"You couldn't stand it, could you? Being away when you heard what happened. All I'm saying is I got more faith in your ability with a fly rod than I do with your ability to take a week's vacation like any other normal person." - Inspector Steve Keller (Michael Douglas) when his partner, Lt. Mike Stone (Karl Malden), cuts his vacation short to investigate a series of murders
The Streets of San Francisco: Season 1, Volume 2 DVD Review
By Jude Clement
Detective Lieutenant Mike Stone (Karl Malden) and Inspector Steve Keller (Michael Douglas) of the San Francisco Police Department's Bureau of Inspectors are back to keep the city by the bay safe in The Streets of San Francisco: Season 1, Volume 2, the second half of the 1972-73 season of this ABC crime drama.
As with the first half of the season, Malden and Douglas make an interesting pair-the grizzled vet and his young charge. Once again, though, they are saddled by pedestrian scripts and one dimensional characters.
They are supported, however, by a wide variety of familiar faces. In "Deathwatch," a fisherman played by Nicholas Colasanto (Cheers) runs afoul of a human smuggling ring which is run by Victor French (Little House on the Prairie). In "Act of Duty," Brenda Vaccaro (Midnight Cowboy) is an undercover cop who wants attempts to solve the rape and murder of a fellow officer. In "Tail of the Serpent," a street gang-including Brad Davis (Midnight Express)-takes Stone hostage after shooting a cop. In "The House on Hyde Street," Lew Ayres (All Quiet on the Western Front) is a recluse who is accused of murdering a neighborhood child. None of these episodes add up to much, though. The plotlines barely register, coming across as bland b-stories.
Other actors you'll probably recognize include James B. Sikking (Hill Street Blues), singer Claudine Longet, Jack Albertson (Chico and the Man), John Saxon (Dynasty), Joseph Cotten (Citizen Kane), Jamie Farr (M*A*S*H), Richard Bull (Little House on the Prairie), Richard Anderson (The Bionic Woman), Shirley Knight (Maggie Winters), Shelley Morrison (Will & Grace), Joyce Van Patten (The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis), Clint Howard (Gentle Ben), Dick Sargent (Bewitched), Jim Davis (Dallas), Leslie Nielsen (Police Squad!), and Dean Stockwell (Quantum Leap).
The one saving grace is the location work within the city of San Francisco. The series' locales exhibit much local color, even if it doesn't quite carry over into the plots themselves.
The thirteen episodes that make up Season 1, Volume 2 are divided onto four discs. The discs are housed in two slim, clear plastic keepcases, both of which hold two discs apiece. The fronts of the cases are dominated by a black-and-white photo of the San Francisco skyline while smaller production and publicity stills line the top edges. The backs of the cases include titles and brief synopses for each episode along with the original airdates. The interiors of the cases include another large photo of the city. Malden and Douglas are spotlighted on the actual discs. The keepcases slide into a cardboard outer sleeve.
The full-motion DVD menus, which mimic the series' opening credits, are easy to use. Viewers can play all of the disc's episodes or choose an individual one. The episodes are divided into chapters, but there are no scene selection menus.
