Customer Reviews

Nero Wolfe: The Complete Classic Whodunit Series

5 star:		(114)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The "Nero Wolfe" TV series (2001-2002) is brilliant - casting, colors, sound and scripts. Producers Michael Jaffe, Timothy Hutton, and Howard Braunstein did a superb job bringing Rex Stout's stories to the screen. Maury Chaykin, as Nero Wolfe, and Timothy Hutton, as Archie Goodwin, along with an excellent supporting cast - Colin Fox, Bill Smitrovich, Conrad Dunn, Kari Matchett, Saul Rubinek, R.D. Reid, Fulvio Cesere, Trent McMullen, and Francie Swift to name a few - do an exceptional job portraying Stout's cherished characters.

The "Nero Wolfe" DVDs have some extras (though fans of the series would be happier with more). Included with the set are: "The Golden Spiders," the 2000 TV movie which led to the series, "The Making of Nero Wolfe," a short documentary which offers interviews with Timothy Hutton, Maury Chaykin, and others involved in the production of this marvelous series, and a "bonus" widescreen version of "The Silent Speaker." To include the widescreen "bonus" of "The Silent Speaker" as an extra is ironic since all of the the episodes were shot in widescreen and should have been reproduced as such on the DVDs. And to make the set truly "mega" it would have been most gratifying if the European versions of the episodes were included in the set.

The producers choose some of Rex Stout's favorite Nero Wolfe stories for adaptation to the screen. "The Doorbell Rang," directed by Timothy Hutton, is the premier episode of the series. Nero Wolfe takes on "the big fish" J. Edgar Hoover to earn the biggest fee of his career. With the able assistance of Archie Goodwin, his intrepid legman, Wolfe triumphs over the F.B.I., earns his client's admiration (Mrs. Bruner, played by Debra Monk: "Is there anything you can't do?"), and solves a murder for the cops along the way. "Death of a Doxy," "Champagne for One," and "The Mother Hunt" are a few more of the well know Nero Wolfe stories included in the series. It's a great sorrow to fans of both this magnificent series and Rex Stout's wonderful books that the show was abruptly canceled before some of the other favorites, such as "In The Best Families" could be adapted for television audiences.

Five Stars plus Five Stars to Mr. Jaffe and Mr. Hutton for giving Nero Wolfe fans a series worthy of Stout's tales.

This series is just a joy from beginning to end. The cast work together well (especially Hutton and Chaykin), the scripts are witty and engage your brain, the sets and locations are impeccably filmed and the DVD transfer is decent. I am normally very much a "watch once" person, but I found myself watching the same episodes over again just to enjoy the "eye-candy" and the subtle nuances of the interactions between the characters.

In case you don't know, an unusual feature of this series is that the same core actors appear in all the episodes, but some are playing different roles each episode. We found that just added to the fun, but some folks might find it irritating, so be aware. Also look out for the use of colour - the series uses specific shades of green, red, and yellow all the way through.

I don't understand why this complete edition is cheaper than either of the two separate series. Sure, the DVDs are in slim-line cases, but I actually prefer those. The video quality is identical to the more expensive versions (I already had series 1 so I compared the two). Given the many hours of pleasure you will get from it, this complete edition is a fabulous bargain.

If A&E ever release these as widescreen HD DVDs I will likely buy them over again.

The tragedy is that A&E canned the show after the second season, so there will be no more Nero Wolfe.

I have been a fan of Rex Stout for a long, long time. One reason I often dislike seeing books made into movies, or at least feel the movie pales when compared to the books, because often people see things differently. So when a beloved set of characters such as Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin is brought to film, I automatically cringe, because I am rarely pleased with the results. They tried in the late 70's with Thayer David playing Wolfe and Tom Mason as Archie. Excellent casting, but was a little late. Thayer David, a Sydney Greenstreet type actor, was perfect casting for Wolfe - the 1/7 of a ton genius detective that detects while never leaving him home. Only David was already ill, dying of cancer, so the weight loss and lacking of strength sadly hurt his performance. Later it was redone with William Conrad as Wolfe and too sexy Lee Horsely as Archie. Sorry, the series had Wolfe pacing when expounding to suspects and sitting on the corner of his desk. It made you wonder if the writers ever read Stout's books. So, when
Timothy Hutton stepped into Archie's shoes I had mixed reservations. I love Hutton, son of the brilliant Jim Hutton. While you see a lot of his daddy in him, he is definitely his own man, and cuts a smart style when fleshing out his roles.
So I thought, okay, he would make a good Archie. Then I wondered what about Wolfe? They cast Maury Chaykin. Brilliant! Wow, someone actually loved the books enough to follow them.

A&E is to be commended in letting Hutton run with the series for two seasons. They are to be CONDEMNED for canceling it because they deemed it too expensive to make. Shame on them! The series was a class act all the way. A delightful ensemble cast who changed roles episode to episode gave it a theatre feel.

The costuming is great, the acting divine and the stories - well, I actually KNEW what book they were based on! It was HEAVEN.

utterly adored Jim Hutton in his Ellery Queen series, so when his equally talented son Tim announced he was doing Nero Wolfe I had mixed emotions. Tim is talented; his works speaks of the quality of his career. But so many times when a series of books such as Rex Stout's beloved 1/7 of a ton detective and his wisecracking assistant Archie are put on film, devoted fans of the books cringe at the efforts. It's rare that a series will live up to what you have created in your minds. Very often, they snatch the title, characters names and then they are off-and-running writing their own teleplays. This happened with the Lee Horsley-William Conrad effort back in the early 80s. Dreadful! It little bore a resembled to Stout's books. Conrad's Wolfe actually paced and sat on the edge of his desk - as all fans know Wolfe would NEVER do!!! Off the bat, the rich period detail of this television version done for A&E (the idiots that cancelled it!), is evocative of the same leisurely attention to quality and detail that was done on the elder Hutton's Ellery Queen.

The cast is perfect, the setting of Wolfe's brownstone pulled from my imagination. Even more so, I really recognize the faithful following of the plots of the books!

It's a quality production from start to finish and A&E should hang its head in SHAME for canceling this gem.

The second season set includes:


Disc 1

1) Death of a Doxy
2) The Next Witness
3) Die like a Dog

Disc 2

1) Murder is Corny
2) Motherhunt
3) Poison a la Carte

Disc 3

1) Too Many Clients,
2) Before I Die,
3) Help Wanted - Male

Disc 4

1) The Silent Speaker
2) Cop Killer
3) Immune to Murder

Disc 5

1) The Golden Spiders
2) The Making of Nero Wolfe
3) Silent Speaker (Double Episode

So A&E I thank you for putting out these wonderful episodes so we Archie Addicts can enjoy them again. And go take a flying leap for canceling what is nirvana in detective land. Let's hope A&E one day wakes up and put Tim and the crew back to work!

Nero Wolfe -- the agrophobic, orchid-growing gourmet with a penchant for solving the most complicated puzzles of all (those involving the complex motivations and machinations of humans)-- may be the world's greatest (fictional) detective of the 20th century. Even so, he couldn't do it without the smooth and street smart Archie Goodwin. Reading these mysteries is always a treat, and purists may argue that the book will always be better than anything made for the big or small screen. However, I must differ, which is something considering I used to be a reporter and one of the subjects I'm certified to teach is secondary English. In other words, I'm the type people would expect to be one of the aforementioned purists.

Maury Chakin (who does an admirable job playing the eccentric and egocentric Nero Wolfe) and Timothy Hutton (who just about steals the show as the debonair and determined Archie Goodwin) so skillfully execute their respective roles that the viewer may feel that he or she has walked into one of Rex Stout's books.

The rhythm, the dialogue, and the narration are all faithful to the author's voice. The pity of this series is that it is limited to 20 of the 73 stories Stout penned using Wolfe and Goodwin. It's my understanding that the series didn't produce the revenue expected by the powers-that-be at A&E, which I attribute to the erratic scheduling rather than the quality of the episodes.

Not only do I highly recommend seeing this series, but also reading Stout's Nero Wolfe mysteries. If you do both, you will probably reach the same conclusions as I have: Stout's mysteries are intriguing, multilayered intellectual puzzles that are consistently entertaining and challenging, and the A&E series starring Hutton and Chaykin are the supreme screen adaptations of this skilled and underappreciated American writer. When I read a Nero Wolfe mystery that wasn't filmed by Hutton and Chaykin, I still visualize them saying and doing what Stout had Wolfe and Goodwin saying and doing.

Well, first I looked up all the episodes that were made, The Complete Classic Whodunit Series has em all, so you'd be better off buying this than buying season one and two, which is the same thing just more money due to seperate purchases. Dont't take my word look it up yourself, google it! As for the content, EXCELLENT, if you like dry, witty, or sarcastic humor, along with murder mysteries and the most appealing class of the early 1900's, this is definatly for you. each episode was WELL worth it.

In print, Nero Wolfe is an acquired taste. It takes the reader a couple of stories to get past Wolfe's arrogance, eccentricity, and general misanthropy and truly appreciate his intelligence, loyalty, and (slightly warped) sense of ethical obligation. On the screen, as portrayed by Maury Chaykin, you immediately appreciate the brilliant behemoth. The Archie Goodwin of the printed page is always engaging, and Timothy Hutton captures his charm perfectly.

The recurring characters of the repertory cast (Inspector Cramer, Perly Stebbins, Saul Panzer, Fred Durkin, Orrie Cather, Lon Cohen, and Fritz Brenner) are likewise portrayed with admirable faithfulness to the print characters. The dialog is lifted almost word-for-word from the pen of Rex Stout, and the stories adhere faithfully to the plotlines of the novels and novellas from which they are adapted.

In short, A&E's "Nero Wolfe" is the best mystery series ever shown on TV. Its cancellation was a travesty.

A&E's "Nero Wolfe" was one of the best TV series I saw in the last five or six years, and it's really too bad, as all the other reviewers have noted, that the channel didn't carry on with the show past 20 episodes. I eagerly grabbed all of the discs off Netflix when the series became available on DVD a couple of years back, but at that time the single-season box sets were too expensive for me to buy. Therefore, it's most satisfactory :) to have them all together in one place, along with the pilot movie. The costuming is superb - one gets struck all over again by how much more elegantly people dressed in the late 1940's and early 1950's than they tend to do today - and the relationship between Chaykin's Wolfe and Hutton's Goodwin is an unending joy to watch.

Anyone who is a fan of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe series will be thrilled to buy the two seasons of A&E's television series. The casting couldn't be more perfect. Maury Chaykin has absolutely captured Nero Wolfe's mannerisms and idiosyncrasies. Timothy Hutton, who plays Archie Goodwin, has excellently portrayed Nero Wolfe's fast talking assistant in all his mischievous charm. It is as if you are watching the books unfold word for word as you watch the friendly banter between Wolfe and Goodwin. The other characters are tastefully portrayed as well. It is always a crack up when Inspector Cramer comes barging in on the scene his mouth mangling his cigar.

Other than the fact that the series is accurate, they have also kept in mind the time period of the books giving them an opportunity for artistic creativity. The dialogue is fast and hot like the old classic movies. The sets are beautiful, colorful, and accurate for the time. The music is funky and fun keeping the scenes light hearted and hilarious. It is also unique and fascinating to see how they use the same actors and actresses to play various roles in each episode. Overall, the presentation of the episodes is full of classic American entertainment.

Seriously, I do not see how anyone who is a fan (or not)could have anything to say against this series. It is one of the best series A&E has put out there. However, there is only one disppointing thing. A&E only made TWO SEASONS! As you watch these fantastic episodes you will mourn over the fact that it was cancelled. I believed they cancelled it because no one seemed to be watching it, but it was hardly on the air long enough for people to hear about it let alone watch it. I believe A&E has totally screwed up on this one and I shall weep for the many episodes they could have made.

Anyway, I urge anyone who reads my review to buy this series. You will not be sorry.

We were fans when this series ran on TV. Now that we have the complete series to view again we are HUGE fans. Thanks for the opportunity to revisit truly entertaining and wonderfully produced programming.

My wife says to give you 10 stars, but you only count the first five.

For mystery fans, this is a good set to purchase. For Rex Stout readers, this is a MUST HAVE. And I so appreciate the great service I had in purchasing this item.
These colorful DVD's showcase the fun A&E series of Nero Wolfe mysteries. The cast is great, the mysteries fun and the period costumes and antique cars even "hooked" my husband.