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A mixture of fantasy, adventure and romance "Beauty
and the Beast" was never a top ten show but had a devoted
cult following that kept the show from completely sinking
from view during its three year run on CBS. When Catherine
Chandler (Linda Hamilton) is kidnapped, disfigured and left
for dead in New York's Central Park, Vincent (Ron Perlman)
a beast-like figure with a face that resembles a "Cats"
make up job gone awry rescues and cares for Catherine who
initially can't see his face because her eyes are bandaged.
He cares for her underneath the city an alternate world
where those that don't fit in either because are physically
different or psychologically scarred live. ***
Played out like a modern-day soap opera version of
Cocteau's classic film (or even the classic fairy tale that
provided inspiration for Cocteau), the show immediately
felt different from other series at the time. I have to
admit I was never a big fan of the show when it played on
TV (I went for the harder edged, less romantic stuff) I
have to admit that the show has its charms primarily in
the performances of the leads. I've always been a big fan
of Ron Perlman. He's one of our finest character actors
currently working and has always brought wit, intelligence
and pathos to every role he has played. As Vincent he makes
a character that might otherwise be seen as someone who
forgot to take off his make up after a Broadway show as
believable and, in the process, allows audiences to suspect
its disbelief with the flights of fancy that dominate this
series. Keeping Vincent and Catherine's romantic relationship
in the dark worked to the show's advantage-the producers
recognized (unlike, say the producers of "The X-Files")
that when romantic chemistry is easily spoiled when the
audience can examine it too closely. Although the show might
play as a bit goofy for fans of more realistic shows, the
audience for this DVD the original fans will enjoy its presentation
here. --- ***
The second season of the popular fantasy series doesn't
provide a radical departure from the first (for that see
the third where a major cast change occurs). Paracelsus
(Tony Jay) becomes a Phantom of the Opera type figure who
is hell bent on destroying Vincent's (Perlman) underground
world. There were plenty of guest stars this season including
Adrian Paul ("Highlander", "War of the Worlds") this season.
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Image & Sound:
We get what appears to be all the original second season
episodes uncut. Colors are as bold as the premise of the
show itself. Some episodes appear a tad bit darker and with
more noticeable film grain than later episodes but overall
the transfer looks quite good. Audio is representative of
80's TV-it is presented with a crisp clean mono soundtrack.
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