Customer Reviews

The Wild Wild West: The Complete Series

5 star:		(72)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

"The Wild Wild West" was a terrific show. CBS/Paramount has released the series in this entire season format. The show looks extremely good and the extras (only on season one except for the "bonus disc" but we'll get to that in a moment)are good as well. The big issue is the packaging. The box is certainly attractive look but it's basically the size of a board game box. When you open the inside the 27 discs are split into seasons 1 & 2 and 3 & 4 in what appears to be 2 cardboard "saddle bags" where they slide into it and are held in place with tiny cardboard inserts. The discs could be pretty easily scratched in this cheap packaging. Whoever designed this should be sent back to design 101--it's clever IF the quality of the materials were good but they're not--and it is a pain if you want to store this with some of your other DVD season sets. The saddle bags are sunk into a plastic older again making it look a bit like a board game (which is perhaps the purpose). There is a strip reprsenting the pix from the opening along the top. There is also a booklet that notes what episodes are on each disc.

The "bonus" disc has the two TV movies which should have been included as an extra on the fourth season box set (but was withheld so fans would have to double dip to get the two TV movies). Although the box claims they have been digitally restored, they look like simply transfers and while they don't necessarily look bad, they could have used the clean up given to the season sets. There are lots of white streaks and splotches that appear on the first TV movie and the openining 10 or 15 minutes for the 1980 sequel looks WORSE with the image a bit muddy and image quality darker than the 1979 TV movie. I was never a huge fan of the TV movies as they are more in line with "Support Your Local Sheriff" the movie starring James Garner. That's because both TV movies were written and directed by the same team who did that movie and "Support Your Local Gunfighter". It's nice to see both Robert Conrad and Ross Martin in their roles again but both movies while they have the humor that was characteristic of the series, certainly lack something. The producers must have gotten a bargain on stock footage for nuclear bombs exploding as it appears several times in both TV movies.

The first TV movie "The Wild Wild West Revisited" features Dr. Loveless' son (played by Paul Williams)planning to take over the world with replicas of the leaders of every major nation in the world. Both West and Gordon are called back retirement to prevent Loveless from using an atomic bomb (or something similar)that he has created planeted in the major nations of each country where he has replaced the leaders.

The second TV movie "More Wild Wild West" features the duo pulled out of retirement again to prevent Albert Paradine II (Jonathan Winters) from using his invisibility device from taking over the world.

Both films have nice supporting casts, some clever gags and nice interplay between Conrad and Martin but are a bit uninspired failing to capture the flavor of the original series at all.

I think it stinks that CBS/Paramount chose to release the TV movies only in the "The Complete Series" as they rightfully should have been included as part of the second, third or fourth season sets as an extra there. Regardless, my advice is to burn a copy when you're watching it on TV vs. ponying up additional cash for a package that while it looks nice isn't very sturdy.

If you haven't purchaed the other season sets this is an affordable one stop shop but the box itself is cumbersome and the materials a bit shoddy in my opinion (although it looks quite nice).

I do not like gimmicky packaging - especially when it is prone to damage the discs. This complete set comes in a rather large box - 11" x 8" x 2 ¾". The box itself is pretty heavy duty - reminds me a bit of the candy boxes people like to give. The top of the box has a bit of foam attached to the underside to cushion the contents. The bottom part of the box has a form fitted plastic insert that is frocked with sort of a fake velvet. There are two cavities, holding cardboard sleeves shaped to look either like gun holsters or saddle bags (kind of hard to tell which). There is also a strip of cardboard attached to the plastic insert - printed with the iconic end-of-scene graphics from the show. What disappoints me the most about this set, is the fact that the DVD discs are stacked in these holsters and are only inserted in cardboard sleeve half the size of the actual disc. I randomly pulled out a half-dozen of the discs and a couple of them had visible wear marks from the cardboard. Putting the discs back into their individual slots was somewhat challenging too. It sort of reminds me of the odd packaging that the first & second series of "Sliders" came in. I know a bunch of people complained about the use of friction to hold the discs in place and how it tended to scratch the DVDs. I think the same will happen here too. As soon as I can, I will be buying some slim dual disc DVD cases and transferring this set to them.

I don't know why these gimmick packaging are made - I recently bought the complete box set for the "Angel" series - which was 40 discs. That came in a great package - a cube (5 ¼" x 5 ¾" x 6") which fits on the shelf next to my regular DVD cases. Each season is in its own "book" with each disc safely in its own tray. This WWW box is way too big to fit on a shelf.

I have been a fan of this show for years. I too bought each season as it came out. Three weeks ago I purchased the box set because I wanted the movies. Unfortunatly my set was very deffective. The very first disc would only play for the first 20 minutes and then stopped. Upon checking the rest of the disc's I found all but 2 had mild to moderate scratching. The packaging is terrible. I had to return my set.

This show was pure fun. From the cliffhanger endings to each act , the great gadgets and disguises that Arty would use to Jim West's six shooters and fists. It was kind of a 'Western' version of Batman, now that I reflect on it. Great campy villains, wonderful (repetitive) plot lines and cute females for the boys to compete over. A lot of reviewers have commented on the packaging, but I usually take my DVDs out of the lavish packaging and place them in discgear holders, so I've not had any issues with disc damage. I bought this set for the shows, which take me back to my youth and sitting in the living room wondering how Jim and Arty could ever escape form this predicament - but they always did. As i re-watch these episodes I can't wipe the grin off my face at these wonderful classic TV episodes. For this price, the collection is a great buy. This is the TV I grew up on, and in a time where watching 24 hour news just depresses the hell out of me this collection offers respite and escape to a simpler time.

Overall, I still give this five stars because it's a lovely set to own. You get the entire original TV series, plus the two "reunion" movies which aren't including in the individual season sets and it all comes in a very handsome box. The box itself is sturdy and well made - but now we come to the downside which is the truly awful design of the internal packaging. Inside the box, nested in a moulded plastic tray covered in faux-suede material are two flimsy card boxes shaped like, I assume, saddle bags. Inside these are the 27 discs...but they're simply stuffed into a card concertina-like affair that has the discs crammed right next to each other so that they are free to rub against one another. The combination of raw card sleeve and this invariably lead to disc scratching; in my set five or six of the discs were scuffed and scratched but fortunately still playable. On top of that it's a royal pain trying to access the disc you want. My advice is to replace all the internal packing with some 8-disc Amaray style cases since the main box is exactly the right size to hold two standard size DVD cases side by side. Or the DVD's *will* end up being ruined.

I'm in agreement with the others about the packaging of this item. I was so excited to add this to my collection and I bought it new from another vendor for about $43 and thought it was a steal. Every single disc in the package was scuffed / marked and I had to return it. After reading the same issue in other reviews, I just accepted that I couldn't own this in my collection because the replacement would probably be the same. I returned it for a refund.

Like many others, I really loved this series and wanted the complete set including the movies. The problem is that the packaging is so bad you risk ending up with discs so badly scratched they won't play. I should have paid attention to the reviews. I've had to return twice after attempting to play the discs. At least eight discs in each set received wouldn't even load in three different DVD players. As much as I want this set I have to pass on purchasing again.

The factory packaging was TOTALLY INADIQUATE the disks were all scratched up. So far all that I have watched play okay. But there are a lot I haven't checked. If I had known how it was packed I would not have bought it. Not Amazon's fault it was the factory package.

If you're a fan of 60s action/adventure series then this series is a must! Conrad and Martin are perfect together as West and Gordon. It's great that the complete series is finally available but, if you can afford it, purchase the seasons individually. The packaging for this complete series set is the worst I've ever seen! The discs aren't even on a spindle or in seperate slots, they are lumped loosely together and can get scratched as they rub up against each other. Whoever designed this packaging should be fired!
The series gets 5 stars, the pacakging gets "0"!

Has there ever been a series that has been cancelled for the very same reason it remained a top-rated show? That's exactly what happened to "The Wild Wild West", as CBS bowed to pressure over the violence of the series...but when you watch "The Wild Wild West: The Complete Series", you may be surprised; the violence is as tongue-in-cheek as the plotlines, humor, and characterizations, and this is a series I'd certainly have no qualms letting kids see. Truthfully, the show is terrific!

Blending a 19th century setting with 20th century technology was not a new idea (film adaptations of Jules Verne and H.G. Wells have been doing it, for years), but series creator Michael Garrison hit upon a winning mix, by combining the long-popular Western genre with the spy craze, and adding an occasional dash of science fiction to spice things up. With just the right balance of action and humor (qualities other spy shows had trouble maintaining), and two stars with perfect chemistry (hunky Robert Conrad and urbane Ross Martin), "The Wild Wild West", even in weaker episodes, had consistently more adventure and entertainment value than any other series of it's time.

There are several real pleasures in owning this collection...Of course, the episodes are great fun, with each season special, in it's own way, from the atmospheric B&W plotlines of Season One (introducing the charmingly evil Dr. Miguelito Loveless, as personified by Michael Dunn), to Season Two's cliff-hanging color climaxes, to Season Three's more traditional approach (with Jim West's amazing horse highlighted, and the previously stoic agent occasionally breaking into laughter!), to Season Four's broader storylines (and temporary disappearance of Martin, after suffering a heart attack), before budget constraints forced the final episodes to occasionally rely on inserting action scenes from earlier seasons (considering how many series frequently air 'flashback' episodes to save money, it is remarkable that in four seasons of "The Wild Wild West", this is the only time any previous footage was ever used). Another pleasure is the opportunity to view both of the TV-Movie reunions, from 1979 and 1980 (and marvel at how little Conrad and Martin had aged!) While I wish Seasons Two through Four had the Robert Conrad introductions and other extra features the Season One episodes have, it's a minor quibble, as the collection does provide so much. You even get to see Conrad, Martin, and stunt man Red West on a daytime talk show from the late seventies, the infamous Conrad battery commercial ("Knock it off, I dare you!"), and to hear his own thoughts on the Will Smith movie version of the series.

I really can't say enough about how much pleasure "The Wild Wild West: The Complete Series" has provided...I find I love the series more today, than when it first aired, over forty years ago!

What a great collection!