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Hill Street Blues - Series 1
There were no big stars on Hill Street Blues (or, for that matter, no little stars, as one of the cast members jokes during a near-hour-long reunion featurette included as a bonus feature on this three double-sided disc set). Each was an indelible character, among them Charles Haid as cowboy cop Andy Renko, Veronica Hammel as sexy public defender Joyce Davenport, Bruce Weitz as the untamed, animalistic Belker, Keil Martin as LaRue, whose descent into alcoholism is one of the season's most compelling dramatic arcs, and James Sikking as the gung-ho Howard Hunter. Once daring, Hill Street Blues seems almost quaint today, with none of the graphic sex or language that scandalized NYPD Blue (in one episode, a captured cat burglar, portrayed by a pre-L.A. Law Michael Tucker, makes a reference to "wolf pee-pee"). The ethnic portrayals, too, are not exactly nuanced. But the human dramas at the heart of Hill Street still make for arresting television. --Donald Liebenson The Hill Street Blues - Series 1 DVD contains all episodes from the first series of the ground-breaking TV cop show from legendary producer/writer Steven Bochco. One of the most innovative and critically-acclaimed series of its time, Hill Street Blues ran from 1981 to 1986 and has been influential in shaping later cop shows such as "NYPD Blue" and "L.A. Law". Set in a fictional locale patterned after Chicago, it tells the story of an overworked, under-staffed police precinct and provides a realistic view of the personal and work lives of its characters, which occupy every rung of the hierarchical ladder. Throughout the series, Captain Frank Furillo juggles the delicate balancing act of protecting the jurisdiction's law-abiding citizens, without inciting the local gangs and criminal elements, which are openly hostile to any police presence. As dangerous as his inner-city neighbourhood may be, however, Furillo's biggest battles often involve protecting his own cops from the Public Defender's Office, self-serving bureaucrats, and even each other. Synopsis 'Let's be careful out there.' So ends each roll-call session at the Hill Street station house. In Hill Street Blues – Series 1 the action gets off to a flying start with Precinct Captain Frank Furillo having to defuse a hostage crisis. The rest of the season keeps up the pace, as Officer Larue battles a drinking problem, Sgt. Esterhaus questions his upcoming marriage, and Furillo finds his chances for promotion compromised by a city councilman's involvement in a murder.
RRP: £34.99
Our Price: £24.97 (subject to change)
Editorial
Amazon.co.uk Review
Created by Steven Bochco and one of television's most influential series, Hill Street Blues was not your father's cop show. The Emmy-winning pilot episode, "Hill Street Station," immediately established the series as less a police procedural than an up-close and personal "interface with the police experience." To establish gritty, documentary-like realism, the show featured sequences, such as the pre-credit roll call, that were filmed with a hand-held camera. There was chaotic, overlapping dialogue. There were sudden, shocking bursts of violence that claimed popular characters. Story lines were not wrapped up at the end of the hour, but instead, unfolded serially throughout the season. It's no wonder that Hill Street, while championed by most critics, was initially not embraced by viewers. It was, in the beginning, one of television's lowest rated shows, its case not helped by NBC's criminal practice of juggling it in its primetime schedule). But there is justice in Hollywood. Hill Street Blues won the Emmy for best drama in its first season. Also honored were several members of the ensemble, including Daniel J. Travanti as the compassionate and incorruptible Precinct Capt. Frank Furillo, Michael Conrad as the avuncular Sgt. Phil Esterhaus (whose cautionary, "Let's be careful out there," became the show's pop culture signature), and Barbara Babcock as the wildly sexual Grace Gardner, who rocks Esterhaus's world (particularly in the episode that earned her statuette, "Fecund Hand Rose").
Editorial
DVD Description
The best series ever, and perhaps Amazon could...
Review date: 2008-01-19 Rating: 10 out of 10
Make the other seasons available as well? I know Amazon is not in the business of releasing DVDs, but then again: Amazon is so big and powerful, I am sure it can convince the movie company that holds the rights to release all the other seasons as well. After all, this is not just your average cops show, this is THE STANDARD that all other series are based upon, even now, in 2008... There's but one series: HSB ;-)
Moderator, responsible for approving my review: PLEASE forward a copy of my message to your purchasing department? The world is full of authentic fans of HSB - you've got a guaranteed winner here...
I am even willing to co-invest in the production and distribution of the series: yes, I am ready to put my money where my mouth is ;-)
Similar Products
- Hill Street Blues - Season 2
- NYPD Blue - Series One [1994]
- NYPD Blue - Season 4
- NYPD Blue - Season 3
- NYPD Blue - Season 2 [1994]
Reviews
"The Complete Series"? - I don't think so....
Review date: 2007-11-11 Rating: 2 out of 10
"Hill Street Blues" was, and still is, my absolute favourite television series. When first transmitted in the 1980's the comments you read here about the ground-breaking format of the show are absolutely true: multi-thread storylines, a huge cast ensemble, documentary-style direction, humour, realism and ACTION.
After settling down for a serious couch-fest of memories with these DVD's it was quickly apparent something was missing. Scenes weren't making sense. Edits were skipping around. Events were being referenced that the viewer hadn't seen.
As has been mentioned here elsewhere, these are the edited versions of the show suitable for early-evening transmission on Channel 4. And they haven't been edited at all well. The action, gritty and realistic for its time but tame by today's standards, has been all but totally deleted. A key ingredient of what made the show so good isn't there any more. Just what is the point of releasing a cult series to enthusiasts if you then remove one of the facets that made it so memorable? I expect better from the channel that prides itself on providing innovative, controversial programming.
It got so bad that I gave up watching half way through the second series. I'm even thinking about flogging both boxed sets on the Amazon resellers market.
Great programme, lousy DVD's...
Compelling Tension
Review date: 2007-08-21 Rating: 10 out of 10
The plot of this show has already been extensively reviewed by other appreciators of characterful melodrama,so I'd add that it's great not to leave the fireside, yet be able to experience all the involving, compelling tension of " Life on the streets", as they used to say in Starsky and Hutch, without needing to move and upset the tea cups.
Consistent moods in music and film usually appeal more, but here the atmosphere of the shifting scenes, joined as though the viewer were able to see all the different department's daily events in succession, as they occur, and interweave, (like approaching sounds from another room, soon to impinge upon our own space and involve us personally), are so pervading, that we ourselves live the events as a shift at work, rather than a performance, and accept the incongruities; laughter lives concurrently with death; and a policeman's relationship with his partner is sometimes of more immediate interest than the nearby crimes being committed the other side of their carefully locked patrol car's door.
Meanwhile, heroism might call you anytime, whilst, back at base, seduction is wearing the Blue, but all shall soon be involved in events as yet unseen by all but the precinct's shooting, dying uniforms, that moment falling elsewhere in the city, and sex shall have to be forgotten for a while, for a while...
Wonderful !
Hill Street Blues - a classic
Review date: 2007-05-21 Rating: 8 out of 10
Brilliant series. I was so pleased to be able to get it on DVD, however, I was disappointed to find out it is the Hill Street for Babies censored version. Series 2 is even worse. The editing looks like a complete hatchet job - extremely obvious with interrupted flow of action. I wouldn't mind so much if the programme had been really violent but by today's standards, it's harmless.
Return of a CLASSIC!
Review date: 2006-05-27 Rating: 10 out of 10
Just as I so fondly remember it, fast paced multiple plots, blending humor and tragedy into a compelling mix. Every character stands up, the writing is spot on. Watch the programme that lead the way for, NYPD Blue, ST Elsewhere, ER etc
Product Details/Specifications
Actor(s):
Daniel J. Travanti
Ed Marinaro
Veronica Hamel
Michael Conrad
Creators:
Daniel J. Travanti (Primary Contributor)
Michael Conrad (Primary Contributor)
Recording label: Channel 4 DVD
Manufacturer: Channel 4 DVD
EAN: 6867441002796
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 5
Format: PAL,
Release date: 2006-03-06
Audience rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 816 minutes
Language: English (Original Language)