Rating: 
Summary: "Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry"
Review: "Within each of us, oftimes; there dwells a mighty and raging fury".
Thanks to the success of the HULK movie, the premiere of the original TV series has been released to DVD. Personally, I like the TV show better. I hadn't seen it since I was a little kid, and was surprised to find I enjoyed this DVD a lot.
The first episode on this is the series 1 pilot. As all fans of the show know, Bill Bixby plays Dr. David Banner; who is haunted by nightmares about the death of his wife Laura in a car accident after a tyre blows out and the car goes off the road. Banner escapes but is unable free Laura before the car explodes.
Later, Banner is conducting research for an experiment on superhuman strength. Interviewed is a woman recounting how she saved her son from burning to death in a car accident that is startlingly similar to Banner's own experience. After hearing more testimony, Banner seems to be the only one who has failed. Guilt and anxiety lead him to go one step further and become a guinea pig for his testing. He discovers that the source of this strength is gamma radiation, so he subjects himself to a course of it, but has no results. So he tries again- only this time exposing himself to seven times the amount. Nothing happens. At least... not immediately.
Matters come to a head when Banner, frustrated at his lack of progress is driving home in a thunderstorm and has to change a flat tyre in the rain; this combined stress leads to his first "Hulk-out"...More intelligent than most TV movies, the pilot also has a memorable sequene paying homage to the drowning scene in James Whale's FRANKENSTEIN, where the Hulk tries to save a little girl from drowning but her screams alert her father who tries to shoot the hulk. Naturally the bullets just bounce off. Special mention must be made of the wig Lou Ferrigno wears- he looks like he should have a golf tee tacked into the top of his head. Also of note: Banner watches himself changing back through the reflection in the water. Strange considering in the 1990 TVM, DEATH OF THE INCREDIBLE HULK Banner comments he's never before seen the creature after watching a tape of his transformation!
The bonus episode on the DVD is the series 2 pilot "Married"; again Written, Produced and Directed by Kenneth Johnson, who also produced SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN and BIONIC WOMAN.
This installment has Banner, using the alias David Benton; in Honolulu seeing psychiatrist Dr. Caroline Fields (Mariette Hartley, in an Emmy winning performance) to try and control his "hulkouts".(He even shows her a newspaper photo of the Hulk and confronts the beast while under hypnosis! So that's three times on this DVD alone!) Banner falls in love with her and learns Caroline is terminally ill and has only 6-8 weeks to live. Of course, Banner is none too happy to discover his nemesis, tabloid reporter Jack Magee (Jack Colvin) is sniffing around trying to catch the creature.
MARRIED is an intelligent emotionally charged, (but not sappy) episode which is appealing to adults as well as kids. There are also a few laughs, most notably in the scene where the Hulk trashes a weasly bachelor's "swinging" pad! The bell bottoms are good for a giggle too. "Groovy" stuff. I hope more episodes of the show are released on DVD.
Rating:
Summary: "Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry"
Review: "Within each of us, oftimes; there dwells a mighty and raging fury".
Thanks to the success of the HULK movie, the premiere of the original TV series has been released to DVD. Personally, I like the TV show better. I hadn't seen it since I was a little kid, and was surprised to find I enjoyed this DVD a lot.
The first episode on this is the series 1 pilot. As all fans of the show know, Bill Bixby plays Dr. David Banner; who is haunted by nightmares about the death of his wife Laura in a car accident after a tyre blows out and the car goes off the road. Banner escapes but is unable free Laura before the car explodes.
Later, Banner is conducting research for an experiment on superhuman strength. Interviewed is a woman recounting how she saved her son from burning to death in a car accident that is startlingly similar to Banner's own experience. After hearing more testimony, Banner seems to be the only one who has failed. Guilt and anxiety lead him to go one step further and become a guinea pig for his testing. He discovers that the source of this strength is gamma radiation, so he subjects himself to a course of it, but has no results. So he tries again- only this time exposing himself to seven times the amount. Nothing happens. At least... not immediately.
Matters come to a head when Banner, frustrated at his lack of progress is driving home in a thunderstorm and has to change a flat tyre in the rain; this combined stress leads to his first "Hulk-out"... More intelligent than most TV movies, the pilot also has a memorable sequene paying homage to the drowning scene in James Whale's FRANKENSTEIN, where the Hulk tries to save a little girl from drowning but her screams alert her father who tries to shoot the hulk. Naturally the bullets just bounce off. Special mention must be made of the wig Lou Ferrigno wears- he looks like he should have a golf tee tacked into the top of his head. Also of note: Banner watches himself changing back through the reflection in the water. Strange considering in the 1990 TVM, DEATH OF THE INCREDIBLE HULK Banner comments he's never before seen the creature after watching a tape of his transformation!
The bonus episode on the DVD is the series 2 pilot "Married"; again Written, Produced and Directed by Kenneth Johnson, who also produced SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN and BIONIC WOMAN.
This installment has Banner, using the alias David Benton; in Honolulu seeing psychiatrist Dr. Caroline Fields (Mariette Hartley, in an Emmy winning performance) to try and control his "hulkouts".(He even shows her a newspaper photo of the Hulk and confronts the beast while under hypnosis! So that's three times on this DVD alone!) Banner falls in love with her and learns Caroline is terminally ill and has only 6-8 weeks to live. Of course, Banner is none too happy to discover his nemesis, tabloid reporter Jack Magee (Jack Colvin) is sniffing around trying to catch the creature.
MARRIED is an intelligent emotionally charged, (but not sappy) episode which is appealing to adults as well as kids. There are also a few laughs, most notably in the scene where the Hulk trashes a weasly bachelor's "swinging" pad! The bell bottoms are good for a giggle too. "Groovy" stuff. I hope more episodes of the show are released on DVD.
Rating: 
Summary: This is why TV and Comics do not mix....
Review: 1978 TV pilot that led to a four year run on television that gave us a TV HUlk with a different name and origin being tracked by tabloid reporter all the while on the run for a murder he did not committ. The acting is below par, the make-up used on Lou Ferrigno looks like it was done for a Roger Corman movie, and Bill Bixby never should have taken this part because he was type cast by it afterward. TV shows based on comics have not gotten any better since, Smallville being the latest in a long line of bad comic book based TV shows.
Rating:
Summary: Nice DVD and series
Review: All we need is the rest of it on DVD! If you think it is merely 'fluff', take a look at the director's commentary!
Rating: 
Summary: 32 Years Old - Never Saw, or don't remember pilot
Review: Although I don't remember the pilot movie, I am a fan of the TV series and remember it well. The whole nice guy / gentle giant play was done impeccably here. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. It is funny, because the story, the feel, the powerful emotional aspect is so well done that the limited effects did not phase me. I didn't expect anything more. A good story like this, except for clothing and cars, it just didn't seem disappointingly dated as I watched it. Did anyone perceive Bixby as slightly similar to William Shatner overacting? Just a tad. I highly recommend both old and new movies to every Hulk lover. The new one is phenomenal. Some rant that it takes too long to get going, and that it doesn't hold true to the TV series. Great movie done in a different style, along with phenomenal effects. Well, they both made this Hulk fan very happy.
Rating:
Summary: favorite tv series
Review: Both the pilot and the married episodes are argubly the best. Bill Bixby's acting is always superb. Susan Sullivan was very convincing as a scientist and Mariette Hartley won an emmy award for her performance as the bride of the hulk. Also included is commentaries by writer, director and producer Kenneth Johnson. The first hulk-out with the flat tire is a must see.
Rating:
Summary: Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno will FOREVER be the Hulk
Review: Do yourself a favor and skip this summer's over-promoted blockbuster. That's right. On Friday, June 20, do yourself a favor and take that $9 you were going to spend on admission and $6 on popcorn and purchase The Incredible Hulk Original Television Pilot DVD, and curl up on the couch for 3 hours of the most moving human drama you will ever see. Having seen the theatrical film, I can promise you that its overblown CGI effects and cliche characters are cold and lifeless compared to the original televison series created by Kenneth Johnson, the brilliant man who gave us the original V mini-series and both the Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman, and brought to life by the incredible and unforgettable talents of Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno. The first 5 minutes of the Pilot episode has more humanity than a single frame of Ang Lee's new Hulk film. It is the sad, tragic origin of Dr. David Bruce Banner's endless quest to come to terms with his wife's unfortunate death and the accident that caused him to transform into the infernal green Hulk. But that's just the beginning of the story. This DVD also includes perhaps the most powerfully moving episode of the series called "Married" and it is a real treat. I remember watching it as a 6 year-old boy back in 1978 and thought it was vey sad. Now, having seen it again as a 31 year-old man, I can tell you that by the end you will not be able to hold back the tears from streaming down your face. It is perhaps the saddest piece of drama I have ever seen. Now, what would you rather watch? Some cold, lifeless, CGI infested blockbuster that has absolutely no soul or depth of character, or a 25 year old television show that reminds you what it means to be a human being and can all be attributed to a single differential reason: Story.
Rating:
Summary: Hulk out on DVD
Review: I have been here from the very begining of the series. I can't say that I have enjoyed every episode, but the ones I love are most memerable, and this DVD includes the episodes that make this series a classic in TV. history. Bill Bixby was very serious about this production as was Lou as it shows in their performance. This DVD is great in picture quality, although is grainy in some spots but still above and beyond VHS and even the original broadcast. Both episodes(original pilot,Married) are very crisp and clean, with only a few flaws. The sound is mono but still clean, and has HiFi definition above and beyond what you heard back in the 70's or even on the SciFi network. Well worth the price so grab it!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: TV HULK FANS ARE HAPPY-FINALLY!!
Review: I have been patiently waiting for nearly a year for them to pay some homage and props to the tv show (to coincide with the movie in Jun). I grew up being scared out of my wits as a kid of the Hulk when I regularly watched the show and the reruns that came on (which is were I saw a majority of the episodes). I am glad they are planning on releasing the pilot and a reg two parter episode on DVD. I can't wait to get this DVD and I do hope they plan on putting some future episodes on DVD or perhaps putting Season 1 or Season 2 on a future DVD release.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome DVD
Review: I just bought this DVD and I love it. There is a scene with the Hulk and a little girl that is very close to a scene in Frankenstein. The married episode is very good too. This DVD includes a trailer for the 2003 Hulk movie as well as a short presentation about the new movie. There is an introduction by Lou Ferigno and a director commentary for both episodes. The only part of the DVD that is missing, would be the making of the Hulk roller-coaster. That feature was listed on both Amazon.com's website and the Universal Studios website. If anyone can find this feature on thier DVD, please e-mail me right away so I can find it.
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