With today's younger audiences, if you mention "The Untouchables" most will think of the superlative 1987 Kevin Costner/Robert DeNiro film which pit the young Eliot Ness against the evil (and balding) Al Capone. But not me… oh no… As much as I loved that movie, the first thing that comes to mind is the old black and white series that starred Robert Stack as the 'untouchable' Eliot Ness. Between Stack's stoic performance and Walter Winchell's rapid fire narration, "The Untouchables" hit with all cylinders firing and lasted for four slam-bang seasons (1959 - 1963). Though the show ended the year I was born, it didn’t take long for me to catch up in later years watching them in syndication. The series was a bit controversial for the time as it didn't stray from being excessively violent as was the time it was representing. By today's standards it might seem comparatively tame, but back then sponsors had to think twice before investing in the show.

Being that it ran for so many seasons, the stories went far beyond those of Ness' famed run-ins with Capone. These episodes were littered with the likes of Bug Moran, Ma Barker, Dutch Schultz and just about any 1930's gangster you can name.

I watched them religiously with my parents as my mom was a bit of a TV junkie. However, watching shows with them was only a small part of the quality time we spent together. Thankfully I wasn't just exposed to the tube being with them. They made sure I wasn't culturally challenged, which is why I believe I enjoy so any styles of entertainment. But, back to watching these shows with them they made sure that I realized the violence was only make-believe even if it represented some of the darker aspects of real life. It was great to have such open dialogue with them, and they nurtured the interest in history that a show like "The Untouchable" piqued. I wanted to learn about the real Eliot Ness.

It's been years since I've had the chance to see episodes of 'The Untouchables", so when I saw the announcement that Paramount was finally gearing up to release them last year I immediately added them to my 'gotta watch' list. Their sets only offer half seasons (which is my only complaint as I much prefer full season sets) but I still had a hard time complaining too much as I was finally given the chance to revisit this excellent series.

This month brings us the first volume of the second season, and each and every one of the 16 episodes presented here gets at least a ‘9’ on my scale. We get two episodes worth of the great Neville Brand as Al Capone, and I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the lovely Elizabeth Montgomery who graces the first episode of this set. You’ll even catch James Coburn in one of the episodes, and though he isn’t as lovely as Montgomery, he’s still a heck of a scene stealer.

There are still no special features to speak of, but I imagine there isn't much available from the period and most of the original cast is gone. I imagine if Stack was still alive, he would have offered some great commentary. I imagine there has to be some interviews floating around out there somewhere and might find there way onto subsequent sets. I will say that the transfers are some of the most pristine I've seen for a show that old. There weren't any blemishes or marks to be found anywhere. If I didn’t know better I would have sworn they were filmed yesterday.

As far as the packaging, I will admit to liking the multi-disc case but am still not fan of putting the episode titles and descriptions inside the cover. You have to take the discs out to read them. I’d much rather have an insert that can be taken out.

So if you want to travel back to the time of the Valentine's Day Massacre, I can’t recommend a better way to do it than with this first volume of "The Untouchables."

Episodes:
The Rusty Heller Story
Jack “Legs” Diamond
Nicky
The Waxy Gordon Story
The Mark of Cain
A Seat on the Fence
The Purple Gang
Kiss of the Death Girl
The Larry Fay Story
The Otto Frick Story
The Tommy Karpeles Story
The Big Train, Part 1
The Big Train, Part 2
The Masterpiece
The Organization
The Jamaica Ginger Story

Starring: Robert Stack
Extras: None
Specifications: Full Screen, Dolby Digital Mono
Studio: Paramount
Release Date: 3/18/2008
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

We'll give The Untouchables: Season 2, Volume 1 a B.