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Homicide Life on the Street - Seasons 1 & 2

Homicide Life on the Street - Seasons 1 & 2

List Price: $69.95
Your Price: $55.96
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: worth the wait...
Review: What can I say that hasn't already been said about this TV series? Not only is it the best cop series ever, it's one of the best series in any genre.... I like The Shield, but this is on quite a different level. No other show has ever given me that "oh my goodness" feeling after each episode. This DVD release is like a dream come true.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Gods have answered us faithful!
Review: Of all the television series of the 90's that i would want , and most deserved a DVD treatment it's HomicideLOTS! From the very 1st episodes to its last, i have been waiting for this day! I have been a fan from day one and this is one i have been waiting for with baited breath. I won't go over how great this series is as you already know, and for those that don't i would reccomend buy this sight unseen without knowing a thing and just enjoy the magic! I have missed my fridays nights watching Homicide on NBC with cup of coffee and jelly donut, and there hasnt been anything thats come close since!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Homicide- nothing quite like it back then
Review: I really liked this show. The early seasons were the best. The show just slowly lost it's ground after Andre Braugher's character had a stroke. And then it declined even more after Andre Braugher and some other characters left the show. The early scenes were some of the best episodes of any cop drama at the time and still rate highly today. NBC knew they had a quality show and i'm glad they stuck with it despite teh low Friday ratings. The show could have ended a year sooner and not have the TV movie, but Homicide was known for storylines going beyond one episode and some homicides not being unsolved. Kyle Secor was great as Detective Bayliss and Bayliss had his moment as he tried to solve the murder of a young girl. He tried to get it cleared including getting the person he suspected of doing it in for questioning, but the unsolved murder continued to haunt him through the series. Frank Pembleton was one of the great characters protrayed by Andre Braugher. Homicide was known as a show with good writing, acting, and more. It is all true. Homicide is one fo the great series indeed.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Even with no extras this would be worth 5 stars!
Review: But delightfully, there are extras too! It seems like forever that we've been waiting for this. And FINALLY it's here! The best writing and some of the best acting and production work TV has ever produced. It deserves a place of honor among my DVD collection. Can't wait for the next seasons!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: It's about time
Review: I have waited patiently, as have many other maniacs, for this day. After years of wearing out bootleg copies taped from fickle network and cable stations, the show that needs no metaphor is on dvd. I am disappointed, however, that the show isn't being presented in widescreen. Nevertheless, I will not complain, because the dream is a reality. Now everyone can catch up on one of the greatest (albeit grossly neglected) shows of all time.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Amazing show
Review: I haven't seen the DVD yet, but I have been waiting for this release for years. This is by far the best show that has ever been on television. If you have not seen it or heard about it before it is absolutely a joy to watch. Great cast, great storylines. The most riveting TV you could ever hope to watch. Just wait until you see Andre Braugher's character get someone in "The Box" - completely mesmerizing. If you buy this and don't like it, send it to ME to get a refund! I couldn't give anything more praise.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best, Show, Ever!
Review: Although this DVD set will not be released for another two months, I am thrilled that I will finally be able to see this show again. NBC took this show off the air, even though it had a strong following and was a critical darling. CourtTV picked the show up and the show aired in the wee hours of the morning, but now you cannot see it there either. Although not everyone will agree with me that this is probably one of the best television shows ever, no one can disagree that this show was truly a masterpiece.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Fans rejoice
Review: Finally the cries of the Homicide faithful have been answered. One of the best hourly dramas to ever grace television has it's rightful place in immortality. Anyone who seeks quality production, acting, and editing look no further. A true representation of life in the big city without the usual sugar-coating. This series is well worth a repeated look. Thank you NBC!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Finally. Finally. Finally. And thank you, NBC.
Review: Okay, I'm not reviewing the DVD. I'm reviewing the fact that the show is finally available on DVD. After all those years of pleading and whining to NBC.

There is no doubt that Homicide: Life on the Street is one of the finest shows ever put on television. Beginning with David Simon's excellent book (and yes, if you haven't read it, you should), moving on to Levinson's and Fontana's brilliant production, Homicide stands as one of the great high water marks in literate entertainment. And as for its extraordinary ensemble of great actors, well, one can just go on and on and on and on and ... but you get the idea. (For fun, see how many actors you can trace through Homicide, Oz, Law and Order, and The Wire.)

If you missed Homicide in its various incarnations between NBC the CourtTV (it will probably show up next on the Mystery Channel), here's your chance to acquire one of the great collectibles. If you're coming to Homicide for the first time, here's why you might (or might not) like it. If you crave violence and explosions, give it a miss. But if you like smart, talky shows where people talk about things that really matter, you'll like Homicide. One of the show's greatest moments is Jon Polito's labored analysis of the conspiracy behind the president's assassination: President Lincoln, that is. (Re which, compare the explanation of chess in street terms in Simon's new show, The Wire.)

But enough babbling. Order it. And see Richard Belzer's Detective Munch before he moved to Manhattan's Special Victim's Unit.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A universe of talent in Baltimore
Review: The technical complaints about the "Homicide: Seasons 1 & 2" DVD box set are 100% accurate. The typos on the package, and the lack of English captioning (for one of the most dialogue-intensive shows on TV), betray a lack of planning behind this long-awaited (and relatively expensive) release.

However, watching the first 13 episodes of the series removes all other qualms about the set. It's important just to get these shows on DVD and put them back into the public eye. Here's a cop show with no gunfights and no car chases. Although "Law & Order" mostly followed the same rules, here the cops themselves are the attraction, played by a terrific ensemble cast of character actors. Obviously there's Richard Belzer, whose Detective Munch has been used everywhere else from two "Law & Order" series, "The X-Files", and the film epic "A Very Brady Sequel" (!). And Munch is just a minor character in this box set. More prominent cast members (who sadly didn't make it to the show's later, full-season runs) include Ned Beatty as the worn-out Stan Bolander, Daniel Baldwin as good-old-boy Beau Felton, and Jon Polito's Lincoln assassination conspiracy theorist Frank Crosetti. You may remember Polito from his current role as California lieutenant governor Cruz Bustamante.

A good way to judge the quality of a TV show is to scan the cast and production credits and see what became of the team a decade later. Apart from big-name directors Barry Levinson and Bruce Paltrow, two Season 1 episodes were directed by Martin Campbell, who revived the James Bond franchise with "GoldenEye" a few years later. Familiar names in the guest cast include Edie Falco (recurring as the wife of an injured patrolman), Julianna Margulies (as Bolander's second-season love interest), the always welcome Luis Guzman as a doomed coffin maker, and Jake Gyllenhaal, playing Robin Williams' kid in the second-season opener.

The glue that holds the show together is the Season 1 story arc revolving around the murder of schoolgirl Adena Watson. We trace the investigation through the eyes of nervous rookie detective Tim Bayliss (the underrated Kyle Secor) and his partner Frank Pembleton (Andre Braugher, given to mesmerizing fits of Shakespearean fury). Yaphet Kotto ("Koto", as per the box) takes the cliched role of the minority squad leader and turns in a joyful, fiery performance that equals Braugher's at every turn. Also standing out is the episode with Williams, which deftly turns from an examination of victim's rage to a (somewhat sympathetic) look at the killer's mind. By definition, most other cop shows don't go within a thousand miles of that approach.

The commentary by Levinson and Tom Fontana on the pilot episode is above average; however, that's all we get. There's a useless episode from some A&E true crime series; however, the song list, episode trailers, and casting featurette are decent additions. Season 3 is on its way, and none too soon. In the meantime, watch these episodes again.


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