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"A Quinn Martin production." Hee.
There have been tons of old shows coming out on DVD lately. A friend of mine, who is as much of a TV addict as I am, won't buy any of them because she figures you can't go home again. I've been buying some series, but I checked The Streets of San Francisco out from the library because I figured this would be a 'can't go home again' series for me. I was wrong. I think I'm enjoying it more this time around.
I originally tripped over TSoSF in syndication when I was a teenager while going through a Michael Douglas phase. It took me awhile to get into it because I like buddy cop shows, but I wasn't really sure if Lt. Mike Stone (Karl Malden) and Insp. Steve Keller (Michael Douglas) even liked each other. It turns out that's because most of the character moments were edited out for commercials. The uncut DVDs restore all those bits and add a new dimension to Mike and Steve's personal and professional relationship (Mike comes off a lot more paternal in the uncut eps).
I also seem to have more patience for the slower eps than I did when I was younger. By and large, the writing is very good and the guest characters have more depth than on most shows today. The guest actors are also a who's who of established stars and people about to become ridiculously famous, including a pre-Hart to Hart Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers (but not in the same ep) and a pre-Starsky and Hutch David Soul and Paul Michael Glaser (again, not in the same ep).
The picture quality on the DVDs is very good, too. I don't think the eps were digitally remastered, but they have a much brighter and clearer picture than the murky ones I'm used to seeing in syndication. There's very little in the way of extras (mostly an obviously rehearsed interview of Karl Malden and Michael Douglas by Army Archerd done when the show first aired--they don't make 'em like that anymore).
This set covers the first half of season 1, so not much whumping yet (Steve will get his later, in spades if I remember correctly). And Steve Keller remains the only TV cop I've ever seen who actually sights down the barrel of his revolver before he fires. Why do I think that's so cool?
Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised to find myself liking this show even more now, and I may actually start buying it if I can find a good sale.
There have been tons of old shows coming out on DVD lately. A friend of mine, who is as much of a TV addict as I am, won't buy any of them because she figures you can't go home again. I've been buying some series, but I checked The Streets of San Francisco out from the library because I figured this would be a 'can't go home again' series for me. I was wrong. I think I'm enjoying it more this time around.
I originally tripped over TSoSF in syndication when I was a teenager while going through a Michael Douglas phase. It took me awhile to get into it because I like buddy cop shows, but I wasn't really sure if Lt. Mike Stone (Karl Malden) and Insp. Steve Keller (Michael Douglas) even liked each other. It turns out that's because most of the character moments were edited out for commercials. The uncut DVDs restore all those bits and add a new dimension to Mike and Steve's personal and professional relationship (Mike comes off a lot more paternal in the uncut eps).
I also seem to have more patience for the slower eps than I did when I was younger. By and large, the writing is very good and the guest characters have more depth than on most shows today. The guest actors are also a who's who of established stars and people about to become ridiculously famous, including a pre-Hart to Hart Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers (but not in the same ep) and a pre-Starsky and Hutch David Soul and Paul Michael Glaser (again, not in the same ep).
The picture quality on the DVDs is very good, too. I don't think the eps were digitally remastered, but they have a much brighter and clearer picture than the murky ones I'm used to seeing in syndication. There's very little in the way of extras (mostly an obviously rehearsed interview of Karl Malden and Michael Douglas by Army Archerd done when the show first aired--they don't make 'em like that anymore).
This set covers the first half of season 1, so not much whumping yet (Steve will get his later, in spades if I remember correctly). And Steve Keller remains the only TV cop I've ever seen who actually sights down the barrel of his revolver before he fires. Why do I think that's so cool?
Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised to find myself liking this show even more now, and I may actually start buying it if I can find a good sale.
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Date: 2007-08-18 10:51 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2007-08-19 06:33 pm (UTC)From: