Kolchak: The Night Stalker on DVD

After witnessing the updated version on ABC this fall, the news that the original Kolchak: The Night Stalker has finally made it to DVD comes as even happier news than expected.

The progenitor of such TV shows as X-Files and Medium, Kolchak: The Night Stalker starred the incomparable Darren McGavin as an intrepid reporter on a third-rate news wire service who invariably stumbled-often literally-upon stories involving supernatural beings that ranged from vampires to possessed 13th century suits of armor.

One episode even included an updating of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, turning the headless horseman into a headless motorcycle gang member!

The quality of the show could not sustain the levels at which it began as a TV Movie of the Week, but still this show ranks as among the most beloved cult TV shows of all time. McGavin's performance as Kolchak certifies as sheer genius; McGavin totally inhabits this character from his wardrobe to his mannerisms to speech.

In fact, not only does Kolchak wear a rumpled suit, he is a rumpled suit. Nobody else could possibly play this character nearly as well and if proof of that were needed, a cursory view of ABC's modern updating is all that's required. This is not meant as a knock against the new show, which certainly isn't worse and is actually quite superior to many other shows on television right now; it's meant as a compliment to one of the greatest shows in TV history to never get a chance for a second season.

I've managed to catch marathons of Kolchak: The Night Stalker on the Sci-Fi channel recently and even though they've had the hell cut out of them, they are still watchable, though I can't wait to see the DVD versions and find out what terrific non-plot related stuff was cut deleted.

Do they suffer in comparison to the big budgets that sci-fi shows are awarded nowadays? I suppose so, though frankly the old cheesy Doctor Who shows are actually more entertaining than what I've seen of the new episodes, despite the new ones looking like something out of a Star Wars movie as far as special effects.