Quincy, M.E.: Seasons 1 & 2

Before forensic pathology became a network TV staple with shows such as Crossing Jordan and the innumerable permutations of CSI, Jack Klugman was Quincy, an aggressive Los Angeles medical examiner who used his skills in the lab and as a sleuth to overcome official resistance (i.e. cops who considered cases closed, and a penny-pinching chief administrator) and track down killers against long odds. Quincy, M.E., which ran on NBC for seven years (1976-83), began as one of the rotating 90-minute segments of the Sunday Mystery Movie in the fall of 1976, but by the spring it had morphed into an hour-long weekly series. This extra-less three-disc set from the Emmy-nominated show includes four long episodes broadcast in the anthology and the first season of weekly programs. Though Quincy, like Lieutenant Columbo, had no first name--and the series never achieved the quality of the classic Peter Falk show--and Klugman's stentorian delivery is occasionally wearying (incidentally, one of the best gags on the short-lived The Tony Randall Show was Randall--Klugman's roommate in The Odd Couple--refusing to let his young son watch Quincy, M.E. because the lead scared him by shouting all the time), overall the series remains reasonably diverting, with fairly clever plots (especially in the six longer shows), slick Universal production values, and a good cast. Recommended. (F. Swietek)