Simon & Simon DVDs

[J.J. Walters]

Have to say one thing while we're talking about Cozi TV... Fantasy Island does NOT hold up well today. I used to love that show when I was young. Now it seems so tacky, so slow, with bad acting, bad scripts and horrible sets. Interestingly, I think Hart to Hart DOES hold up well, although I can't really explain why! My wife thinks I'm crazy, but I still like that show.

I actually have an appreciation for the tacky scenes, bad acting and worse jokes in Fantasy Island and Love Boat. I agree that they don't hold up as well, but there's a comfort there that I appreciate...like a well aged Limburger. I'll have to revisit Hart to Hart. Haven't seen it since it's original run.

Hi Styles!

The Love Boat is a much better analogy (same production company, same era, same network, same night), as I still enjoy that one, too. I think the problem with Fantasy Island is that the drama and suspense aspect of the show just falls completely flat when viewed today. Most of them, anyway. The comedic stories hold up better. But Ricardo Montalban is great, no doubt. The Love Boat, for those that can get into it, is timeless! As you said, it's "comforting". It makes you feel good.

...And now, back to the DVD's of Simon & Simon, of which I still have none! I smell a Xmas present coming up.

Note: This Thursday's S&S episode (9/3) is "Design for Killing" (Season Two), which features our old Magnum friend Denny "Tarzan" Miller!

"A young super-model becomes infatuated with A.J. when Simon and Simon are hired to protect her new Fall fashions from being stolen by the competition."

Sounds like a cross between Magnum's "Three Minus Two" and "Mixed Doubles".

[Little Garwood]

I'm near the end of season seven and while I miss the presence of Tim Reid's Downtown Brown, season seven is quite good; I'd say that season five is the series' weakest thus far. I've never watched season eight, but it's just around the bend.

[Pahonu]

And Baywatch has been added, if that means anything to anybody.

Have to say I worked in production on the show from 93 to 95 and it means nothing to me even now!

[Styles Bitchley]

And Baywatch has been added, if that means anything to anybody.

Have to say I worked in production on the show from 93 to 95 and it means nothing to me even now!

Pam Anderson in a bathing suit in her prime means nothing to you, Pahonu??

Speaking on hot babes, the hottest I've seen in my recent re-watching of Simon and Simon is Lisa Eilbacher in Season 1 "Earth to Stacey." Mama mia!

[Pahonu]

And Baywatch has been added, if that means anything to anybody.

Have to say I worked in production on the show from 93 to 95 and it means nothing to me even now!

Pam Anderson in a bathing suit in her prime means nothing to you, Pahonu??

Speaking on hot babes, the hottest I've seen in my recent re-watching of Simon and Simon is Lisa Eilbacher in Season 1 "Earth to Stacey." Mama mia!

Don't get me wrong, Styles. The views at work were great, but the hours were long and tedious and the result was laughable! The pay was pretty good, though. Lots of extras in bikinis to fraternize with also helped.

[Little Garwood]

I highly recommend watching S&S season seven; the quality, perhaps owing to fewer episodes, is largely outstanding. I still have two more episodes to go and then I'll regale you all with my S7 top five. S7 features two of the series' darkest episodes: Sudden Storm and Nuevo Salvador.

[No need to know!]

And Baywatch has been added, if that means anything to anybody.

Have to say I worked in production on the show from 93 to 95 and it means nothing to me even now!

Pam Anderson in a bathing suit in her prime means nothing to you, Pahonu??

Speaking on hot babes, the hottest I've seen in my recent re-watching of Simon and Simon is Lisa Eilbacher in Season 1 "Earth to Stacey." Mama mia!

Lisa Eilbacher was very hot. Remember her from Beverly hills cop and some Charles Bronson movie, 10 to midnight. Don´t remember seeing her in Simon and Simon though. Any stills?

[Styles Bitchley]

Any stills?

The full episode is on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ft2tv-UaDFY

Check out the 42:10 mark where she's trying on different dresses.

[Little Garwood]

Finished season seven last week. However, while compiling my top five episodes I realized I didn't do such a list for season six (Season five was done way back in November of 2014), so here's season six's top five (as I see it):

1. Still Phil After All These Years- A.J. and Rick dig up a time capsule for Cecilia's high-school reunion - and discover evidence in a 40-year-old murder case. Nice use of flashbacks and casting of Stuart Whitman as Celia Simon's onetime high school love.

2. The Cop Who Came to Dinner- Downtown Brown is invited to stay with the Simons when he gets injured, but he forgets to tell them about the threat on his life. A fine comedic performance from Tim Reid and his annoyance at being held at A.J.'s house makes this episode a standout. Reid was such a great part of Simon & Simon.

3. The Rookie- An inexperienced policewoman suspects that her veteran partner (John Herd) is dealing drugs. Herd is really good in this and the last scene is dramatically effective in large part to his performance. It's no wonder he was asked back to reprise his role the following season.

4. Second Story Simons- The Simons get back stolen top-secret files from a Yugoslavian envoy, then are told to return them to the FBI so they can catch the thief with the evidence. The guys get to do lots of sneaking around while trying to outwit a nasty secret agent.

5. The Last Big Break- A surfer who supposedly drowned 20 years ago is alive - and a target for murder. I like these 1960s "Californieccentric" episodes. I also enjoy it whenever A.J. and Rick reveal their hero worship from their past.

[Styles Bitchley]

Finished season seven last week. However, while compiling my top five episodes I realized I didn't do such a list for season six (Season five was done way back in November of 2014), so here's season six's top five (as I see it):

1. Still Phil After All These Years- A.J. and Rick dig up a time capsule for Cecilia's high-school reunion - and discover evidence in a 40-year-old murder case. Nice use of flashbacks and casting of Stuart Whitman as Celia Simon's onetime high school love.

2. The Cop Who Came to Dinner- Downtown Brown is invited to stay with the Simons when he gets injured, but he forgets to tell them about the threat on his life. A fine comedic performance from Tim Reid and his annoyance at being held at A.J.'s house makes this episode a standout. Reid was such a great part of Simon & Simon.

3. The Rookie- An inexperienced policewoman suspects that her veteran partner (John Herd) is dealing drugs. Herd is really good in this and the last scene is dramatically effective in large part to his performance. It's no wonder he was asked back to reprise his role the following season.

4. Second Story Simons- The Simons get back stolen top-secret files from a Yugoslavian envoy, then are told to return them to the FBI so they can catch the thief with the evidence. The guys get to do lots of sneaking around while trying to outwit a nasty secret agent.

5. The Last Big Break- A surfer who supposedly drowned 20 years ago is alive - and a target for murder. I like these 1960s "Californieccentric" episodes. I also enjoy it whenever A.J. and Rick reveal their hero worship from their past.

Thanks for these mini reviews LG. Looking forward to season six!

[Little Garwood]

1. Nuevo Salvador- A Salvadoran death squad tries to get past the Simons in order to apprehend a relief worker helping refugees. Henry Darrow guest stars and is his usually excellent self. Nuevo Salvador is about as dark and gritty as Simon & Simon ever got. The ending is pretty damned intense. I would even say that this episode is Simon & Simon's "Did You See the Sunrise?" in terms of its emotional impact.

2. May the Road Rise Up- The Simons look for the real story behind their father's death, which forces them to face emotions long thought to be buried. Another highly emotional story but one with love at its core rather than brutality. We finally learn what happened to A.J. and Rick's father. The episode plays out like it could have been the series finale but thankfully we'd get another season, albeit a shortened 13-episode season. This is a story that I desperately wanted to see as a fan back when I watched the series regularly. I only saw the first four seasons back in the 1980s so everything from season five and on has been brand new to me.

3. Sudden Storm- Against Abby's direct orders, A.J. and Rick go after two likely suspects after Cecilia is raped. The guys' reaction to this horrific event and Mary Carver's excellent handling of it makes for another powerhouse episode. It easily could have gone over into embarrassing melodrama, but not here.

4. Tale of the Tiger- Rick is unwilling to accept that his old Army buddy is the head of a Vietnamese mob. Anytime Rick Simon's Vietnam days are featured is always worth watching. I love it when Gerald McRaney gets crazy!

5. Second Swell- A.J. reunites with his high-school sweetheart on a case when a killer from A.J.'s past comes back for revenge. As is the recurring theme for season seven, we get a "personal" case. This time it's A.J. whose high school flame is in trouble with the bad guys. A good story with a nice twist that gives us insight into A.J.'s character.

The sixteen episodes strengthens season seven and we get some classic episodes as a result of there not being so many average or lightweight stories. Season seven gets my highest recommendation.

[Styles Bitchley]

Thanks Garwood! Very happy things stay good in the later seasons. Interesting how you mention McRaney being awesome when he's fired up. He's an awesome actor with a great ability to play it serious with some comic deadpan. Funny how he seems to have just gone on to do that semi-successful sitcom and not more serious acting.

[Little Garwood]

Some more scattered S&S thoughts...

Lt. Abigail Marsh (Joan McMurtrey) fits in well alongside the Simon family. I was concerned that she would only succeed in making me remember how great Tim Reid-as-Downtown Brown was but McMurtrey is always excellent. She gets a spotlight episode in S7, "Little Boy Dead", and McMurtrey delivers a superb performance. She's also impressive in her debut; strong but never overbearing.

Season six has an episode where Rick experiences PTSD and it fits right in line with the kind of stuff MPI had done. Rick's Vietnam experiences are always highlights of the series. That episode as well as the return of Janet Fowler ("Lost Lady") just missed making my top five for the season.

The series is not without its lowdown stinkeroo episodes but I'll get to those after watching season eight and the 1995 reunion movie, which is included in the S5 DVD set.

[Little Garwood]

Jameson Parker wrote a glowing appreciation for his Simon & Simon co-star, Gerald McRaney:

http://www.readjamesonparker.com/archives/1922

It's awesome that the two are so close in real life, too.

[J.J. Walters]

Indeed. Great to see that those two are still good friends. It makes the show that much more enjoyable now.

Last week, on the same day, back-to-back, I saw the S&S chimp episode ("Burden of the Beast") on Cozi, which was great by the way, and the young Tom Selleck horror flick Daughters of Satan on Comet (written by a John Higgins!). I finished the S&S episode then landed on Comet which had just started DoS. Awful, awful movie, but it is sure is fun to watch. Great ending.