Law & Order has been a mainstay of NBC's lineup since it premiered in 1990. The show is divided in half, spending almost equal time focusing on cops who catch the criminals and the prosecutors that put them away. While the cast of the series has changed a lot over the years it's been on the air, the quality of the show hasn't. The show, or an actor on the show, has been nominated for an Emmy award every year since 1991, but has only won awards 4 times. In 1999 Dick Wolf created Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and then in 2001 the show received another spinoff when Law & Order: Criminal Intent premiered. All three shows have brought in high ratings for NBC.
Season 1 of Law & Order featured George Dzundza (Sgt. Max Greevey), Chris Noth (Det. Mike Logan), Dann Florek (Capt. Donald Cragen), Michael Moriarty (Executive ADA Benjamin Stone), Richard Brooks (ADA Paul Robinette) and Steven Hill (District Attorney Adam Schiff). I should also note that this is Universal's first season set of a TV series.
Video
Nearly 15 years old, I wasn't sure how the original materials would stand up on DVD. I've seen some other shows from the same time period, and they look spotty, washed out and generally poor quality. That's not the case with Law & Order. In fact, about the only thing that dates this is the early 90s hairstyles. A few scenes contain some dust and debris, but overall I've very impressed with the quality of the transfer. There are also a few one-time problems, like a line through the image in episode 1 (19:00 in), or the obvious stock footage of a surgery in episode 2. The pilot, "Everybody's Favorite Bagman," was shot on 16mm so it exhibits a lot more grain than the other episodes; I'm glad they switched to 35mm for the rest of the production. Chapters aren't placed directly after the opening of the show, but that's forgivable this time since it was Universal's first TV season set. Each disc contains an episode selection screen and a "Play All" button, although there aren't scene selection screens for the episodes.
Audio
I was also surprised with the quality of the audio on the DVD set. I was expecting a somewhat standard stereo mix, but this DVD contains a nice English Dolby Surround track. The dialog and music both sound great, and the surrounds are put to good use. I especially enjoyed the train sounds in episode 2, both the sound of the train passing by as well as the ambient sound of it clacking along the track. The DVD is subtitled in English, French and Spanish.
The Creation of Law & Order with Dick Wolf (14:15)
Dick Wolf, Joe Stern (co-executive producer) talk about the creation of the series. It's interesting to discover that no one wanted it on the air, except Brandon Tartikoff. Looking back, I'm sure NBC is quite happy they picked it up!
Law & Order Interactive Trailer (0:45)
Just a trailer for a game that's based on the show.
Summary
Wow, wow, wow! Look at all the amazing guest stars that appeared in the first season of this series! Almost every episode contains one guest star that will make you sit up, snap your fingers and point at the TV (or maybe it's just me). Here are the people I picked out: Daniel Benzali (Murder One, The Agency), Ron Rifkin (Alias), Lee Tergesen (Oz), John Spencer (The West Wing), Cynthia Nixon (Sex & The City), Jake Webber (American Gothic), William H. Macy (ER, Out of Order, Magnolia), Vanessa Williams (Soul Food), Aida Turturro (The Sopranos), Frances Conroy (Six Feet Under), Harold Perrineau Jr. (Oz), Camryn Manheim (The Practice), Christine Baranski (Cybill), Joe Lisi (Third Watch), James McDaniel (NYPD Blue), Anthony Heald (Boston Public) and Dominic Chianese (Sopranos). Special attention should be given to episode 14, "The Violence of Summer" which features Gil Bellows (Ally McBeal), Megan Gallagher (Millennium), Philip Seymour Hoffman (Red Dragon) and Samuel L. Jackson (too many to list). From what I can tell this was the first time Gil Bellows and Philip Seymour Hoffman appeared on screen, and since there was another Philip Hoffman in the same episode, this episode of Law & Order might have caused the now-famous Hoffman to include his middle name when he's credited. Wouldn't that be an interesting piece of trivia!
I've watched episodes of the series here and there, but I never really got into it; this DVD set has changed that. The quality of the audio and video surprised me, and the stories were riveting. I enjoy the split between the cops and the lawyers, and the problems that both sides face.
After a wait of almost a year and a half, Law & Order: Season 2 will be released in early May. With the Univeral/NBC joining almost complete, Universal has been announcing titles steadily.
