The cult TV classic finally comes to DVD with some great special features and commentary by Brisco County, Jr. his-self.
Described as “just under over the top,” The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. covers…well, the adventures of our titular cowboy. Sometimes compared to The Wild Wild West, I would consider this a distant cousin of that show. Both deal with the old west and occasionally feature future technology in the 1890s, but Wild Wild West has more of a serious character in the form of Jim West whereas Brisco County, Jr. leans more towards the comedic. The show is spread out on 7 single sided discs with an 8th reserved for special features.
Episode 1: Pilot: Legendary sheriff Brisco County, Sr. (R. Lee Ermey) has captured the notorious Bly gang. A misplaced tie pin and a painted backdrop on a boulder allow the evil John Bly (Billy Drago) and his gang to escape and gun down Senior. The robber barons (one of which is played by Stuart Whitman) then hire Brisco County, Jr. (Bruce Campbell) to track down and recapture the John Bly and his gang.
Brisco is aided in his quest by rival bounty hunter Lord Bowler (Julius Carrey), nightclub singer Dixie Cousins (Kelly Rutherford), Professor Albert Wickwire (John Astin), the baron’s lawyer Socrates Poole (Christian Clemenson) and Comet the wonder horse. However, a strange otherworldly Unidentified Found Object in the shape of an orb is also found and seems to possess supernatural powers. Villainy is represented by Bly, Big Smith (M. C. Gainey), and Pete Hutter (John Pyper-Ferguson). Remember, don’t touch Pete’s piece.
Episode 2: Socrate’s Sister: Brisco captures Jack Randolph (William Russ), a member of Bly’s gang, but he claims to be a different Jack Randolph. Things are further complicated when his lawyer arrives and is none other than Iphigenia Poole (Judith Hoag) – Socrate’s sister.
Episode 3: The Orb Scholar: Brisco goes to the town of Poker Flats to connect with an old friend Donovan Joe (Pat Skipper) who turns out to be sheriff. However, things are not what they seem. Donovan’s oily deputy Puel (Robert Picardo) seems up to no good. There is also a certain Professor Ogden Coles (Brandon Maggert) who seems to know a lot about the orb.
Brisco County Jr. under pressure
Episode 4: No Man’s Land: Brisco is hot in pursuit of the Swill Brothers, but is injured in the pursuit. He’s found by Professor Wickwire and is taken to the nearest town, which is made up of only women. However, one of the Swills is a test driver of a armored vehicle and is on the way to meet up with them. Tracey Walter and Denise Crosby guest star.
Episode 5: Brisco in Jalisco: Brisco and Socrates head to Mexico to recover some stolen rifles. They find both Dixie Cousins and the thought dead Peter Hutter as well as the stolen guns.
Episode 6: Riverboat: Socrates looses money in a poker game with the riverboat gambler Brett Bones (Xander Berkeley), who was also part of Bly’s gang. So it’s up to Brisco, Bowler, and Socrates to put the “sting” on Bones and get the money back.
Episode 7: Pirates!: Piracy on the high plains. Blackbeard LaCutte (Andrew Divoff) was kicked out of the Caribbean so now he pirates the plains in his specially outfitted stagecoach. It’s up to Brisco to stop LaCutte and get the purloined medical supplies back to save the life of a young boy.
Episode 8: Senior Spirit: A robber baron’s son is kidnapped by John Bly and its up to Brisco to get him back. He gets some help from an unlikely source – the ghost of his father Brisco County, Sr. (R. Lee Ermey).
Episode 9: Brisco for the Defense: An old friend is accused of murder and Brisco is roped into being the lawyer for the defense.
Episode 10: Showdown: Brisco heads back to his old hometown to help the town’s sheriff, who has become the town drunk, and his daughter, Brisco’s old flame, to keep a corrupt businessman from taking over.
Episode 11: Deep in the Heart of Dixie: Dixie has a vital piece of evidence and the villainous Winston Smiles (David Warner) is out to kill her over it.
Episode 12: Crystal Hawks: Brisco is suspected of murder and every bounty hunter in the land is after him, including Crystal Hawks (Sheena Easton). Also Big Smith (M. C. Gainey) has seemingly retuned from the dead and has information about Brisco’s destiny with the orb.
Episode 13: Steel Horses: One of Bly’s gang steels some experimental motored cycles and plans to use them to intercept a wagon carrying the orb.
Dixie Cousins
Episode 14: Mail Order Brides: The Swill brothers have stolen the dowries of three mail order brides and have also set their sights on a prize bull from Spain that they want to kidnap for ransom.
Episode 15: A.K.A. Kansas: Bly gang member and Dixie’s ex-husband Doc McCoy (Christopher Rich) is up to no good and Brisco disguises himself as a notorious outlaw to get into his gang.
Episode 16: Bounty Hunter’s Convention: Shades of Ten Little Indians when a group of bounty hunters are invited to a hotel on an island and begin to be killed one by one. Ian Ogilvy guest stars.
Episode 17: Fountain of Youth: Professor Cole’s daughter needs help in locating the Professor, but all is not what it appears.
Episode 18: Hard Rock: In the town of Hard Rock, an old flame of Bowler’s is having trouble with her café (get it, Hard Rock Café). Seems a fellow named Hondo (Nicholas Surovy) is making the residents pay protection money and Bowler’s gal refuses to pay. Sheriff Aaron Viva (Gary Hudson) bears more than a passing resemblance to a certain King of Rock n’ Roll. Whip Morgan (Jeff Phillips) is also in town seeking revenge against Hondo.
Episode 19: The Brooklyn Dodgers: Brisco and Bowler need to escort two orphans to San Francisco so that the orphans can claim their inheritance.
Episode 20: Bye Bly: Brisco has an encounter with a naked woman in a hotel room in San Francisco. Get your minds out of the gutter, it’s easier to time travel without any clothes on. She’s from the future and here to assist him in his final encounter with Bly.
Episode 21: Ned Zed: A father reads his son a Brisco County, Jr. dime novel for a bedtime story. It’s about Brisco’s encounter with Ned Zed (Casey Siemaszko), a notorious bank robber.
Episode 22: Stagecoach: Brisco transports a spy down Mexico way to make a prisoner exchange but one of the other passengers on the stage is an assassin bent on killing the prisoner. Timothy Leary and Debra Jo Rupp guest star.
Don't touch Pete's piece
Episode 23: Wild Card: Brisco, Bowler, and Whip Morgan help Dixie and Dolly Cousins get a casino back from some New York Italian mafia types.
Episode 24: And Baby Makes Three: Brisco, Dolly, Whip and Bowler have to protect a baby who is the future Emperor of China.
Episode 25: Bad Luck Betty: Socrates is kidnapped during his birthday party and they follow the trail back to Midnightville. A weird town where the dead walk the earth and the boarding house looks an awful like the Bates Motel (it is, they used the set on the back lot).
Episode 26-27: High Treason, Pt.1 & 2: Brisco and Bowler and accused of high treason. They have to clear their good names, but being executed by firing squad puts the damper on those plans. Terry Bradshaw guest stars.
Brisco County, Jr. has developed the reputation of being a cult show. It was truly a genre bending show. It has equal parts western, science-fiction, comedy, drama, romance, and much more. Bruce “The Chin” Campbell infuses Brisco with his own genre presence and makes Brisco a very likeable character. He’s given ample support by a Julius Carry and Christian Clemenson.
They formed the backbone of the show, along with Comet the wonder horse. There was also occasional support from John Astin, who also uses his genre gravitas to great effect. There were several love interests for Brisco, but the producers eventually settled on Kelly Rutherford as Dolly Cousins and both she and Campbell have a great chemistry together. John Pyper-Ferguson’s Pete Hutter was supposed to be a one shot only character, hence his death in the pilot.
However, he was so well received, he would return like a cartoon character after each supposed death (reports of his death are greatly exaggerated). Jeff Phillips as Whip Morgan was added to the mix as a recurring character, but the show was cancelled before he officially joined the cast. As to villainy, Billy Drago is extremely creepy with his unblinking, shark eyes and has a certain androgynous quality.
The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. is presented in fullscreen as it was originally shown on television. Special features include a commentary on the pilot episode by producer/creator Carlton Cuse and star Bruce Campbell on disc 1. The 8th disc has several video based special features.
They include the 8 minute “Brisco’s Book of Coming Things” which is all about the future items in the show and narrated by Campbell. The next is the 30 minute “History of Brisco County.” It has interviews with creator/producer Carlton Cuse, Bruce Campbell, Julius Carry, Christian Clemenson, and Kelly Rutherford. Next up is the 11 minute “Tools of the Trade” featurette.
John Bly and Big Smith
It has small segments about Horses, Guns, Charm, Season 2, and the Orb. Next is the 7 minute “Readings from the Book of Bruce” which has Campbell reading from the Brisco chapter of his autobiography If Chins Could Kill. The last but not least featurette is the 42 minute “Brisco County Writer’s Room: Roundtable with Key Series Creative Personnel.” It included Carlton Cuse, John Wirth, Brad Kern, Tom Chehak, David Simkins, and John McNamara. The set also includes a booklet with liner notes by Bruce Campbell.
Brisco fans your wait is over and WB has laid on some nice features for you to wrap your teeth around. The Coming Thing has now arrived.
The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. - The Complete Series is now available at Amazon . As of yet, there is not a release date for the UK. Visit the DVD database for more information.
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