When you think of nighttime soap operas, you think of Aaron Spelling. Mention disaster movies and most of us will come up with the name Irwin Allen. For action/adventure series, there is a toss-up. Either the name Donald Bellisario will come to mind, or more than likely it will be Stephen J. Cannell. As one of the most prolific writer/producer/directors in action show history, Cannell has also been one of the most innovative in his field. I grew up watching most of the shows he was involved with, including “Toma”, “Rockford Files”, and “Barretta.” Occasionally he even strayed off the beaten path and gave us shows like “21 Jump Street”, “The A-Team”, and “Greatest American Hero.” He was also responsible for shows like “Wiseguy”, and “Hardcastle and McCormick” He just kept chugging into the 90’s with “The Commish” and “Silk Stalkings.” Now, I can’t claim to have watched ever show he had a hand in, but I’d say I’m at least familiar with most. One of the shows I watched religiously however was “Baa Baa Black Sheep.”

There were so many reasons I tuned in every week to watch “Baa Baa Black Sheep.” The main one being that I really enjoy a good war based TV series. Don’t really know why, but I am also fascinated by all of the old “World at War” series. As against the idea of war as I am (especially in situations like the current illegitimate one we’re waging overseas), I like seeing films and shows about them.

Of course, the other reason I tuned in was to see the great Robert Conrad in the role of Major Gregory “Pappy” Boyington. I’ve been a fan of Conrad since his days in “The Wild, Wild West.” He just cuts a great figure as a hero. Just the right amount of humor mixed with the ability to kick butts. “Baa Baa Black Sheep” was great in the fact that it depicted some real events that occurred during the real Black Sheep Squadron’s WWII tour of duty in the South Pacific.

I was sorry to see the series cancelled after only 2 seasons (it originally aired from 76-78). To this day I have no idea what went wrong. The series was full of action and adventure, and the cast was terrific. But for some reason it fell by the way side. I still remember the second season they changed the name to “Black Sheep Squadron”, but still, it didn’t take off.

I have wanted to revisit this series for ages, but never had any tapes or anything to look back on. Fortunately, Universal is releasing it on DVD, though not in full season sets. “Volume 1” contains the original 2 hour pilot episode and the first ten episodes. I’m not certain why they didn’t opt to go with full season sets, though I’m guessing it might have had something to do with keeping the price low enough for consumers.

I will have to say the transfers are not fantastic, as you will find quite a bit of grain, especially on the stock footage that was used in the series. There is also only one extra feature included, though it is a good one. You’ll find some archival interviews with the real Boyington, and that’s about it. I can’t complain about the content too much though. “Baa Baa Black Sheep” was a great show from my childhood, and being able to watch it in any format nowadays still makes it worth getting.

Episodes:
Flying Misfits, part 1
Flying Misfits, part 2
Best Three Out of Five
Small War
High Jinx
Prisoners of War
Presumed Dead
The Meatball Circus
Up for Grabs
Anyone for Suicide
New Georgia on My Mind
The Cat’s Whiskers

Starring: Robert Conrad, Simon Oakland, Dana Elcar, John Larroquette, James Whitmore Jr., Dirk Blocker and Robert Ginty
Extras: From the NBC New Archives – Interviews with Major Gregory Boyington
Specifications: Full Screen
Studio: Universal
Release Date: 5/24/2005
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

We'll give Baa Baa Black Sheep: Volume 1 a B-.