best Of Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I wrote before about the wonderful ability that DVDs have offered when it came to allowing us to see television shows that we might have missed the first time around. It also offers another treasure in the ability to watch television shows that we remember from TV's early days. Such is the case this week with THE BEST OF WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE.
Before he made a name for himself as one of the top box office stars of the sixties, actor Steve McQueen gained a reputation on television. Often known as the king of cool, McQueen showed off his style and abilities on the small screen as well as the big.
Airing from 1958 through 1961, this series featured McQueen as Josh Randall, a bounty hunter on the trail of outlaws in the old west. Each week, Randall set out to capture someone new in a 30 minute time slot, offering a small moral at the same time..
McQueen's character was not your usual run of the mill western hero though. To begin with rather than carry a six shooter in a holster, he had a sawed off Winchester in a leg strap. While implausible, it didn't matter. It was unique, it was different, it was cool.
Randall was a good guy, always popping up in search of a bounty to be collected but not always pocketing the money. Helping a friend, making new ones, chipping in for the widow of a recently murdered sheriff, Randall did all these things and more in the series, several of which are on display in this single disc collection.
The BEST OF disc holds nine episodes of the over 94 that were shot. BCI Eclipse has released box sets of the seasons some were on but this BEST OF will give fans a fix or newcomers a jumping on point. Stories move from tracking down 2 brothers to clear his own name to helping a friend run for mayor in a corrupt town to aiding a rich man come closer to his son while searching for lost gold. And all in under 30 minutes!
With some feature films running well past the 2 and a half hour mark, many of these directors would do well to watch some of these old shows. The tales were simple, good guy vs. bad guy, but the compression of story into that 30 minute slots is something they could learn from.
The series also starred a number of people who either were stars at the time or who went on to bigger things. Michael Landon, Ralph Meeker, DeForest Kelly, Warren Oates, Lee Van Cleef, Lon Chaney Jr., Wayne Rogers, Mary Tyler Moore and James Coburn (who would go on to star with McQueen on both THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN and THE GREAT ESCAPE) are all seen on this disc.
If you're a fan of Steve McQueen, if you're a fan of westerns or if you're a fan of early television, you'll want to make a point of picking up this disc. It shows where the star quality of Steve McQueen began and offers a bit of early entertainment from the old west.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Wanted Dead or Alive - The Best Of

Click here for more information about Wanted Dead or Alive - The Best Of

Read More...

Space Patrol (4 Early Tv Episodes) Vol. 2 Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Space patrol ran from 1950-55. It was one of the best of several early 50's optimistic views of the dawning space/atomic age. More often than not, the scripts and plots were fairly routine, but the view of the future was marvelous. Ed Kemmer portrayed a marvelous heroic figure in Buzz Correy. Lynn Osborne did a great job as the psuedo-kid sidekick--though in real life he dated Marilyn Monroe. Virginia Hewitt and Nina Bara were years ahead of their time in portraying intelligent, capable women. Sometimes the shows got into social commentary (ie., "the Atomic Vault" in volume 3) that seemed daring for the time. A great nostalgia tour for those of us who remember. And a persuasive argument that others had boldly gone before "Star Trek." Roddenberry was a fan according to his authorized biography. You can still see bits of it in "Star Trek."

Click Here to see more reviews about: Space Patrol (4 Early Tv Episodes) Vol. 2

Click here for more information about Space Patrol (4 Early Tv Episodes) Vol. 2

Read More...

Classic Sci-Fi TV - 150 Episodes (2009) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Mill Creek Entertainment has done it again! After tackling TV Westerns, TV Crime Shows, TV Spies and Family TV Shows, this offering focuses on early television science fiction shows, with a bit of horror and the paranormal thrown in for good measure. There is quite a bit to savor in this set, so here's the rundown, by category:
Animated Series:
Captain Fathom - 3 episodes
Clutch Cargo - 1 episode
Space Angel - 9 episodes
Filmed TV Series:
Captain Z-Ro - 24 episodes
Flash Gordon - 14 episodes
Johnny Jupiter - 1 episode
One Step Beyond - 16 episodes
Rocky Jones, Space Ranger - 23 episodes
Thriller (Boris Karloff version) - 1 episode
Live Television Series:
Climax - 1 episode
Lights Out - 4 episodes
Tales of Tomorrow - 6 episodes
Filmed Dramatic Anthology Series:
G.E. Theater - 2 episodes
The Star and the Story - 1 episode
Your Jeweler's Showcase (Operation E.S.P.) - 1 episode
Unsold TV Pilots:
Captain Fathom (live action version)
Destination Space
Here Comes Tobor
The Shadow (Tom Helmore version)
The Shadow: Invisible Avenger (Richard Derr version)
Tales of Frankenstein
Public Service Film:
Stamp Day for Superman (cast of "The Adventures of Superman")
Movie Serials:
The Phantom Empire
Radar Men from the Moon
The Undersea KingdomWhile some may consider the inclusion of movie serials to be a bit of a cheat on this set, one can argue that movie serials (and radio) served as a starting point of sorts for the early years of episodic television and, of course, the serials did eventually make their way to television's airwaves. Perhaps the only major omission of a show with a paranormal flavor that is in the public domain and is not included in this set is Boris Karloff's limited series "The Veil" which, possibly, could have substituted for one of the serials. Regardless, this 12-DVD set includes a mixture of some very common, some not so common, and some downright rare shows. Arguably, the biggest "find" on this set is the inclusion of 24 episodes of "Captain Z-Ro" and, to the best of my knowledge, this set marks the commercial DVD debut of Boris Karloff's "Thriller," a series that many fans have long desired to see on DVD. Perhaps the inclusion of the "Thriller" episode "The Return of Andrew Bentley" might prompt further consideration for an official DVD release of this series in the future. And those who previously purchased Mill Creek's 4-DVD set of 50 "One Step Beyond" episodes will be delighted to know that of the 16 episodes included here, only one episode ("Where Are They?") is repeated from that earlier box set.
Among the unsold pilots, I enjoyed the second incarnation of "The Shadow" titled "Invisible Avenger," which was filmed on location in New Orleans in the late 1950s and was eventually released theatrically, and "Tales of Frankenstein." Don Megowan, who appears as the monster in "Frankenstein" also appears in the live action version of "Captain Fathom," which plays like a low rent version of "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea." One also wonders about the possibilities of "Destination Space" had it been picked up as a regular series by CBS. Though a bit on the talky side (especially in the middle scenes depicted on earth), the pilot featured solid performances from TV veterans like Harry Townes, Charles Aidman, Edward Platt, Whitney Blake and Gail Kobe, and had the backing of a major studio, Paramount.
As is the case with compilations of public domain shows, the audio/visual quality is all over the map and reflects a variety of sources such as kinescopes for the live shows and unrestored 16 millimeter syndication prints for many of the TV show episodes. While none of the episodes that I have viewed so far are unwatchable, this is definitely not a set for videophiles, nor those expecting state-of-the-art special effects. In fact, the special effects are downright primitive when compared to today's special effects and CGI. But considering the low budgets for most of these productions, it's obvious that the SFX people were trying to do the best they could with the limited resources available to them and that's part of the charm of watching these early Sci-Fi TV efforts.
The variety of the shows included in this set is so broad that there is bound to be something to appeal to almost anyone who even remotely enjoys science fiction. This set is highly recommended for classic/vintage TV fans and those who enjoy the early days of science fiction on the small screen. My rating is closer to **** & ½ for this release, just missing a full five stars given the variable audio/visual quality.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Classic Sci-Fi TV - 150 Episodes (2009)

Get 60% OFF

Click here for more information about Classic Sci-Fi TV - 150 Episodes (2009)

Read More...