Search - The Commander Set 1 on DVD

THE COMMANDER BASIC SEXUAL AFFAIR AVOIDANCE CLASS 101

Harold Wolf | Wells, IN United States | 10/17/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Clare Blake, (high praise for Amanda Burton's acting) takes the leadership of the Murder Review Team, but immediately does something that assuredly was in the "Commander Manual" in red lettering, #1 under the "DO NOT DO" list. Blake has a sexual affair with a murder convict just released that she herself had help get convicted. This affair gets publicized and creates a situation interfering with each the the murder investigations for the rest of the four episode, 570 minutes of top-notch murder mystery.

The 4-star rating is due to this UNBELIEVABLE action by the newly appointed Commander Blake. The movie even had the nerve to make this main character a female "BLOND". Would anyone in their right mind, especially the traditional conservative British population, make such a terribly wrong judgment error after a 20-year career of making the right decisions that get you appointed to the top leadership position?

Okay, now, getting beyond that initial event, the rest of the series is on-the-edge-of-your-seat, bewildering intrigue, plots braided together holding thrilling mystery, and 5-stars. Each of the 4 episodes (About 2 1/2 hrs each) have a new primary murder to solve. The MRT actors/actresses remain the same in each, additional cast in introduced related to the complex plots, Blake's affair with Murder Lampton resurfaces, Blake's family situations get involved, and the outcome will not be guessed, until the DVD does the disclosing.

There was the police shooting of a suspect, Cripps, that went awry and covered up for 4 episodes. Blake's blunder with the Lampton affair was further aggravated by her entrapment attempt. Will she never learn? The commander's sister gets cancer at the same time someone hacks into a hospital records system and begins murder blackmail. A special deputy, "Blackdog", is assigned to look into both the Lampton affair and the Cripps shooting. Plenty of police cover-up to go all around. And finally, date rape murders begin appearing with the first London victim being, of course, Commander Blake's goddaughter.

The DVD box warns about graphic scenes and nudity. Plenty of nasty victim scenes, so beware. There is no captioning so "Blackdog's" words are sometimes a bit hard to catch, but the rest is not bad.

Summary: worth watching for murder mystery fans, once you accept the dumb-blond syndrome of the Commander's initial "misjudgment.""

'The Commander'

Amanda Fan | Sydney, Australia | 11/13/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I highly recommend this boxed set, it is a terrific series. My only complaint is that this US release contains the episode 'Blacklight' & the earlier UK release didn't. so now all of us who bought the UK set have to buy this set also.....not happy Acorn Media"

The Commander

Barbara Pierce | New York, NY United States | 11/29/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a brilliant series. I couldn't be torn away from it -- I was in its thrall for about 4 days, when I watched all 10 hours of it and couldn't wait to get back to the TV to watch more. The casting, acting, directing, photography are all superb, and the plot is complicated and compelling. My only (slight) reservation is that the last disk is a disappointment. It has nothing to do with the three previous ones, and seems like an add-on. (My inspiration to buy this was an interview that I heard on NPR with its author/producer, Lynda LaPlante, which is available on the internet. I recommend it highly.)"

Drama with a murder mystery backdrop

Michael P. Dobey | colorado springs | 01/24/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This show is a excellent example of a realistic U.K. crime drama.
The show features a flawed and foolish leader whose hormones get in the way of common sense. We have seen this in real life in every profession over and over and on the screen with many a movie. What's interesting here is that is a ruthless police chief who is a woman and who is stumbling here. And her ruthlessness isn't a sign of corruption , it's just how she has risen to the top. The cast is first rate and it pulls no punches and that makes for a better acted show too.
Of course most female commanders in the U.K. are not this foolish but the author of the book this came from specializes in troubled police women. See the excellent "Prime suspect" series for a even better show about a british policewoman who is flawed badly but still a good cop.
Like all recent british detective shows the quality is very high and they can compete with any top show made anywhere. If You like cop shows that are HEAVY on personal drama with murders as the backdrop then this show will be a good bet for you."