43 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic Entertainment, December 4, 2006
This review is from: Perry Mason - Season One, Vols. 1 & 2 (DVD)
Perry Mason was certainly the finest courtroom drama ever on television. It was entertainment that kept viewers glued to their seats, waiting for that moment when Perry would nail the killer on the witness stand and free his client.
Raymond Burr had some good roles in films, but will always be remembered for the tough defense attorney you wanted on your side in the toughest jam. Barbara Hale was his pretty secretary, Della Street, who kept Perry human and was in love with him. William Hopper was the dapper detective, Paul Drake. He had a playful and flirtatious relationship with Della but every viewer knew that secretly her heart belonged to Perry.
William Talman as D.A. Hamilton Burger was the perfectly cast guy you almost felt sorry for, as just when he was ready to gloat over his victory in court, Perry would spring his client by revealing the real killer, once again defeating poor old Burger. The relationship of these four people made the mood and mystery of the often gripping conclusion fun to watch. There has never been anything close to it in genre on television since. Its mix of drama, noir, and humor, and its truly likable characters, made for terrific viewing.
Earle Stanley Gardner's original creation of Perry Mason was a bit more two-fisted pulp type reading, but slowly grew into something resembling the show when it became so popular. Gardner's Perry Mason novels, begun decades before the show and continuing for decades more, are still fun to read. The same can be said of every single show in the series.
The first season, unlike many shows, hit its stride immediately, and remained top-notch television for many years. Like the novels, the title of every episode began with "The Case of-" and each one had some wonderful moments, both in and out of the courtroom. Only the first 19 episodes were included on the first release, with the final batch from the first season included on the second. Both are included in this boxed set. The episodes for season one, all 39 of them, beginning in the fall of 1957, are as follows:
THE CASE OF THE------- Restless Redhead -- Sleepwalker's Niece -- Nervous Accomplice -- Drowning Duck -- Sulky Girl -- Silent Partner -- Angry Mourner -- Crimson Kiss -- Vagabond Vixen -- Runaway Corpse -- Crooked Candle -- Negligent Nymph -- Moth-Eaten Mink -- Baited Hook -- Fan-Dancer's Horse -- Demure Defendant -- Sun Bather's Diary -- Cautious Coquette -- Haunted Husband -- Lonely Heiress -- Green-Eyed Sister -- Fugitive Nurse -- One-Eyed Witness -- Deadly Double -- Empty Tin -- Half-Wakened Wife -- Desperate Daughter -- Daring Decoy -- Hesitant Hostess -- Screaming Woman -- Fiery Fingers -- Substitute Face -- Long-Legged Models -- Gilded Lily -- Lazy Lover -- Prodigal Parent -- Black-Eyed Blonde -- Terrified Typist -- Rolling Bones
You can't beat this for entertainment, any more than Hamilton Burger could beat Perry Mason in court. There were great stories, often taking Perry out of the courtroom and his office, but always returning in those final moments of doom for the real murderer. This is one DVD release that everyone who loves great television will want to own. Just hearing that opening theme song will make you nostalgic. Don't pass this one up.
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28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
must have, December 28, 2006
This review is from: Perry Mason - Season One, Vols. 1 & 2 (DVD)
These earliest episodes of Perry Mason are more interesting than the final years of the show in several ways. First, many of the episodes find Perry and team solving cases outside of Los Angeles, so there's a lot of colorful location footage (not to mention an interesting variety of policemen and prosecutors who aren't in the Tragg/Burger mold). The time spent trying cases in the courtroom also seems to be significantly less, with Perry spending more time investigating than arguing with Hamilton Burger. Furthermore, each episode is more of a well-rounded teleplay instead of the formulaic treadmill the show often devolved to near the end of its run, with its predictable breakdown on the witness stand by the unlikeliest suspect.
Viewers need not worry that the characterizations and plots of these first season shows are undeveloped; in fact, it's amazing how quickly things came together. By the fifth episode, Raymond Burr has Perry Mason down pat and never looks back. And the rest of the cast also worked like a well oiled machine within the same time frame.
The quality of these dvds is absolutely remarkable - the clarity is so fine that you can actually see beads of sweat on the foreheads of the actors. Forget about the messy reruns on tv - these are first class reproductions all the way.
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Does'nt make dollars and sense !, October 4, 2008
This review is from: Perry Mason - Season One, Vols. 1 & 2 (DVD)
Why would one purchase Season 1 Volumes 1 and 2 for $80.00 when you can purchase them individually for about $25.00 tax included.
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