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This is a semi-serious Western set in the late 1800's as the world is about to enter the modern age. Brisco County Jr. is a Harvard trained lawyer turned bounty hunter after a dastardly gang of bad guys killed his father, Brisco County Sr., a lawman. Each episode has Jr. clashing with a different not-so-bright gang member. The story lines are laced with puns everyone will appreciate. It's humorous but not silly. I saw it when it first aired on TV and was disappointed when it ended after a season and a bit. I believe it is one of the greatest under-rated Western series produced. For Sci-fi buffs, it also introduces a "golden orb" that bestows great strength to its possessor and is obviously from the future. It is crated up after discovery and sent to Washington. When asked to list the crate's contents, a miner says: " It's an Unearthed Foreign Object." The shipper says: "That's a mouthful," and instead writes "UFO" on the box. You get the type of humor you'll encounter with this series. I highly recommend the series and believe it is well worth acquiring.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Back in 1993, I remember seeing bits of pieces of the then-new Fox network’s two new shows: the X-Files and its lead-in, The Adventures of Brisco County Jr. It took a few years, but I later became a big fan of the X-files, but I never forgot the other show, even though it lasted only one season. I was aware it recently came out on DVD and wanted to revisit the show. The show calls itself a “sci-fi western,” but I found it a little short on the sci-fi and regard the older The Wild Wild West a much truer example of that strange and elusive genre. Nonetheless, Brisco County is a fun romp, though maybe better described as an adventure-comedy. I’m glad I purchased it and expect I’ll pull it out and watch it again from time-to-time. The show is set in a somewhat historically-revised old west of 1893 and follows Harvard-educated lawyer Brisco County Jr. as he’s hired by railroad barons to search for members of the infamous John Bly gang who killed his father, a famous marshal. Along the away, he encounters mysterious golden “orbs,” which may or may not be from the future or outer space, as well as a host of colorful characters who help or hinder his mission as he hunts down the gang. Between episodes featuring the orbs, there’s standard TV western fare where the roving bounty hunter helps somebody out, usually a kid or a babe in trouble. Brisco is played by Bruce Campbell, known from his early work as “Ash” in the Evil Dead” movies and a sci-fi favorite who has made a long career playing quirky characters. He often appears in the films of Director Sam Raimi and has shown up in television shows including Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and he appeared in a 1999 X-Files episode. Here, he mostly plays it straight and does an admirable job as your standard western hero facing not always standard western situations. The strongest aspect of Brisco County is the on-screen chemistry between Campbell as Brisco and Julius Carry as “Lord Bowler,” a large African American/Native American bounty hunter. The two start the series as rivals and eventually become partners. You can tell these two had a great time working together. Other recurring characters are well-cast as well, including Kelly Rutherford as Brisco’s saloon-singing love interest, and Christian Clemenson as Brisco’s handler, the improbably-named Socrates Poole. One of my favorites is way-over-the-top bad guy Pete Hutter played by John Pyper-Ferguson, who later showed up in three episodes of the X-Files and is now a regular on Brothers and Sisters. Like Owen Wilson’s cowboy character in Shaghai Noon, Pete’s dialogue shows he knows things about everything from psychology to existentialism which no 19th century desperado should know. It’s probably worth noting that behind the scenes, Brisco County has a connection to TV's Lost in the form of writer and executive producer Carlton Cuse, who serves in the same capacities on the much-darker newer show. Overall, The Adventures of Brisco County Jr. has great production values although a few of the special effects sequences are obviously models. As one of the special features points out, Brisco was one of the last shows filmed on sets used by some classic westerns of old. Other special features let the lead actors recount their experiences, track the instances of 20th century technology in the show’s storyline, and even speculate on what a second season of Brisco would have broughtRead full review
This was a great 'made-for-tv' series that most definitely should have had more exposure. A super cast of characters and a great story line made this the best sci-fi cowboy action adventure series that ever graced the tube.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
One of my favorite shows in the 80's. I thought I saw all the episodes but I was wrong. This set contains all 18 episodes of the one season sci-fi/western that was more cerebral and entertaining than most shows of its time all done tongue in cheek. For the first time they explained the origin of the orb and who John Bly was and that he did get his comeuppance. Quality was great visually with slight audio loss for a second at a time every few minutes but did not spoil the overall effect of the show. Over dub of the original two hour pilot by Carlton Cuse the creator and "The Chin" Bruce Campbell was thoroughly enjoyable and informative.. All in all a great buy and well worth the money.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
This was awesome tv series. Could stop watching it. So incredibly entertaining. Will watch it many times.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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