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List Price: $59.95 | | Label: A&E Home Video
Salesrank: 29092
Released: March 29, 2005 |
| Our Price: $34.99 |
| Used Price: $39.42 |
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MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Fearless, debonair, and determined to see justice, Simon Templar, aka THE SAINT, took the world by storm in 1962. Now, the dazzling black-and-white debut season of this modern-day Robin Hood is on DVD for the first time. Sympathetic to those in distress, especially when they're wearing a dress, THE SAINT circles the globe in his trademark white Volvo, deploying lethal charm as his weapon of choice. Based on the best-selling novel Meet the Tiger by Leslie Charteris, Roger Moore's portrayal of this glamorous mystery man with a heart of gold created a television legend. With impeccable taste for the finer things in life, Templar dashed through one heart-pulsing adventure after another, forever chased by Scotland Yard's peppermint-chewing Inspector Teal. Action-packed, stylish, and dependably sexy, this three-disc DVD set features all 12 black-and-white episodes from the debut season of THE SAINT. DVD Features: Roger Moore Biography and Filmography; The History Of The Saint; Photo Gallery; Interactive Menus; Scene Selection
The Saint - The Early Episodes, Set 1 Reviews:
Fine 
2009-05-19 - I love the way Roger Moore starts out
the show by talking directly to the
viewers. The plot and action of each
show is interesting. Of course there
is all That Roger Moore adtion that makes
the show so enjoyable. He is alway one step ahead
of the bad guys.
I would like you to meet Simon-oh I know him he's the Saint(cue halo above Roger Moore's head) 
2009-04-18 - After seeing the price for set I and set II, I am glad I had the good sense of taping the entire series of the Saint on late night t.v ten years ago! The station that showed these wonderful programs had the good sense of leaving it intact of the 50 minutes of each show. Bring down the price and found the lost episodes and then we'll talk!
Great episodes
2008-12-27 - These are great episodes. If you like crime/mystery type shows, this is a good bet, especially if you like Roger Moore. I also like the international settings. Very cool.
The Saint Collection Set I Review
2008-07-07 - This is really cool. I remember the old reruns on TV from when I was little, and recall enjoying them so I took a chance and bought this set. I do not regret it. Even these early episodes are very well-written, well-acted, and to my surprise the film quality is quite good. Sometimes with older TV shows you get iffy visual quality, but these are crystal clear. Moore is terrific as the Saint. It's also cool to see different parts of the world circa the early 1960's. Cool cars, cool furniture, everyone is well-dressed, and of course Moore is very classy. The thing that impressed me the most is the writing and the plots. I was afraid TV from this era might not age well, but they're not cheesy at all, and they really did age quite well. Still completely watchable today.
Gold heart and an iron fist
2008-06-28 - Fans of 60s cult TV - or good detective drama from any era - will thoroughly enjoy this collection from the black-and-white first season of "The Saint."
The 12 episodes filmed in 1962 show Moore at his absolute best - bringing out all the wit, creativity, and courage hinted at in Leslie Charteris's many stories. Simon Templar is both bon vivant and justice seeker. As played by Moore, Templar gives the viewer a hint of his alleged criminal past. But he uses his knowledge of the underworld to see that the crooked are brought to justice, and Moore delivers his lines and fight scenes brilliantly...with that fierce sense of well-bred outrage.
Moore is helped by an excellent cast of guest stars, British and American. There are two nice peformances by future "Goldfinger" actress Shirley Eaton (in "The Talented Husband" and "The Effete Angler") and Alan Gifford as NYC Police Inspector John Henry Fernack ("The Careful Terrorist" and "The Element of Doubt").
These episodes, produced by Robert S. Baker and Monty Berman, are mostly well-written adaptations of Charteris stories. The screenwriting is crisp and suspenseful. Two of the best of the entire series are here, in the premiere episode "The Talented Husband" (Simon tries to head off a playwright's murder of his third wife) and "The Arrow of God" (a boorish, annoying society columnist is murdered by one of a number of guests with shady pasts).
The early episodes shine even when the premise of a scene is a bit of a stretch. Example: "The Careful Terrorist," set in New York, which plays a lot like the story of the real-life blinding of journalist Victor Riesel (an incident briefly mentioned in the episode). It starts with a reporter character accusing a dangerous labor leader of murder, extortion et al live on the air, and then saying he'll have his proof on his NEXT live show.
But the episode manages to overcome this obvious invitation to the reporter's eventual murder with some fabulous acting by Moore, Gifford,Peter Dyneley as the vengeful labor leader, and David Kossoff as the bookish but skillful engineer who designs a bomb intented to blow Templar away. Of the 12 installments in this box set, "The Careful Terrorist" is the one I've watched the most repeatedly.
Simon Templar would play across UK and US screens over a seven-year period. But these black and white early episodes - before the plots became fanciful and leaned toward comedy and self-parody - are "The Saint" at the pinnacle...first-class detective drama.
