Customer Reviews

Perry Mason - Season One, Vols. 1 & 2

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

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.

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.

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.

Have enjoyed the DVDs a great deal, can't wait until the other seasons come out.

It is unbelievable that TV series made half century ago can still be watchable. Scripts have originality and are rarely predictable. Perry Mason, in the old legal system, is struggling to protect his innocent clients, while being an officer of the court. His sense of justice is very agreeable and I suppose that the era of the TV series, lawyers must be respected far more than nowadays. Court room scenes are very exciting, as Perry Mason always withdraw a confession from the real murderer in the court room. Raymond Burr is still young in the TV series, but reliably performs our hero Perry Mason,with his good voice. Barara Hale, William Hopper, William Tilman, and Ray Collins are all marvelous, and very fit to their roles.
It is very regrettable that sponsors' products appear with the credits at each end of many episodes, as the episodes are of high quality and do not deserve such degrading treatment.
I look forward to watching all the other episodes.

Five stars for this classic series, but again, I won't buy in.

One dud star for CBS/Paramount and (others).

More multi-volume, overblown pricing from Paramount. Buying any complete season (via split seasons) generally will run at least $50.00...for something that should run in the mid thirties (as other complete seasons "generally" do). In this case (as of this review), a whopping overpriced $80.00.

CBS/Paramount will keep releasing the split season nonsense as long as there are buyers (albeit emotionally based buying based on fear of not getting or having, or "just gotta have")...guaranteed. It's a venerable cash cow for them; from a business standpoint, they'd be insane to stop releasing split seasons (they can't stop pinching themselves with joy on all the lemmings going for the bait).

Guaranteed Paramount (and others) will/would stop the nonsense if the cash register doesn't ring...it's all numbers.

Make a statement with the pocketbook/wallet in conjunction with "we will only buy complete seasons." It's what's called market demand.

As the classic Barnum and Baily statement goes..."A sucker is born every minute." How appopro...and Paramount (and others) are laughing all the way to the bank.

this is a must for anyone who enjoyed this long-ago classic from the golden age of tv. well written, crisp,keeps you guessing.can't wait for future releases.

I remember watching Perry Mason when I was six or seven until the show was cancelled many years later. I remember then being captivated by all aspects of the show: the Peter Gunn-like music, the consummate acting, the entertaining plot twists and the stirring courtroom drama. What made this series all the more amazing was that you knew at the beginning of each episode that the defendant was not guilty of the crime charged, but that someone else, who was tangentially related to the plot, was guilty of the crime and would confess in dramatic fashion. Despite the same outcome in each episode, one was entertained every week, because the process of ascertaining the criminal was always fascinating, the result of Mason's clever mind and relentless cross examination.

But would the series withstand the critical and jaded eye of the adult, or would it seem mediocre and dated? How many of you remember enjoying a TV program or movie as a child, only to be severely disappointed when you saw the program or movie as an adult? This was my greatest concern when I saw the series was available on DVD; in fact, I almost decided not to order it. However, because of all of the positive reviews, I was persuaded to order this first season, and I can say that I'm hooked again, just as I was as a child.

This is TV drama at its best, with provacative screenplays and excellent acting, especially by Raymond Burr, Mason himself. I look forward to the second season and the release of the entire series.

Excellent video quality. Clean presentation of the shows in chronological order. Every Perry Mason fan should at least try out one of these DVDs.

Perry plays tricks against the Court in some of the early episodes. He settles down somewhat later on, saving his cleverness for the police. Perry's logic, clarity, and acerbic insight when defending a client comes through as fun to watch. Yet, with all his ability as a major lawyer, he still has to pull out of deep trouble in every show.

"What are You doing here, Tragg?" ... "Oh, hello Perry. I was just in the neighborhood and thought I'd drop by ... and arrest your client for MURDER."

I watched many of the shows when they were on television. It is totally cool to be able to watch them again at my convenience.