Customer Reviews

Hunter - The Complete Second Season

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Nominated for three Emmys, Hunter stands out as one of the premiere action police dramas of the 1980s. Just as Tom Selleck's on-camera charisma carried Magnum, P.I. through nine highly-rated seasons, Fred Dryer's knack for drawing an audience to his unique persona carried an otherwise lackluster series through much of the decade. The brainchild of Frank Lupo, creator of The A-Team (1982) and writer for such hit series as Battlestar Galactica (1978), Magnum, P.I. (1980), and Walker, Texas Ranger (1993), Hunter is built on the clichéd concept of a rogue cop who breaks the rules and takes justice into his own hands. Dryer does well in his role as the Clint Eastwood of the small screen, yet the show's writers give him little to work with in terms of a highly developed character and, as the seasons pass, the plot becomes quite formulaic. Nevertheless, Hunter is pure mind-numbing police chase entertainment with the added element of nostalgia for those who long for the 1980s when Hunter ruled along with The A-Team, Magnum, Miami Vice, and Knight Rider, and I for one loved those shows...!

Hunter follows the life of Los Angeles Police Department detective Sgt. Rick Hunter (Fred Dryer), a renegade cop whose family has ties to organized crime. This family tree, coupled with a penchant for getting his partners injured and a propensity to bend the rules, make Hunter an unpopular guy within the department. Only two officers will even agree to partner with him - Bernie Terwilliger (James Whitmore Jr.), who's a total incompetent, and Dee Dee McCall (Stepfanie Kramer), a stunning brunette with a rebellious streak of her own (and also disliked by her colleagues). Together, Hunter and McCall are a perfect fit as partners, breaking up crime rings, solving murders, and dealing with internal problems such as irate captains. In seasons one and two, Hunter's bosses are a thorn in his side. But both are soon replaced by Capt. Charles Devane (Charles Hallahan) who plays the role of Hunter's by-the-book, yet generally amiable authority figure for the remainder of the series. Meanwhile, original Saturday Night Live cast member Garrett Morris plays a brilliant recurrent role as police informant Arnold "Sporty" James... Overall, Hunter is a solid and highly entertaining action/adventure police drama series, one indispensable to 1980s TV aficionados...

The Hunter (Season 2) DVD features a number of action-packed episodes including the season premiere "Case X" in which Dee Dee goes undercover as a prospective model when a modeling agent's clients start turning up dead. When Hunter and Dee Dee discover that the modeling agent is sending his clients to a photographer who specializes in filming porn, the two get closer to discovering the true identity of the murderer... Other notable episodes from Season 2 include "The Big Fall" in which Hunter and Dee Dee must discover the identity of the murderer who killed the star witness under their protection or else risk being pinned with the rap themselves, and "Death Machine" in which Hunter and Dee Dee must investigate a series of underworld murders ordered by a jewel smuggler who was ripped off for over two million dollars by a pair of petty burglars...

Below is a list of episodes included on the Hunter (Season 2) DVD:

Episode 21 (Case X)
Episode 22 (Night of the Dragons)
Episode 23 (The Biggest Man in Town)
Episode 24 (Rich Girl)
Episode 25 (Killer in a Halloween Mask)
Episode 26 (Rape and Revenge: Part 1)
Episode 27 (Rape and Revenge: Part 2)
Episode 28 (Million Dollar Misunderstanding)
Episode 29 (The Big Fall)
Episode 30 (Waiting for Mr. Wrong)
Episode 31 (Think Blue)
Episode 32 (Blow-up)
Episode 33 (War Zone)
Episode 34 (Burned)
Episode 35 (Scrap Metal)
Episode 36 (Fagin 1986)
Episode 37 (62 Hrs. of Terror)
Episode 38 (Death Machine)
Episode 39 (The Setup)
Episode 40 (The Beautiful & the Dead: Part 1)
Episode 41 (The Beautiful & the Dead: Part 2)
Episode 42 (The Return of Typhoon Thompson)
Episode 43 (Saturday Night Special)

The DVD Report

GREAT ENTERTAINING ACTION PACKED TELEVISION. The DVD sound and quality are fantastic.

Any Hunter fan will be thrilled to have this video! It contains some of the best episodes written for the series. I couldn't wait to pop this DVD into my player and enjoy!

I am a huge fan of this classic tv cop show of the 80's. Sgt. Rick Hunter was a tough, no-nonsense, type of cop that had the perfect partner in Dee Dee McCall. The chemistry between the two characters was great! During the second season, the show really begin to find its groove with some really great episodes. It would evolve into one of the most loved cop shows of its time. Some of my favorites from this season include: "Night of the Dragon," "Million Dollar Misunderstanding," "Rape & Revenge," "Fagin 1986," "Scrap Metal," & The Beautiful & the Dead." These episodes truly show the evolution of the series with the first three being more like the first season of the show focusing more on action, while the later three deal more with dramatic storytelling.

I own all of the previously released Anchor Bay sets and purchased the first Mill Creek set. The main thing that I am disappointed in is the lack of original music in these early season sets. I understand all that has been said about music costs and copyright laws, but it is still a shame that agreements could not have been reached for the fans even if the costs for the DVD's would have had to be more. As the show progressed, they used less mainstream music, so that will not be as much of an issue for the later seasons.

One thing of note about the second season Anchor Bay set is that the show's intro that is included is the exact same as the intro from season one. While it contains the same opening theme, the season two intro includes many new clips and credits. You would think that if we cannot have the original music from the episodes, we could at least have the correct opening sequence. I look forward to seeing this new Mill Creek set to see if the correct intros have been included. Anyway, Hunter Season 2 will still be a great buy for anyone who loves watching classic 80's tv. My hope is that Mill Creek will release all 7 seasons of the original series, the tv movies that were made in 1995 & 2002, as well as the 2003 revival series!

Hunter was not a great TV series but, compared to most of what's available now, it was terrific. Hunter, an honest but maverick cop from a criminal background, was adeptly played by former football star Fred Dryer (the only player in NFL history to score two safeties in one game). His partner Dee Dee McCall was played by beautiful and spunky Stepfanie Kramer. Together they broke every rule in the book but always got the bad guys, no matter how the odds were stacked against them. Hunter wasn't an accurate portrayal of police work, and it definitely wasn't politically correct, but it was a lot of fun. I'm glad that it's now available on DVD.

Hunter was one of the last successful crime show television series that did not try to be an accurate (or more accurate than normal)police procedural.

Former LA Rams football player Fred Dryer plays Rick Hunter, a tough-as-nails LA homicide detective partnered with DeeDee McCall, an undercover specialist.

The two were as Mutt and Jeff as you can get, and the plots and acting could be downright silly, but it was a fun and entertaining graduate of the Aaron Spelling school of crime drama, and as such, it has its own intrinsic value which is one judged properly by the common TV viewer, not highbrow TV critics who would recommend program that Hunter fans wouldn't watch it they were paid to do so.

It's nice to have this series available on DVD.

This is the best TV show I have ever seen. It was translated into Chinese about 10-20 years ago. A whole generation of people watched it everyday. It's one of the best memory we have in our mind. For most of the kids, Hunter and McCall are the biggest heroes. I have been waiting for so many years to rewatch it. Now, I have the chance to get the DVD. It's fatanstic!

this is from a Project Manager at
Mill Creek Entertainment

Good Morning The masters of the episodes that were provided to Mill Creek Entertainment by the producers are the syndicated versions. With regards to the music issues surrounding the Hunter television series, the majority of the programs contain the original music as it was broadcast. There are some episodes where the original songs were removed by the producer for reasons unidentified to Mill Creek.

Terry

The second season of Hunter is a much better edition than the first season. The writing is much more developed and the storylines are very diverse. Episodes themselves are distinctive and some deal with controversial subject matter. For so many episodes the dvd's are a great bargain. Also, this is a good show for the kids to watch, rather than the junk on tv/internet today....

This was one of the best police show ever with Fred Dryer and Stepfanie Kramer . What a duo Hunter with his no nonsense approach to thugs and pimps . Stepfanie was no slouch when it came to catching the bad guys ! Its too bad there aren't more shows like this one .We need more shows that will keep a person interested in them like Hunter . WORK"S FOR ME !!