A Man Called Shenandoah: The Complete Series Blu Ray Review (Warner Archive Collection)

A Man Called Shenandoah is a 1965 television series created by E. Jack Neuman (The Lineup, Panic!, Mr. Novak, Police Story, Petrocelli, Company of Killers, and Wagon Train). It’s directed by Nathan Juran (Daniel Boone, Lost in Space, The Boy Who Cried Werewolf, The Deadly Mantis, Attack of the 50 Foot Woman, and Jack the Giant Killer), Jud Taylor (The Great Escape II, Out of the Darkness, Prophet of Evil: The Ervil LeBaron Story, Kaleidoscope, Winter Kill, and Star Trek), Joseph H. Lewis (Gun Crazy, Navy Spy, The Big Valley, Gunsmoke, Terror in a Texas Town, and The Rifleman), Harry Harris (The Waltons, Fame, Remington Steele, 7th Heaven, Sisters, and In the Heat of the Night), and 12 others. It was produced by Vincent M. Fennelly (Rawhide, Stagecoach West, Daniel Boone, Crime in the Streets, Cannon for Cordoba, and Trackdown). A unknown man (played by: Robert Horton from The Green Slime, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Red River, As the World Turns, The Spy Killer, and Wagon Train) shot and he’s left for dead on the trail. Luckily, he’s found before it’s too late and he gets revived. He has no recollection of his past after getting a second chance at life. He decides to call himself Shenandoah as he goes through the West searching for his true identity!!!! A Man Called Shenandoah is one of the darker Westerns from 60’s television. It had a fascinating concept about someone trying to discover who they were and putting together their mysterious past. The episodes always had quality plots that keep you guessing. A Man Called Shenandoah kinda reminded me of a Western version of The Fugitive. Robert Horton as Shenandoah was top notch as the lead in this. He’s a desperate man trying to remember his past at any cost. The mysterious character definitely kept your attention. You wanted to find out as it went on. Robert Horton actually wrote and sang the theme song for the television show. Horton was no stranger when it came to Westerns, he was previously known for Wagon Train. He claimed he would never do a Western again but he couldn’t turn down this production after reading the pilot script. It’s a shame that A Man Called Shenandoah didn’t last longer because it had so much potential and it was building up to something more here. The impressive supporting cast includes Edward Asner (Elf), Cloris Leachman (Young Frankenstein), Martin Landau (Ed Wood), Sally Kellerman (M*A*S*H), Pat Hingle (Batman franchise), Frank Gorshin (Batman), George Kennedy (Creepshow 2), Warren Oates (Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia), Leonard Nimoy (Star Trek franchise), Robert Loggia (The Sopranos), Bruce Dern (The Hateful Eight), and Harry Dean Stanton (Repo Man). This old school mystery TV series always had some great cameos during it’s short run. Unfortunately, this got cancelled on a cliffhanger and it was never finished due to it’s poor ratings at the time on ABC. I personally thought A Man Called Shenandoah was more creative and original compared to all the other projects. I think there was too many westerns so it kinda got lost in the mix. There’s plenty of action, suspense, drama, and mystery for this one. It’s still lots of fun and very entertaining after all these years. I just wish it had some closure but it’s still worth checking out especially if you love the genre, RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this high definition presentation from the Warner Archive Collection! These 1080p (1.33:1) transfers on all episodes are from a brand new 4K restoration from the original camera negatives! I only seen a few select episodes before getting this set for coverage but this is a massive upgrade compared to those. It’s the best that A Man Called Shenandoah has ever looked and it shines here for this home video release. Very impressed that this unknown Western got a whole new life with this blu ray set. It has English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono tracks for each episode on this 5 disc set. The audio is way better than expected especially something older like this. All of the dialogue is very clean, the action is elevated, and the music has a great boost to it. It has English SDH subtitles. Unfortunately, there’s no extras on this home video release. It’s available everywhere right now including MovieZyng.com, CHECK IT OUT!!!!