Product Description

Studio: Starz/sphe Release Date: 03/14/2006

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12632 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-01-11
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 3
• Formats: Box set, Color, DVD, Full Screen, Dolby, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 3
• Running time: 953 minutes

Amazon.com
Created by Frank Lupo (The A-Team), Hunter was one of producer Stephen J. Cannell's more tough-minded cop shows. Credit the character of LAPD Det. Sgt. Rick Hunter (former NFL player Fred Dryer). Supplying the yin to Hunter's yang was partner Sgt. Dee Dee McCall (Stepfanie Kramer). "Sometimes a soft approach can work," she explains in the season premiere ("Overnight Sensation"). Unfortunately, Capt. Devane (Charles Hallahan) pulls the plug on their partnership in the following episode ("Change Partners and Dance"). "You and Hunter have gotten too close," he tells a disappointed McCall. To add insult to injury, Hunter takes the separation in stride. She thought they were friends. As it turns out, Hunter feels the same way and there's more to the breakup than meets the eye.

Other third season developments revolve around romance. Granted, Ray Wise (Twin Peaks) may be a murder suspect, but the culinary-challenged McCall can't resist a man who knows his way around a kitchen ("Crime of Passion"). A few episodes later, Hunter falls for a fellow detective with a few dirty secrets ("From San Francisco with Love"). Fortunately, there will be happier times ahead (that Hunter does get around). Filling out the quartet is Arnold "Sporty" James (original SNL cast member Garrett Morris), their snappily dressed informant, who provides a welcome jolt of eccentricity. In "Love, Hate, and Sporty James," he takes a rare lead, demonstrating some decent dramatic chops.

Twenty-two episodes were produced for Hunter's third year, including the two-part finale ("Hot Pursuit"). Notable guests include Chaka Khan ("The Cradle Will Rock"), Star Trek: The Next Generation regulars Brent Spiner ("The Contract") and Marina Sirtis ("Down and Under"), and future TV superstars Anthony LaPaglia (the Australian-set "Down and Under") and a pompadour-sporting George Clooney ("Double Exposure"). To quote Hunter, "Works for me!" --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Customer Reviews

A classic 80's police drama...
Nominated for three Emmys, Hunter stands out as one of the premiere action police dramas of the 1980s. Just as Tom Selleck's on-camera charisma carried Magnum, P.I. through nine highly-rated seasons, Fred Dryer's knack for drawing an audience to his unique persona carried an otherwise lackluster series through much of the decade. The brainchild of Frank Lupo, creator of The A-Team (1982) and writer for such hit series as Battlestar Galactica (1978), Magnum, P.I. (1980), and Walker, Texas Ranger (1993), Hunter is built on the clichéd concept of a rogue cop who breaks the rules and takes justice into his own hands. Dryer does well in his role as the Clint Eastwood of the small screen, yet the show's writers give him little to work with in terms of a highly developed character and, as the seasons pass, the plot becomes quite formulaic. Nevertheless, Hunter is pure mind-numbing police chase entertainment with the added element of nostalgia for those who long for the 1980s when Hunter ruled along with The A-Team, Magnum, Miami Vice, and Knight Rider, and I for one loved those shows...!

Hunter follows the life of Los Angeles Police Department detective Sgt. Rick Hunter (Fred Dryer), a renegade cop whose family has ties to organized crime. This family tree, coupled with a penchant for getting his partners injured and a propensity to bend the rules, make Hunter an unpopular guy within the department. Only two officers will even agree to partner with him - Bernie Terwilliger (James Whitmore Jr.), who's a total incompetent, and Dee Dee McCall (Stepfanie Kramer), a stunning brunette with a rebellious streak of her own (and also disliked by her colleagues). Together, Hunter and McCall are a perfect fit as partners, breaking up crime rings, solving murders, and dealing with internal problems such as irate captains. In seasons one and two, Hunter's bosses are a thorn in his side. But both are soon replaced by Capt. Charles Devane (Charles Hallahan) who plays the role of Hunter's by-the-book, yet generally amiable authority figure for the remainder of the series. Meanwhile, original Saturday Night Live cast member Garrett Morris plays a brilliant recurrent role as police informant Arnold "Sporty" James... Overall, Hunter is a solid and highly entertaining action/adventure police drama series, one indispensable to 1980s TV aficionados...


The Hunter (Season 1) DVD features a number of action-packed episodes including the two-hour series premiere in which the audience first meets Sgt. Rick Hunter, a mobster's son turned cop who is generally disliked within the LAPD. In this first episode, Hunter tries to investigate a murder, but the case is given to Bernie Terwilliger (the first cop to arrive on the scene), and Hunter is told to back off. With a by-the-book Captain hot on his heels, Hunter partners with feisty Sgt. Dee Dee McCall, and the duo work together to set a trap for the perpetrator... Other notable episodes from Season 1 include "Pen Pals" in which Hunter takes the rap for a murder he did not commit, and Dee Dee and her new partner must track down the true culprit, and "Guilty" in which Hunter and Dee Dee disobey a direct order and go it alone to investigate the connection between two murders...

Below is a list of episodes included on the Hunter (Season 1) DVD:

Episode 1 (Pilot: Part 1)
Episode 2 (Pilot: Part 2)
Episode 3 (Hard Contract)
Episode 4 (The Hot Grounder)
Episode 5 (A Long Way from L.A.)
Episode 6 (Legacy)
Episode 7 (Flight on a Dead Pigeon)
Episode 8 (Pen Pals)
Episode 9 (Dead or Alive)
Episode 10 (High Bleacher Man)
Episode 11 (The Shooter)
Episode 12 (The Garbage Man)
Episode 13 (The Avenging Angel)
Episode 14 (The Snow Queen: Part 1)
Episode 15 (The Snow Queen: Part 2)
Episode 16 (The Beach Boy)
Episode 17 (Guilty)
Episode 18 (The Last Kill)
Episode 19 (Fire Man)
Episode 20 (Sniper)

The DVD Report

The Best Season of All
If you read the earlier review that stated that these are the syndicated versions, don't fret too much, because it's not exactly true. The only episode that's been cut is The Cradle Will Rock and that was due to music rights issues. The remaining episodes may have a few music changes, but otherwise are the real deal.

Season Three is the best of the seasons of Hunter. There's plenty of action for the action fans and the dialogue and chemistry between Hunter and McCall are smokin'!

One thing that old fans of the series may have forgotten is how funny this show is, and many of the funniest bits were improvised by Fred Dryer and Stepfanie Kramer. Check out the hilarious banter in From San Francisco with Love, and experience the depth of Hunter and McCall's feelings about their partnership in Change Partners and Dance.

Order this DVD and you won't be sorry. And when you're done, get season two! Episodes like The Big Fall, Rape and Revenge and Burned are top notch and won't disappoint.

Hard to tell I'm a big fan, huh?

Works for me..
Hunter was probably my favourite cop show growing up in the 80s. It had a much grittier edge than a lot of it's contemporaries, and the interplay between Hunter and McCall was superb. I think it's great that companies are releasing seasons of these old shows, (Knight rider, quantumn leap, Miami Vice etc) and I can't thank Anchor Bay enough for picking this one up. Occasionally looking back on old 80s shows you tend to remember them as being a lot better than they actually are, and can get a bit disappointed when nostalgia induces you to buy an entire season of an old series - but Hunter (along with Tour of Duty, and Miami Vice) is one of those that wil totally live up to how you recall it. I remember havin the wildest crush of Stephanie Kramer too, and sitting through these hugely enjoyable shows again, I totally remembered why.. She's hotter than hot, the action is great, the scripts are fast paced and massively ientertaining. As for the music substitutions (I didn't even know this till I read other reviews), what's to complain about? If companies have to replace some tunes to keep royalties down, then who cares. The main thing is, we get the show - all episodes from the first season - sit back, remenisce, and enjoy!