Customer Reviews

The Pretender - The Complete First Season

5 star:		(91)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Classified as a drama, "The Pretender" never took itself too seriously. Classified as a science fiction show, "The Pretender" never quite fit the mold. Classified as great television, "The Pretender" lives up to it's billing.

Michael T. Weiss plays Jarod. Taken as a young boy from his family, Jarod is trained by the shadow organization The Centre to be a Pretender. Basically, he plays out scenarios for his captors. Putting himself into the mind of the people he's forced to emulate.

The series begins with the adult Jarod having escaped the Centre. His mission is simple, help those who need help while avoiding being recaptured. All the while, Jarod flashes back to his Centre simulations by means of the extensive video archive they kept on him. At any given time, 3 to 4 actors portray Jarod as he comes of age in these archives.

He is tracked relentlessly by Miss Parker (Andrea Parker). She, along with tech whiz Broots (Jon Gries) and Jarod's Centre father-figure Sydney (Patrick Bauchau), are thwarted by Jarod week-in and week-out. But Parker is driven and focused, even if Sydney is less than enthusiastic about returning his charge to the Centre.

Missing in this first season are many of the great elements which would follow in seasons two through four. But the groundwork is laid here in excellent fashion. It starts here as more of a "Fugitive" type chase. To say much more would spoil the fun of discovering this excellent series.

There is a childlike glee in Weiss' early portrayal of Jarod. His discovery of Pez and ice cream for the first time is priceless. Parker is vicious, driven and sexy as can be right from the start. Broots could easily have been the prototype for "Alias" tech guy Marshall Flinkman. Bauchau gives Sydney a calm in the eye of the storm feel.

Available for the first time on DVD in the US. The series has been available in France for about two years now.

Jarod (Michael T. Weiss) can pretend to be anything; doctor, lawyer, tinker, tailor, solider, spy it doesn't matter. His superior intellect and chameleon like ability to inhabit any role he wants. What drives Jarod is the search for his past and wanting to escape his present. As a child Jarod was abducted by a mysterious organization called "The Centre" which uses people like Jarod for their own insidious means. Jarod escapes but is pursued by Sydney (Patrick Bauchau of "Carnivale") and Miss Parker (Andre Parker from "The Adventures of Brisco County Jr." and "ER"). While on the run Jarod helps those less fortunate than himself as he takes on new identities in every episode. Michael T. Weiss' droll performance and the multiple storylines keep "The Pretender" entertaining and involving.

Fox does another stellar job with a sharp transfer. The stereo sound comes across with nice clarity. Since this series was produced before many shows were done in the surround format, there's no opportunity to take advantage of the format. The economic decision to put this out on four dual sided dual layered discs may have brought the price down so that the Fox could include a featurette and commentary tracks but it also makes these discs highly more likely to become damaged with wear and tear over time. The discs are packed with two each in a single container facing each other. While both are slightly recessed in the slimline packaging, it's very likely that the discs will come into contact with each other and become scratched. I'd suggest purchasing 2 additional slimline cases so that you only have one disc in each slimline holder. It'll better protect the set. Given the care in the transfers, extras and commentary tracks, I'm disappointed and surprised that Fox would take such a short cut as it doesn't reduce the overall production cost all that much nor does it increase the price significantly either.

The three part "Making of" featurette is the highlight of the extras included here. Spread over four dual sided dual layered discs, the three part featurette focuses on the creation of the series, casting and performers that ultimately inhabited the roles adding and expanding on them. Featuring lots of interviews with the writers/producers/creators and many of the actors from the series, it's a nice trio of featurettes. My only complaint is that you can't watch them all as one featurette because they are spread out over all the discs. We also get the original TV spots advertising the show as part of the extras.

A number of episodes feature commentary tracks but the best is on the season finale two-part episode. "Dragon House" features creator/writer/producer Craig W. Van Sickle, Steven Long Mitchell, director Fred Keller and actor Jon Gries. We discover, for example, that actor Weiss was the only choice for the show because he could embody both the child-like wonder of the character and the darker elements that haunt him from his past.

A marvelous series that, despite it's dark tone, kept audiences guessing "The Pretender" looks marvelous on DVD and appears intact. I didn't notice any editing or music changes like I've seen with other popular series. The packaging is another matter entirely and, although it's likely it won't be changed for later seasons, it should be. While I didn't mind the slim line sets all that much to begin with I do mind the dual sided dual layered discs packaged this way. It increases the likelihood of damage to the set.

This series is a new twist on James Bond. Instead of battling the Russians or international terrorists, our secret agent man battles a private corporation who is eager to control others, and wants to begin by regaining control of his mind which they illegally had when he was a youth.

Michael T. Weiss plays Jarod (last name never given), a boy genius who was taken from his parents by the equally mysterious The Centre.

Father-figure Sydney (who had trained Jarod during his time at The Centre) and The Center employee Miss Parker (Catherine Parker) are hot on his trail---or so they think. Somehow, Jarod always manages to escape their clutches, and reminds them of their ultimate inability. Because it is done with playful teasing, he is not trying to be mean.

Weiss is wonderful to look at, and he conveys the right balance of intellect and naiviete which was needed to make this series the smash hit it became. Jarod only discovers wheel of fortune, easy cheese and silly putty as an adult, and has his first sexual encounter in episode 14 "Ranger Jarod" when he poses as a park ranger.

Jarod's childhood exploitation had also robed him of the pop culture experiences which are taken for granted by many `normal' people---including those whom he helps out. In addition to helping people, the series episodes regularly show Jarod's initial interactions with commercial products such as Silly Putty and Cheese Whiz. Weiss convincingly projects this delayed sense of discovery without himself actually appearing ignorant or dense.

This is one of the brilliant gems that came on the heels of the X-Files in the mid-nineties but never seemed to get the respect it deserved. Essentially about a man on the run, the concept of this series is deceptively straightforward. The fun of it all, however, is that you get to see a new situation every week as our hero, Jarod, takes on a new identity every week in his attempts to outwit his pursuers as well as help those he meets. Intensely plot driven, the excitement builds as Jarod is constantly fleeing his hunters but also needs them in order to solve the mystery of his missing family, as well as the purpose of his childhood abduction. Great entertainment all around.

Finally, The pretender has hit the DVD section. I have every episode copied on VHS but it is nice not to have to fast forward through commericals. The only down side is the double doing of the DVDs. They use both sides and the extras suck royaly. I am hoping that as the DVDs and the story progress, the extras will get better. I am personally hoping for a walk through Centre and even a map of Jarod's journeys. They used to have a lot on the website and the DVDs would be the perfect place for all that great knowledge.

Finally we see The Pretender on DVD. This is the series based on a boy named Jarod who was stolen from his family as a young child by The Centre. After he escapes as an adult he goes from one episode to another helping people and keeping one step ahead of The Centre's Miss Parker, Sydney and Broots.

This DVD has all the season 1 episodes, 2 featurettes (One making of behind the scenes which is done in three parts - very good documentary as well), audio commentary and subtitles in English and Spanish!


One disapointment - the discs have been burnt on both sides so they don't have a picture of the characters on them - I think it would have been better to have one sided burnt discs - but that's just me.

At first I didn't like that they had to squeeze all the episodes on 4 discs only, by using both sides. But then I came to appreciate how THIN the casing was, and I realized it was PERFECT! With almost all shows now ending up on DVD, it's nice to know The Pretender series will not take up that much space in my ever-growing DVD library shelf.

If I had only known they would release The Pretender on DVD, I wouldn't have taped every episode on VHS! Once I collect the whole series, I can get rid of a lot of VHS tapes!

For fans of the series, or those just discovering The Pretender for the first time, BUY this! It's the best "feel good, the bad guys get theirs"-TV show ever released!

This was one of my favorite shows. I followed the Pretender as it moved from station to station until it finally disappeared. I always wished I could have a copy of some of the episodes but finally gave up. I explained the premise of the show to another friend, and they found it had just been released. This was definitely one of the best gifts ever. I'm glad they finally released it. This show was a classic. While there was a certain level of predictability in each episode there were still enough twists and sub-plots to keep the show interesting. You don't just follow a detective/action hero, instead you follow a child searching for his place in life and experiencing new things along the way. This collection includes my favorite episode, "Better Part of Valor," which involves Jarod investigating the death of a firefighter in a warehouse fire. This show really is one of the greatest. I hope they will release the remaining episodes.

"The Fugitive" for the 90s. Michael T. Weiss is both a wonderful actor who had a unique forum in which to showcase his talents, and, let's face it, he's pretty darn easy on the eyes, too. But looks aren't nearly everything and this show never once relied on them to carry it. Every member of the stable cast was perfect for their role, the stories were always new and interesting and the subplots carried through the entire series kept you tuning in every week.

It's a shame the series was cancelled before we had a resolution, but at least the quality never dropped too badly in the end.

The DVDs are...okay. I don't see why they couldn't have given us eight disks instead of four double sided ones, and a few more extras would've been greatly welcome. Some cast interviews, bloopers, more featurettes, scene selections, but maybe they'll get around to that in season two.

The show gets five stars, the DVDs only four.

Imagine my surprise when I saw that this excellent TV show was coming to DVD. I was floored, and I immediately put it on my wishlist. However, I just couldn't wait to own it, so I have pre-order it- at least now, I know it will come and I won't forget to order later on :)

Anyway, I remember this show from a while back. I'm not sure exactly when it first aired, but I do remember many of the episodes with vivid detail. I must have been in high school when I first saw this show on NBC.

It's the story of a "child" prodigy who is able to "pretend" so vividly how another person would act, that he is able to become that person. Fast forward about 15 or so years, and we have a fully grown Jarod who has finally decided to escape from the institution which has been using him for the better part of his young life. Not only that, but it seems that said Institution was responsible to his parents deaths.

The show's charm is the main actor's ability to make his "pretending" to be different people believable. He is the somewhat naive hero who still believes in the goodness of people.

Another great memory of the show is his relationship with Miss Parker, an agent of the Institution(I forget if it had a name) chasing him. It's a "don't know if it will happen" love story- much of their relationship is played out through flashbacks, since Miss Parker is also the daughter of the Institution's Director, and she met Jarod when she was a young girl. Their present day interactions are limited, mostly because Jarod is so adept at evading her, but there are some very good episodes where they do get to interact a lot.

It's sad that I lost track of this show after it got cancelled on NBC (or was it CBS?) but I've heard that it moved to the Turner Network? I'm not sure how many seasons the show ended up having, but if they put all of them out on DVD, you can bet anything that I will be buying it.

Now, what's this I hear about a TV movie of the Pretender?