Product Description

Theorizing that one could time travel within his own lifetime, Dr. Sam Beckett stepped into the Quantum Leap accelerator and Vanished...He woke to find himself trapped in the past, facing mirror images that were not his own and driven by an unknown force to change history for the better. His only guide on this journey is Al, an observer from his own time, who appears in the form of a hologram that only Sam can see and hear. And so Dr. Beckett finds himself leaping from life to life, striving to put right what once went wrong and hoping each time that his next leap will be the leap home.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12078 in DVD
• Released on: 2004-11-08
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 3
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 3
• Running time: 409 minutes

Customer Reviews

A quantum leap in TV Sci-Fi?
An emphatic YES! An absolute delight to see again the first series/season of QL. From the opening of the pilot episode and the introduction of Al and Sam through to the ground breaking episode "The Colour of Truth" and then to Sam's first leap into a woman, this was great stuff. Never afraid to be controversial and yet still with it's own charm, QL was a major step forward in TV Sci-Fi. Still untouched by many other shows in it's writing this series didn't have to rely on FX to be gripping. QL also had some great guest stars especially Claudia Christian of Babylon 5 and Mike Post's theme tune is in my top 5 of all time. If you're a fan, buy it! If not, buy it anyway.
Special features wise, this isn't a treasure trove but the intros to each episode are useful, and the series appears to have been transferred with care to disc (only 1 episode of pixellation over 3 discs ain't bad). Hope that the wait to series/season 2 isn't long.

Oh Boy
Things weren't quite as ready for the time travel experiment as Dr. Sam Beckett (Scott Bakula) thought they were. As a result, he finds himself leaping through time, trapped in other people's bodies with his own memory playing tricks on him. He must find a way to change their lives for the better so he can leap out. Along the way, he gets a chance to reconnect with his day (via phone) and help a future former girlfriend. The only person he has to help him along is a hologram from his own time. And Al (Dean Stockwell) isn't always as much help as Sam would like.

I must admit that, while I like the series, I've only seen maybe a dozen episodes over the years. Anytime I do catch a rerun, seems like it's one I've already seen. As a result, all the episodes in this set were new to me. Of course, that isn't saying much.

Season 1 was a mid-season replacement show. As a result, this season is only the pilot plus seven regular episodes. As with most shows, it uses this time to find the characters and polish the storylines. A few of the trademarks of the series aren't there as of yet. For example, it's on the last couple episodes that end with Sam's classic "Oh boy!" Still, we've got some entertaining stories here, stories that don't always go where you think they will. I especially enjoy some of the references to real history that Sam accidentally gets involved in, such as Watergate. These episodes also feature guest spots from Terri Hatcher and Jason Priestly before they became famous.

Two episodes stand out from this set. "The Color of Truth" sends Sam into the body of a black man in the south just before the Civil Rights movement starts. His unintended actions create quite a stir in the small town, and it highlights the evils of segregation with only minimal preaching.

The second one is just plain fun. "Play it Again, Seymour" finds Sam in the body of a PI. It spoofs noir in an entertaining mystery. I also enjoyed it because it guest starred Claudia Christian in her days before Babylon 5, one of my all time favorite shows.

This is a three-disc set, which gives more then enough room for the nine hours of material. The picture is the original full frame, and the sound is mono. There is some dust occasionally in the picture, most noticeably when stock footage is used, but overall, it's sharp. Extras include a short documentary on the creation of the series and an introduction for each episode by series star Scott Bakula. Honestly, the biggest complaint is the price. It seems little steep for a set this short, especially considering what the full seasons of this show are going for.

Over all, fans of this show will be pleased to have it. I enjoyed catching leaps I hadn't seen before. I'm going to have to get my hands on other season sets.

One of the best
This is one of those landmark shows that bypassed some people. There have been many shows or even movies that have imitated it in different ways, most recently being Tru Calling, but this is the one that started it all. It is simply an amazing show. It has everything, it covers every genre, even horror which is mixed with comedy at times making the scary moments even more worrying and shocking when they happen. This show was made and broadcast long before good shows were cut only a few episodes into the first series, and this show was allowed to stretch and try different things. Most of the time it worked, ideas such as Sam leaping into the body of famous people, women, his best friend, discovering he had competition, returning to the same town three times and even going back to the same character in a later series. This is where it all started and it was good from the start. Sit back, put your feet up, get comfortable and watch a show that touched a lot of lives and while sometimes it was a little cheesy, it was never preachy and always interesting with a great guy like Scott Bakula in the main role.