Quincy, M.E.: Season 6

I love the older series when the big 3 TV stations dominated the airwaves. Ratings were king for advertising bucks. In the world of healthcare, Quincy, is today's Dr. Anthony Fauci. Both share the same passion for protecting the public from medical politics. The only difference is Quincy is delightfully emotional and sometimes out of control while Dr. Fauci is generally reserved in the midst of a mad man President.

Welcome to QUINCY, M.E., one of the most enjoyable and influential television shows in the history of television. This is the story of Dr. Quincy (no first name ever given, though we are once told it begins with an "R") a crusty, hot-tempered, do-gooding Los Angeles County medical examiner (Jack Klugman) who uses forensic science to unravel mysteries which leave his cop friends Lieutenant Monohan (Garry Walberg) and Sergeant Brill (Joe Roman), and his paper-pushing fop of a boss, Dr. Asten (John S. Ragin) scratching their respective heads. Of course when Quincy is not solving murder mysteries he is taking up a lance for every public-spirited cause you can possibly think of, from child abuse to teenage drug use to illegal immigration to punk rock music and beyond. Can't fight City Hall? Quincy treats City Hall like a rock-'em-sock-'em robot!Of course, in so doing, he aggravates absolutely everyone, from murderers, who try to kill him, to big corporations, who try to muzzle him, to his girlfriends (he has thousands), who try to leave him, to his long-suffering assistant Sam Fujiyama (Robert Ito) and best friend Danny Tovo (Val Bisoglio) who just try to put up with him. Half the fun of QUINCY is seeing the enraged or baffled expressions of everyone who crosses his path. Imagine a fiery liberal muckraker with a medical degree and a nose (a BIG nose) for mysteries and a taste for the ladies, and you've got this show in a nutshell.QUINCY is, of course, very dated at this point, but that simply lends it extra charm -- the charm of nostalgia for the 70s and early 80s. As for the characters, there is so much chemistry between them -- Quincy's relationships with Monohan and Asten are priceless -- that it scarcely matters that most of them are one, or at best, two dimensional. The feel-good endings that mark most of the early seasons, the heavy-handedness of the social commentary and the "after school special" cheesiness may be cause for scorn from some, but you have to remember that QUINCY was considered quite groundbreaking at the time. It tackled many taboo subjects -- from incest to racism to elder abuse -- and it introduced the world to the idea of a "forensic detective," which is now probably the most overdone genre of television and film that there is, yet at the time didn't even have a name. Long before CSI, there was Quincy!Season Six continues the long tradition of excellence fans expected from this series, and while there are a few clunkers -- the awful "Dear Mummy," for one -- by and large it delivers. Some of my favorites:Last Day, First Day - A dovetail of a story has Quincy (supposedly on vacation, but we know how those go for him) working out his male chauvinism on a female pathologist, while defending an aging, veteran pathologist from her charges that he botched an autopsy. Blackmail, murder and obstruction of justice are all elements in this rare example of "Quincy as suspense" (as opposed to mystery).The Hope of Elkwood - When an athlete dies while being harshly trained by his coach, Quincy investigates to see if a pre-existing condition could have caused the boy's death...despite Quincy's intense dislike of the man alleged to have "run him to death."Headhunter - An unusually gritty and brutal episode which features a grisly murder, an out-of-control Narcotics cop, and a whole lot of cocaine. Some great work here by Joseph Sirola as the nasty but righteous Internal Affairs cop Drasso, and by Eddie Fontaine as the likeable yet on-the-brink Det. Joe Marsala. Garry Walberg also shines when given something more to do than yell at Quincy (he gets to yell at Drasso!)Scream to the Skies - One of QUINCY's finest storylines begins with a horrible plane crash in Santa Monica Bay. Quincy, devastated by the carnage, discovers that the airlines are to blame for the large number of fatalities and goes to war on them in Quincy-like fashion. John S. Ragin did exceptionally fine work in this episode, once again making three-dimensions out of a one-dimensional character.Jury Duty - Hilarity ensues when Quincy, serving in a jury on a murder case, begins to find fault with every aspect of the police investigation, leading him into conflict with the short-tempered judge.To Kill in Plain Sight - One of those most nuanced and layered scripts the show ever shot has Quincy and Monohan racing to stop a professional assassin from killing someone at a political convention. Unfortunately they know neither the intended target nor the identity of the assassin!Sugar and Spice - A favorite of mine has Quincy erupting like Vesuvius on the quackish purveyor of a fad diet, one Quincy blames for the death of a fashion model, and which he believes may kill the model's overweight kid sister.Of All Sad Words - Quincy falls hard for a gorgeous widow who may have murdered her husband. Although this episode has Q. acting rather out of character, it's a great combination of mystery and suspense.Vigil of Fear - When a well-meaning vigilante group gets embroiled in what may be a murder, Quincy gets embroiled, too.All in all, this season was very good and did a fine job of balancing "causes" with the mystery and suspense stories. Normally, five seasons is generally the point at which a television show starts to show signs of fatigue and indifference, but I'm happy to say QUINCY was still going strong. What else would you expect from a man with no first name?

"Quincy" never fails to entertain and educate. As a teenager, I watched the series during its original run for its terrific acting, writing, and fascinating plots that are still relevant to this day. Even episodes that are labeled "preachy" are excellent because Jack Klugman's compassion for others really did make a difference in this world. His gentleness, humor, empathy and love are qualities that we don't see often in the human race these days.

I waited forever but it was worth the wait. I like seasons 4-8 are more like a true tv show than movies.

One thing about Quincy, M.E. is it is never boring. The acting is great and there is occasional humor between Quincy and his boss, Dr. Asten. I found all the discs played fine, the episodes are uncut (compared to my hacked-up syndication copies), and the picture quality is excellent.I'm anxiously awaiting the last two seasons which have some great episodes like: The two-part episodes "Slow Boat to Madness" and "Quincy's Wedding." It would be great to have the entire series.

I have been waiting for this series to come out on DVD for years. I am very happy to say the wait was well worth it. Very well written show and Jack Klugman was wonderful in it. I am enjoying watching this series again. Anybody that purchases this series will not be disappointed.

My mom loved this series so I ordered all of them .. now shes gone I will treasure them all

Season Six, overlooked on my original order competes the set. Ah, Qrusader Quincy, the Everyman of medical moral turpitude and investigations of those fatal incidents which provide evidence of social and cultural abnormalities and the probable necessity of strident public activism. All to the greater good, of course. The recurrent theme of the series is to highlight issues of the day by illustrative dramatization, first, show the result, then define the problem, and finally offer effective solutions. Jack Klugman was as fine a Quincey as could have been found, a bit strident, sometimes prone to over-acting (perhaps a result of his stage training?), but very believable in his role as a senior medical examiner in one of the largest cities in the nation. Over time, especially when steady exposure to a string of episodes dulls one's tolerance for the repetitious introductory musical performance, one gets annoyed by the just plain noise caused by the too-loud music which heralds the onset of the play. Thank goodness for the "mute" button. Damn these producers, their musical relatives, and the sound engineers who blast away when no one is watching them. Robert Ito, as Sam, Quincy's very capable lab assistant, delivered a stable character base and foundation for Quincey's competent, but sometimes more emotionally fractured persona. A delightful combination. John Astin was a good fit in the early episodes, but soon was dropped in favor of John Ragin, who played Dr. Asten, the almost curmudgeonly department head who routinely harassed his staff about such things as minding the budget, sticking to procedures and holding timely press sessions. Of all the serious series television produced in the sixties, seventies, eighties and nineties, this one is the best. Belongs in every appreciative person's library of film and television work, even if it seems more than half of the actors, producers, directors, writers, andproduction crew personnel residing in the left half of L.A. were hired at various times to contribute to this work. Good job.

The best series yet. Klugman was /is an incredible actor who with a fantastic supporting cast offer great story lines but also offers great emotion in the compassion shown towards victims and those left to pick up the pieces. Again , as in previous seasons , there is also immense humour portrayed including Klugman's superb line-"December or Yanuary? But it's only Yune!" The tears are still streaming down my face!

Very pleased with the dvd and Quincy M.E. is a great series, The Best

Only slight signs of its age it stands up to modern series very well I still enjoy the quality of acting and writing and it is a "keeper" to be enjoyed again and again!

Great dvd 📀 came on time really happy with too

The oldies are the best