Created by
Christopher Canaan
Leslie Greif
Paul Haggis
Cast:
Chuck Norris …. Cordell Walker
Clarence Gilyard Jr. …. Jimmy Trivette
Sheree J. Wilson …. Asst. D.A. Alex Cahill
Noble Willingham …. C.D. Parker
If you look on TV these days, it’s easy to find shows with high-octane action and plenty of suspense. Series such as 24, The Shield, Rome, Deadwood, The Sopranos, and The Unit, make it easy for action junkies to stay at home and get their adrenaline rush instead of shelling out a few bills at the local theater. While the level of action and violence on these shows has finally reached a point where they can compete with the latest blockbuster, this definitely wasn’t the case even ten years ago. Serious HBO series were unheard of and Network TV was pretty tame compared to what’s on now. Honestly, it’s hard to watch much of the television of the period, unless you’re simply looking for a nostalgia trip. Folks looking for that trip should look no further than Walker, Texas Ranger.
With stiff acting, ridiculous storylines, and ludicrous, but not particularly violent action sequences, Walker, Texas Ranger is the very definition of a guilty pleasure. The series garnered moderate success over its nine seasons, but the show has garnered an even bigger cult following now after the popularity of the “Chuck Norris Facts” that have appeared online. What’s funny is that while you watch the series, you realize that perhaps Walker is even more responsible for this building up of Chuck Norris’ reputation than even some of the best examples of his 80’s action star heyday.
The reason that the show is as enjoyable as it is is because it knows to focus on Norris’ screen presence and to build him up as much as it can as a superhero. Just as Lone Wolf McQuade made Norris into a mythic hero in the style of Clint Eastwood’s Man with No Name, Walker takes much of the same template, but tones down the edge of the character enough to make the show family friendly. This doesn’t stop the show from throwing in completely ludicrous moments that give this show a real kick in the face of campy fun. In the new DVD box set Walker, Texas Ranger – The Complete Second Season, you plenty of examples of this.
For instance, in the episode “Mustangs” Walker gets shot, left for dead, and his vehicle and radio are disabled, stranding him in the wilderness. In the next moment after the villains have left, we learn that Walker is miraculously unharmed as it turns out the bullet was deflected by the Texas Ranger’s tin star. With his vehicle out of commission, Walker seems hopelessly isolated until he comes upon a herd of wild mustangs, one of whom he single-handedly tames – using parts of his shirt as a bridle – and then rides off to catch the bad guys. It’s this type of absurd “myth making” that could either turn off viewers or become the series’ strongest assets in gaining a following.
Further evidence of this can be found in the episodes “Till Death Do Us Part” and “Rainbow Warrior”. In the former, Walker is put into a coma early on in the installment while selflessly saving a small girl before the car she was trapped in teeters off a bridge. While the show doesn’t exactly have the dramatic strength needed to make this episode particularly interesting, a lot of the running time is devoted to Walker’s friends, C.D. (Noble Willingham), Trivette (Clarence Gilyard Jr.), and Alex (Sheree J. Wilson) reminiscing about the Ranger’s amazing feats. My favorite is Trivette’s story, as Walker seems to come out of this mist during a riot to subdue around seven villains with just his fists. The sequence is shot for maximum effect, as Walker hardly even speaks before he lets his fists and feet do the talking for him.
In “Rainbow Warrior”, Walker must find a blood brother, much like in The Octagon, only this time instead of a renegade ninja, it’s a Native American who is a fugitive from justice on the reservation that the Ranger was formerly a resident on. Getting back to his heritage, Walker leaves behind his badge, and performs rituals (such as walking on hot coals) to get back in touch with his Warrior’s spirit. Often Norris is filmed in shots similar to his introduction in McQuade, when he blocked out the sun. Again, the show can be completely ridiculous at times, but that doesn’t stop the fun.
As a fan of Norris’ films, it’s also great to be reminded of the star’s career while watching the series. The episode “Line of Fire” has Walker trying to take down an evil drug supplier named Mitch Cutter (John Calvin). The episode reminded me a lot of McQuade as Cutter is shown to be an excellent fighter early on, in the same fashion that David Carradine’s gun smuggler, Rawley Wilkes, is shown in that film. “Line of Fire” also features a lot of double crosses and showdowns that reminds me heavily of his 1983 vehicle.
“The Big Bingo Bamboozle” has Norris fighting villains in front of a neon sign, which is reminiscent of his famous fight against Hong Kong Triads in Forced Vengeance. The episode also guest stars Robert Forster as a local mob boss, which means fans of The Delta Force will relish seeing Norris roundhouse kick Forster in the mouth one more time, just like he did in probably his most successful outing.
In addition to Forster, other guest stars such as Doris Roberts (Everybody Loves Raymond), Geoffrey Lewis (The Devil’s Rejects), Brad Leland (Friday Night Lights) and others appear on the show, often playing supporting roles or eccentric villains. One last goodie for Walker fans is that on Disc 3, the series starts going with the “Eyes of the Ranger” theme song, performed by Norris himself. It’s a pretty important moment in the history of the series, so its nice to be able to get see when they started going with it as opposed to the lame musical intro it had before.
Walker, Texas Ranger is a show that works because it knows to stick to its “bread and butter” of Karate fights, car chases, and light comedy. If the show strays from this formula, such as instances of heavy handed drama, it suffers quite badly, but fortunately you’re never really too far from your next roundhouse kick. Today’s shows may have better action, but it’s tough to deny the fun of some grade-A Chuck.
The Video
Unfortunately, CBS and Paramount haven’t done anything to really clean up the show. The DVD image looks pretty shabby, but honestly it probably wasn’t’ great looking when the show was on the air. The show is presented in Fullscreen with an aspect ratio of 1.33:1
The Audio
The audio is fine, but nothing special. There seems to be a fine balance, but it’s nice like there’s an amazing score for this series to begin with. The Audio track is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0.
SPECIAL FEATURES: Trailers
Trailers – There’s also next to nothing as far as extras goes on this set. Basically all you get are previews for series owned by Paramount, such as MacGyver.
The Inside Pulse
With fleet footed justice being handed out in every episode, you know what you’re getting with this second season of Walker, Texas Ranger. The show is fun if you don’t take it too seriously, and plenty of roundhouse kicks to go around. The DVD set itself virtually has no features, but I don’t that any Chuck Norris DVD has any features, so that’s really not what you’re buying this set for anyway.
