Some old TV series are getting new life on DVD

0 Comments | Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Jun 10, 2004 | by Chris Hicks Deseret Morning News

Terence Knox (primarily known for tough-guy roles in TV and straight-to-video movies) heads the cast as a no-nonsense sergeant (with a soft side; he's trying to learn the harmonica). When he's not leading the troops, he helps rookies (of various ethnic "types" who bait each other) and fresh-faced lieutenants contend with the enemy. The characters are fleshed out here and there, and all the wartime cliches are intact, but the emphasis here is clearly on things that go boom. Somewhat entertaining, but "China Beach" it ain't.

Extras: Full frame, 20 episodes, trailers, chapters.

-- "The A-Team: Season One" (Universal, 1983, not rated, $59.95, four discs). This one's a bit of a head-scratcher. Who decides which shows go to DVD, anyway? On the other hand, maybe it's a Father's Day item. After all, believe it or not, "The A-Team" was in the top 10 shows of the year for its first three seasons!

Cigar-chomping George Peppard, who often dons outrageous costumes and makeup, and scowling, gold-chain-wearing Mr. T star in this action-packed, if brainless, show about free-lance soldiers of fortune who take on impossible jobs, often in exotic foreign locales, and right wrongs. Which usually entails high-speed chases and blowing things up.

Here they take on a biker gang, a renegade SWAT team, Vegas mobsters, New York racketeers, a hijacked airliner -- even some villainous mountain men!

Extras: Full frame, 14 episodes, subtitle options (English, French, Spanish), chapters.

E-mail: hicks@desnews.com