The Fugitive: Vol. 1, Season 1

 

 

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It's hard to review a DVD release BEFORE it is released! Therefore, my "5-star" rating is based strictly on my rating of the series, not my opinion of how good a job the studio did with this DVD release. We'll have to wait until August 14, 2007, in order to judge that.

I have been waiting for this announcement forever. I got hooked on The Fugitive back in the early '90s when A&E was showing the re-runs. David Janssen was just perfectly cast as the tense, fidgety Kimble, forever looking over his shoulder. The dark, grim look of the first three seasons, shot in black and white, is the way most remember this series when they think about it. While the 4th and final season was shot in colour, certainly an industry necessity by 1966, there is no question that the black and white did a lot of justice to the look and feel of the series. Stephen King has referred to The Fugitive as absolutely the best series done on American television.

Every episode in this 15-episode collection ranges from very good to excellent. The only exceptions are "The Witch" and "Ticket To Alaska," which are weaker episodes.

The roster of guest stars to have appeared in The Fugitive is endless: Brian Keith, Jack Klugman, Jack Lord, William Shatner, Mickey Rooney, Telly Savalas, Charles Bronson, Suzanne Pleshette, Robert Duvall, Angie Dickinson, Melvyn Douglas, Ed Asner, Kurt Russell, the list goes on and on.

As already stated, there is no question that the series' success owes a lot to David Janssen's haunted portrayal of Kimble. That's right, "haunted," not "haunting." Kimble is haunted by the ominous one-armed man, his wife's real killer, who manages to elude him so well. And Kimble is haunted by the thought of imminent capture at the hands of the obsessed Lt. Gerard, whom he manages to elude so well, or any law enforcement officer, as capture would mean his execution before he can prove his innocence. This tragic "haunted" quality was an emotion that future actors to portray Kimble, i.e. Harrison Ford and Tim Daly, couldn't seem to capture nearly as well as Janssen, and so the emotional extent of the character just couldn't go nearly as far in their hands. I thought Daly's portrayal came closer than Ford's, but still couldn't touch Janssen's. English actor Barry Morse, whose accent is undetectable, is also perfectly cast as Lt. Phil Gerard. He is completely obsessed with Kimble's capture, as Kimble escaped from his custody while en route to the death house for Kimble's execution.

The emotional intensity and drama of this series was huge, and it was achieved through a combination of great acting, writing, directing, as well as the strict supervision of producer Quinn Martin, who took a proprietary, quality-controlled approach to all his productions. The Fugitive, Season 1, Volume 1, is a welcome edition to the DVD market, and is long overdue. I can't believe some of the stuff that's managed to get released on DVD and find a market before a series like this. Can't wait for the release of the rest of the series!

These episodes are a terrific Time Piece, often filmed on location. However, as expected, the balance of the series (up until now) has not been released. It tends to leave ya kind of had after buying the first 3 sets. Oh well, they meant to say the Fall of '09. Great series, just be aware that to this point in time, the complete series has not been available (January 09)

I used to watch THE FUGITIVE in FRENCH when i was a kid.Here we have the first half of season 1 with this character who should have been called THE GOOD SAMARITAIN.Why?He always gets in trouble helping people who comes his way.DAVID JANSSEN was perfectly cast as RICHARD KIMBLE.One of the key aspect of THE FUGITIVE is that he always seems to get to the maternal instincts of the women he meets.You have to wait until you reached episode 14 when after an accident we get to know what really happened to KIMBLE via flashbacks.In episode 15,we meet his father,his sister,his younger brother,his brother-in-law and his nephews.It is hard to understand why LIEUTENANT GÉRARD is so obsessed with his case.He always clears his other cases like it was nothing.I remember that whenever BARRY MORSE went to a talk-show or a television quiz,even after the show was off the air,he was boooed.THE FUGITIVE is probably the only show that we were not anxious to see in color, because black and white fitted KIMBLE so well.105 episodes are awaiting us in the near future.I'll guess i'll have to wait like everybody.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Fugitve Great series
I am wondering why no one thought to put this in a boxed set. I enjoyed this series and I guess I will have to buy them separately.

Published 17 months ago by david

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the true greats, no question about it
Stills holds up so so well, after all these years. This series was one of the best ever, without a doubt. Read more

Published 18 months ago by Travis Weir

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