The Fugitive – Season One, Volume One

 

Picture: C+     Sound: C+     Extras: D     Episodes: B

 

 

It has been imitated, ripped-off and referenced as much as any TV classic in history, but Quinn Martin’s original hit TV series The Fugitive is one of the most exciting classics the medium ever produced and made David Janssen a big star.  Instead of your usual chase feature film where everything wrapped up for better or worse, here was a show about suspense, character and gave TV a new credibility it had not had before.

 

Janssen is Dr. Richard Kimble, falsely accused of killing his wife and on the run until he can prove his innocence.  The police and especially Lt. Philip Gerard (Barry Morse) are going to find him no matter what, because after all, he is a murder on the loose.  Right?

 

Kimble instantly became TV’s great underdog, people tuned in every week for the solid writing, directing, casting and was smart.  All 15 episodes are here from the first half of the first season.  That there was so much of the best talent in the business involved was one thing.  That it all worked so well is amazing and Martin became one of the most powerful TV producers around.  The episodes in this set are:

 

1)     Fear In A Desert City

2)     The Witch

3)     The Other Side Of the Mountain

4)     Never Wave Goodbye (Two Parts)

5)     Decision In The Ring

6)     Smoke Screen

7)     See Hollywood & Die

8)     Ticket To Alaska

9)     Fatso

10)  Nightmare At Northoak

11)  Glass Tightrope

12)  Terror At Highpoint

13)  The Girl From Little Egypt

14)  Home In The Hunted

 

 

Note also the effectiveness of the quiet scenes and how Kimble discovers despair, loneliness and pain in other people’s lives as he goes along his incognito way.  There was later terrible TV series revival and the hit Harrison Ford feature film, but there is only one original Fugitive and it holds up very well.  Especially in these new DVD transfers, we recommend you check these out.

 

The full frame 1.33 X 1 image is in very crisp and clean black and white transfers with good video black and only suffers slight softness throughout.  Can’t wait to see these in HD-DVD!  The Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono is pretty good, though a stereo remix would have been nice and music has been replaced suggesting the show used hit records older fans will likely miss.  There are unbelievably no extras, but we have more sets on the way and hopefully, Paramount can correct it.

 

For more on the hit feature film remake, read about the HD-DVD at this link:

 

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/3795/The+Fugitive+(1993/HD-DVD)

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo