Hunter (Season 2) DVD Review by Britt Gillette

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 2) DVD features a number of action-packed episodes including the season premiere "Case X" in which Dee Dee goes undercover as a prospective model when a modeling agent's clients start turning up dead. When Hunter and Dee Dee discover that the modeling agent is sending his clients to a photographer who specializes in filming porn, the two get closer to discovering the true identity of the murderer… Other notable episodes from Season 2 include "The Big Fall" in which Hunter and Dee Dee must discover the identity of the murderer who killed the star witness under their protection or else risk being pinned with the rap themselves, and "Death Machine" in which Hunter and Dee Dee must investigate a series of underworld murders ordered by a jewel smuggler who was ripped off for over two million dollars by a pair of petty burglars…

Below is a list of episodes included on the Hunter (Season 2) DVD:

Episode 21 (Case X) Air Date: 09-21-1985
Episode 22 (Night of the Dragons) Air Date: 09-28-1985
Episode 23 (The Biggest Man in Town) Air Date: 10-05-1985
Episode 24 (Rich Girl) Air Date: 10-19-1985
Episode 25 (Killer in a Halloween Mask) Air Date: 10-26-1985
Episode 26 (Rape and Revenge: Part 1) Air Date: 11-02-1985
Episode 27 (Rape and Revenge: Part 2) Air Date: 11-09-1985
Episode 28 (Million Dollar Misunderstanding) Air Date: 11-16-1985
Episode 29 (The Big Fall) Air Date: 11-23-1985
Episode 30 (Waiting for Mr. Wrong) Air Date: 12-07-1985
Episode 31 (Think Blue) Air Date: 12-14-1985
Episode 32 (Blow-up) Air Date: 01-04-1986
Episode 33 (War Zone) Air Date: 01-11-1986
Episode 34 (Burned) Air Date: 01-18-1986
Episode 35 (Scrap Metal) Air Date: 02-01-1986
Episode 36 (Fagin 1986) Air Date: 02-08-1986
Episode 37 (62 Hrs. of Terror) Air Date: 02-15-1986
Episode 38 (Death Machine) Air Date: 03-11-1986
Episode 39 (The Setup) Air Date: 03-25-1986
Episode 40 (The Beautiful & the Dead: Part 1) Air Date: 04-01-1986
Episode 41 (The Beautiful & the Dead: Part 2) Air Date: 04-08-1986
Episode 42 (The Return of Typhoon Thompson) Air Date: 05-06-1986
Episode 43 (Saturday Night Special) Air Date: 05-20-1986