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Highlander: The Series | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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here's no denying that Highlander reached its stride in season four, and season five proved to be another solid year for the show, with one very controversial episode that ended the year. There was more growth for the major and recurring characters and plenty of good villains for Duncan to kill. He also managed to knock off a few more friends along the way, too, leading to lots of angst for our hero. The Highlander: The Series season-five set features eight DVDs and one CD-ROM chock-full of extras, extensive cast and crew interviews and alternate versions of a couple of the episodes.
As in previous seasons, humorous episodes were mixed with the serious stuff. The lighter episodes always worked best when Amanda (Gracen) or Hugh Fitzcairn (Roger Daltrey) was on screen. As for the darker stuff, the two best episodes of the entire series explored Methos' past, taking the character to powerful depths with "Comes a Horseman" and "Revelations 6:8." In that rich two-episode story, we discover that Methos was one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. In the most gut-wrenching scene ever filmed on Highlander, Methos explains to Duncan the depths of his past evil acts. It's a moment that changes not only Duncan's view of Methos, but ours as well.
Other exceptional episodes include "Glory Days," "The Valkyrie," "Forgive Us Our Trespasses," and "The Stone of Scone." However, the episode that concludes the season is one many Richie fans wish didn't exist. In "Archangel," Duncan believes he is being haunted by a demon who takes on the face of those he killed in the past. In a moment of confusion, Duncan takes his best friend's head. This controversial episode sets up the action for the sixth and final season.
The DVD foldout-style box set is as beautifully produced as the sets from the previous seasons. However, a new format has two DVDs on each panel, making for a thinner box than previous sets. As for the contents, the excellent "making of" features for each episode offer tons of behind-the-scenes info. There are also audio and video commentaries, outtakes, bloopers, the Watcher Chronicles, clips of duels and Duncan's romances, the Quickenings, a photo gallery, scripts, trivia, a Highlander convention documentary and another documentary called Peter Wingfield: The Man Who Became Methos.
Old friends stop by for a visit
Once again, Anchor Bay Entertainment offers an excellent DVD set for Highlander: The Series. While some collectors may not appreciate the thinner packaging and its new format, the five-panel set is much more manageable and takes up less space on a shelf than previous Highlander sets. Other than that, the exquisite-looking set has plenty of content to offer viewers who can't get enough of their favorite immortal. Most notably, the cast and crew interviews explore what went right and, even more interestingly, what when wrong with specific episodes.
While Highlander aficionados will enjoy seeing commentary by the actors, much of the insight into everything from casting to set design to the direction the show took comes from the producers, writers and directors. It's fascinating to see those involved admit that perhaps a different actor might have worked better in a certain role or that a script didn't quite come to life the way they had hoped. Fascinating points include the discussion of the death of Richie and how that decision was made, along with the producer's plans for a dark alternate season six that would have taken place 30 years in the future.
Certainly the MVP on this DVD set is associate creative consultant Gillian Horvath, who continually provides a depth of information about the behind-the-scenes workings of the show. The only real complaint about the content has to be directed at the audio and video commentary of Peter Ellis on "Manhunt" and "Dramatic License." While his comments are interesting, his delivery is very flat, and the commentary would have come off better if another of the cast or crew had joined him.
A couple of unusual features are the convention and Methos documentaries, which take a look at the show in very different ways. The convention documentary delves into the fans and how they relate to the actors and the show, while Peter Wingfield provides a very poetic look at his 5,000-year-old character. Along with all the other wonderful features on this DVD collection, it all adds up to a great look back at a very special series.
It's been six long years since Highlander was on the air. Somehow watching the cast and crew talk about one of my favorite shows is like old friends stopping by for a visit. It's also good to be reminded that entertainers like Roger Daltrey, Eric McCormack (Will and Grace), Ron Perlman, Sandra Bernhard and Nicholas Lea provided their talents to this little show, which will have a long, long life in our hearts and minds. — Kathie
Also in this issue: Primer and Quantum Leap Season One DVD
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