'The Fugitive' TV series on DVD

The long-awaited DVD debut of "The Fugitive" is finally here and will be in stores on Tuesday, along with a variety of other TV shows.

TV series

"The Fugitive: Season One, Volume One" (CBS/Paramount, 1963-64, b/w, four discs, $42.99). David Janssen stars in this terrific series — which was enormously popular during its four-year run — as Dr. Richard Kimble, an innocent man on the run after he is convicted of murdering his wife. (Three decades later, Harrison Ford starred in the movie version.)

Police Lt. Gerard (Barry Morse) is transporting Kimble to death row when a train crash frees him. Kimble spends the rest of the series moving around the country, taking different jobs and different names, and reluctantly becoming involved in the lives of other people. All the while he is also in search of the real killer, a one-armed man (Bill Raisch) — and he does catch up with him occasionally over the course of the series. Also over the show's four years, Lt. Gerard doggedly pursues Kimble, making it his mission to catch him.

Oddly, the "origin" episode for this series — in which we see the killing and the trial — isn't in the first episode. It comes in the form of flashbacks in Episode 14, "The Girl From Little Egypt."

Guests in these episodes include Robert Duvall, Vera Miles, Susan Oliver, Sandy Dennis, Leslie Nielsen. (William Conrad is the narrator.)

Extras: Full frame, 15 episodes

"The House of Elliott: Complete Collection" (Acorn, 1991-94, 12 discs, $119.99). This excellent series from the creators of "Upstairs, Downstairs" is set in London during the Roaring '20s and focuses on two sisters from a privileged family who find themselves destitute when their father unexpectedly dies of a heart attack and they learn he had frittered away the family fortune. So they get jobs, get some lessons in how the other half lives, and eventually work their way into the high-flying world of fashion in the flapper eras. Another fine British production with a great cast.

Extras: Full frame, 34 episodes, featurette, production notes, text filmographies, photo gallery

"Dynasty: The Second Season" (CBS/Paramount, 1981-82, six discs, $42.99). This season is of note for the arrival of Joan Collins as Alexis, the ex-wife of Blake (John Forsythe), which pits her against his current wife, Krystle (Linda Evans). Heather Locklear also joins the show as Krystle's niece, Sammy Jo. All of which gives this high-rolling soap opera some real juice.

Extras: Full frame, 22 episodes, featurette

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