Customer Reviews

The Dead Zone - The Complete First Season

5 star:		(41)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm a huge fan of the Dead Zone and tape every episode and will buy the 2nd season if and when it comes out on DVD. BUT DO NOT BE FOOLED ABOUT THE "UNAIRED ORIGINAL PILOT EPISODE" that you can get with the bounce back coupon ($$$ for shipping). It was aired on TV and is the very first episode on the first DVD called "Wheel of Fortune". I ordered it and got it in the mail today and was looking forward to seeing an episode that I had never seen before. WRONG! I was very disappointed when I found that it was the "Wheel of Fortune" on the DVD compliation that I already bought. So, don't waste your money on the allegedly unaired original pilot episode--because if you bought the Complete First Season of the Dead Zone, you already have it.

The Dead Zone is one of the best shows on TV. The show alone gets five stars. But the reason my review is four stars is because of the somewhat deceiving nature of this DVD release. When you buy the DVD set, there is one open slot with no DVD. This is for the "pilot" episode. And in order to get this episode, you have to send in a card that comes with your DVD. It would have been much better if they had simply included the DVD and saved the consumer trouble of sending in a card to get the pilot. It's just like those "rebate" offers - companies know that few people will go through the process of sending it in and that's why they offer it.

I came late to this TV show. It premiered when I had too many distractions to allow me to sit down and actually watch it. Thank God for DVD. "The Dead Zone" shows stylistic flair and has strong writing throughout much of its first season. The basic premise remains from King's novel and David Cronenberg's film; Johnny (Anthony Michael Hall) a school teacher who seemingly has everything going for him is in a car accident. He's in a coma for six years. While he's away his love (the lovely Nicole deBoer from "Deep Space Nine")has married someone else, his mother has died and he has the ability to foresee the potential future (and the past). The departures from the source that Michael and Shawn Piller ("Star Trek: The Next Generation" and "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine") introduce add depth and conflict to the show. When Johnny's mom dies, Reverend Purdy (David Ogden Stiers)becomes the benefactor of the will and guardian of Johnny. Johnny doesn't trust Purdy believing his intention was to soak his mom for all the money he could. Johnny comes out of his coma with his gift stronger than before. He had it in childhood and throughout much of his life but it was never more than a parlor trick. Now it's front and center in his life.

The pilot episode is still among the best but there's also a handful of the 13 episodes here that rank right up there. "Destiny" and "The Seige" both are among the best episodes of the first season as well. Lion's Gate has done a exceptional job with the DVD transfer. The colors are bright, vivid and there's hardly a trace of digital or analog imperfections that might mar the picture. The sound, likewise, is top flight. The extras include commentaries on every episode, a terrific featurette where we are privy to the writer's meetings and interviews with the cast and main production crew about the series and the departures from King's source material. It's pretty clear that the Pillers are trying to stay true to the spirit of King's work even if they can't practice fidelity to the novel itself through out the series.

My only complaint--and this has been echoed a number of times--is that Lion's Gate is still selling the DVD set with a missing DVD that you were supposed to be able to sent away for. Like many fans, I purchased the set quite a bit later but my set was manufactured recently (or at least was in the warehouse). Not having the unaired pilot episode is annoying. After Lion's Gate discontinued the offer to main out the extra disc they should have automatically included it or redesigned the packaging so it doesn't make reference to it. You don't miss it until you realize it's not there.

That minor flaw aside, "The Dead Zone" is a noteworthy show worth watching.

The Dead Zone is definetly one of the best T.V shows around nowadays (what with the demise of 'X-Files')and has finally given me something to do on monday nights.
The basic plotline is the same as in the movie; Johnny Smith (played superbly by Anthony Michael Hall) is in a terrifying car crash which leaves him in a coma for six years. He awakens to find everything has changed and he now possesses the power of second sight, thus cueing a series of situations where he must use his psychic powers to help people.

Everything about the series has a refreshing feel about it (especially some of the camera work and special effects) and all the lead carachters are perfectly cast (Anthony Michael Hall beats Christopher Walken hands down). Also, unlike most of the crap on nowadays, the stories actually rely upon and develop these carachters with emotion being the driving force rather than, say, kung-fu fighting (as in Dark Angel).

As for the first season itself, it has some great storylines and plot ideas (the pilot and final episode are especially good). The only trouble is that some of these episoides are a little slow, especially the really early ones. Compared to what the series is doing now (season two was phenomenal!), this can be quite aggravating.

Overall, i would say this is certainley a good buy, but leave some cash for the release of season two, as that season is just about perfect.

I've just bought season 1 and the pilot episode as the previously reviews helpfully said that season 1 didn't include the pilot. What they didn't say is that episode 1 and 2 of the first season ARE the same as the pilot episode. So if you are buying the box set of season 1 you don't need to buy the pilot, it's the same as the first 2 episodes.

Of all of Stephen King's novels "The Dead Zone" is probably the one has the strongest potential for being turned into a television series, mainly on the strength of the character of Johnny Smith. Many years after being adapted into a theatrical film, in which I thought Christopher Walken was miscast as Johnny, we have a television series based on King's novel, starring Anthony Michael Hall, that finally gives us something to replace "Quantum Leap" and "Morning Edition" among cult television fans.

Created by the father and son team of Michael and Shawn Piller, there are several significant changes and additions to "The Dead Zone" premise: (1) The night of his accident Johnny and his fiancée Sara (Nicole de Boer) conceived a child, so when Johnny comes out of his coma this time, he learns more shocking news than Sara being married. (2) Sara is now married to Sheriff Walt Bannerman (Chris Buno), another character from the original novel, who is now given a more prominent role. (3) Johnny now has a sidekick in Bruce Lewis (John L. Adams), who starts off as his physical therapist and becomes a confidant, true-believer, and good friend. (4) In this version Johnny's father died when he was young and his mother (Anna Hagen), now a wealthy woman, died while he was in the coma. The bulk of her state has gone to the Reverend Gene Purdy (David Ogden Stiers), who has used it to fund his religious organization. This plays off of Vera Smith's fundamentalist beliefs in the novel, but gives the whole idea of the spiritual significance of Johnny's "gift" to the Reverend. (5) The other key supporting character is reporter Dana Bright (Kristen Dalton), who not only becomes a true believer but is interested in Johnny romantically as well. Consequently, Johnny has a much stronger support group in the television series. Once Sheriff Bannerman becomes a true believer that helps to eliminate the tired element of Johnny having to convince skeptics he is not a lunatic. (6) Finally, Greg Stillson (Sean Patrick Flanery), Johnny's ultimate antagonist in the novel, does not pop up until the 13th and final episode of the first season, setting up what will be the main conflict of season two.

If there is a fundamental flaw to the series it is that it is pretty much impossible to come up with a "normal" episode for the series. "Quality of Life" would be one such episode, where Johnny takes a job as an assistant hockey coach, touches a kid, and knows that he is going to drop dead on the ice if he keeps playing. Of course, nobody wants to believe him. Fortunately "The Dead Zone" is one of those relatively new fangled series like "The Sopranos" and "Six Feet Under" where a full season is a dozen episodes, so that the series is not overwhelmed by more and more tales stretching the limits of Johnny's power (e.g., "Shaman").

The best episode of the first season is "The Siege," where Sara is caught in a bank robbery and Johnny joins the hostages in an effort to figure out the shifting jigsaw puzzle and come up with an ending where everybody gets out alive. This one does a nice job of exploring the consequences of various actions. "Here There Be Monsters," where Johnny ends up being charged with practicing witchcraft when he tries to help another sheriff's office solve a murder. The twist here is that Johnny is in danger because people DO believe he can do what he claims. "Unreasonable Doubt" is clearly inspired by "Twelve Angry Men," but also does a nice job of exploring how Johnny can convince people of the validity of his visions. Stylistically the television series takes the idea from the original film version of putting Johnny into his visions as a spectator and give it some "Matrix" like effects: often a scene freezes and Johnny is able to walk through it to see what needs to be seen. The show also shows a pretty good sense of humor at times, as in "Dinner with Dana," where physical contact brings into the bedroom their previous lovers. At the core of the series is Hall's performance, and while I think his characterization is significantly different from the novel in that Johnny is no longer a tortured Hamlet of doubt, I also think that such a main character would not work for a television series. Instead Hall's Johnny Smith is reserved but still willing to do what has to be done, no doubt helped by the strong support group he has in this series.

The season finale, "Destiny," introduces candidate Stillson and returns the series to the last remaining element of the novel. This is a Stillson who is aware of Johnny's abilities, which will make quite a difference in the second season, and who is affiliated with the Reverend Purdy. It was nice to see the series go back to Cathy's episode from the novel, but there was one significant goof: Walt joins Johnny in trying to convince the owner of the restaurant to close down, and while they are unsuccessful, there is no way in the world that Walt does not somebody there watching the place (although given how quickly firetrucks seem to be there we might be missing something). This final episode also gets back to the heart of the novel, with Purdy explicitly talking about how Johnny is clearly destined to do something important, and that each of these episodes is just another link in the chain towards that greater glory. For a first season, often the most problematic in the history of a series, "The Dead Zone" is pretty good. More importantly, the show successfully builds on this solid foundation in the second season.

When I heard this show was coming out, I had no intention of watching it at all. I am not into psychic phenomena or all that sort of stuff. But I caught the pilot episode on an encore airing on the Sci-Fi channel one Friday night and was hooked from then on.

If you've read the original book or the reviews here, then you already know that "The Dead Zone" is about a man named Johnny Smith who lives a charmed life in a quiet Maine town. Until a car accident and a LLLOOOONNNNNGGGG coma take all that away. When he wakes up, he finds he has the ability to see visions simply by touching people, seeing both their futures and pasts.

Anthony Michael Hall gives a quiet but compelling performance as Johnny Smith, trying to fit in again... Another great character is Bruce (John L. Adams), Johnny's physical therapist and best friend. Bruce brings the show humor and warmth, helping Johnny cope with his unwanted "gift" and trying to discourage Johnny's obsessive pursuit of Greg Stillson. Another interesting character is David Ogden Stiers' Rev. Eugene Purdy. At first, I was concerned that Purdy was going to become a charicature, one of those televangelists squeezing people for money. But so far his character has been supportive of Johnny's gift and has tried to show Johnny care and concern for his well-being. He often leads the viewer to wonder exactly where his intentions truly lie, but so far he's turned out to be one of Johnny's allies.

As soon as this comes out on dvd, I am DEFINITELY getting it! It is worth it, believe me.

Firstly, I should point out that I am a huge fan of the show, and if I was rating the content alone, this would be a five star review, no question.

I found myself rather disappointed when I openned the box to discover, as other reviewers have noted, an empty disc slot. Should you be considering purchasing this product, please be aware that the Pilot referred to elsewhere on these pages and in the packaging is the original, unaired pilot. All aired episodes from season one, including Wheel of Life and What It Seems (where Jonny gets into the crash and goes into the coma) ARE included. The major difference with pilots is that Gene Purdy is played by (I'm informed)Michael Moriarty.

This should not have been a problem, as other reviewers have noted that there is a mail-in rebate card which will get you the pilot DVD. Sadly, this offer expired in 2003 and the 'bounceback' card is no longer available with newly shipped boxsets.

My second gripe is relatively minor...no slip case was provided (ever, apparently) with this product, so it's best to keep it firmly sandwiched between other stuff on your shelves.

There seems to be some confusion about the Pilot. While it IS the same story that eventually aired as the first two episodes there are some significant differences. Foremost is that the Reverend is played by Michael Morriarty. There are also some other differences in the cast. What you see here (along with some deleted scenes) is the original pilot. After it was filmed, they changed some of the cast and refilmed any scenes with the old cast. Also, some of the other scenes were refilmed by the new director since he did not like the staging of the old version of these scenes (as explained by the Voice-Over Commentary on the Show and the Deleted Scenes).

Thus while the episode 1&2 and this Pilot is essentially the same story, you get alternate casting and interpretation.

I hope this helps other to decide if they want to buy the DVD - You WILL get something you have not yet seen (even if it is not a DIFFERENT Story).

If you have not seen this show before then you need to watch! I have been watching The Dead Zone since day one and I absolutely love it. I can not wait for the DVD to come out! It is one of those shows where you are leaned back in your chair at the beginning but by the end of it you are just about to fall over the edge.

To give you a little background Anthony Michael Hall plays "Johnny Smith" a man with psychic powers that he obtained after a car accident that left him in a coma for six years. How his powers work is by a touch. All you have to do is touch him and he will see something that has happended in your past or something that is going to happen in your future. "Johnny" uses his powers to help people though. In the First season he was able to save a woman from being raped and he was able to save a teen who was going to die from an unseen heart condition.

Each show is always suprising and you can't wait to see how Johnny Smith (Anthony Michael Hall) will save the day with his psychic powers.

Like I said before if you have not seen an episode yet do!