Las Vegas: The Complete Series Blu Ray Review (Universal)

Las Vegas is a 2003 television series created, written, produced, and directed by Gary Scott Thompson (The Fast and the Furious, Hollow Man, White Ghost, Knight Rider, 88 Minutes, Gunner, Taxi Brooklyn, and Split Second). It was directed by David Solomon (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Grimm, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Chuck, Firefly, and Burn Notice), Timothy Busfield (Without a Trace, Ed, Damages, Sports Night, and Thirtysomething), Paul Michael Glaser (The Running Man, The Cutting Edge, Miami Vice, Third Watch, Kazaam, The Air Up There, and Band of the Hand), Peter Weller (Magnum P.I., MacGyver, Hawaii Five-O, The Strain, House, Justified, and Sons of Anarchy), LeVar Burton (Star Trek franchise, Charmed, NCIS, Smart House, and JAG), Bryan Spicer (24, Castle, Heroes, Prison Break, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and McHale’s Navy), Perry Lang (Men of War, Weeds, Dawson’s Creek, The Twilight Zone, E.R., and NYPD Blue), Kevin Hooks (The X-Files, Preacher, Castle Rock, The Punisher, Bones, Passenger 57, Fled, Black Dog, and Tales from the Crypt), John Badham (Saturday Night Fever, Dracula, Blue Thunder, Drop Zone, WarGames, Short Circuit, Nick of Time, Heroes, and Point of No Return), Tim Matheson (Burn Notice, Suits, Las Vegas, Buried Alive II, Behind Enemy Lines: Colombia, Psych, The West Wing, and Third Watch), and 33 others. It aired from 2003 to 2008 for 5 seasons. It got cancelled before it could be properly finished. At the Montecito Hotel and Casino with an elite Las Vegas surveillance team is led by commanding Big Ed Deline (played by: James Caan from The Godfather, Elf, Misery, Thief, and Rollerball) who has a dangerous secret past. His staff includes Danny McCoy (played by: Josh Duhamel from the Transformers franchise, Turistas, Batman: The Long Halloween, 11.22.63, and Win a Date with Tad Hamilton), Mike Cannon (played by: James Lesure from Men at Work, Crimson Tide, The Rookie: Feds, Good Girls, and Winning Time), Sam Marquez (played by: Vanessa Marcil from The Rock, General Hospital, Beverly Hills 90210, and NYPD Blue), Mary Connell (played by: Nikki Cox from Terminator 2, Nikki, Norm, The Glimmer Man, and Unhappily Ever After), Nessa Holt (played by: Marsha Thomason from White Collar, The Bay, Lost, The Haunted Mansion, Cobra, and The Tripper), and his daughter Delinda Deline (played by: Molly Sims from Fired Up!, Yes Man, The Benchwarmers, and The Wrong Missy). Later on, Billionaire A.J. Cooper (played by: Tom Selleck from Blue Bloods, Magnum P.I., Jesse Stone franchise, Friends, Quigley Down Under, and Mr. Baseball) takes control and he decides to change things up at the popular location. They’re out to catch card-counting cheaters, costly streaks of random luck and the schemes of rival casinos. Anything can happen in Vegas, what’s next???? Las Vegas was one of my favorite TV shows when it originally aired. I didn’t miss any episodes when it was brand new and I’ve only been like that with a few select television shows so that tells you something. It’s gives you an inside look into the wild world of Vegas. It’s much more than gambling at casinos. All of the leads were perfectly cast in their roles especially the first few seasons of Las Vegas. It was always loaded with sharp dialogue, chaos, and fascinating storylines. It had a few seasoned directors like Paul Michael Glaser, John Badham, and Kevin Hooks behind the camera that really added a cinematic approach to it. Plus it let some respected actors like Timothy Busfield, Peter Weller, LeVar Burton, and Tim Matheson get a shot at directing. James Caan as “Big” Ed Deline is the real reason to watch Las Vegas. His previous job keeps coming back to haunt him during it. He kinda comes off like a gangster but he’s really just a tough guy with some lethal skills. Josh Duhamel as Danny McCoy is Ed’s right-hand man & he’s the head of security for the Montecito. He is a former Marine, that’s why he was hired to handle all of the crazy scenarios at the casino. James Lesure as Mike Cannon starts out as the creative valet but he works his way up to being the top tech guy behind the security team. His ego always gets himself into some serious trouble. Nikki Cox, Vanessa Marcil, Marsha Thomason, and Molly Sims are the main beautiful women that work at the casino. They all have different personalities and responsibilities. Danny had some interesting interactions with a few of them. They brought in someone like Camille Guaty (Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, Prison Break, Cake, and Scorpion) that shows up later on as Piper Nelson to fill in spots for some characters that previously left. Every important lady on Las Vegas looked amazing in this, it was loaded with excellent eye candy. TV icon Tom Selleck pops up as the new owner A.J. Cooper. He basically takes over for James Caan for the final season and he’s a quality replacement. He had some similar qualities compared to Big Ed but he was his own kind of boss for Las Vegas. It’s a shame that they didn’t really get to finish his story here. Las Vegas managed to get some of the biggest actors ever to do cameos and small roles during it’s 5 season run. The supporting cast includes Sylvester Stallone (Rocky franchise), Alec Baldwin (30 Rock), Dennis Hopper (Blue Velvet), Jean-Claude Van Damme (Kickboxer), Sean Astin (The Goonies), Jerry O’Connell (Stand by Me), Lara Flynn Boyle (Twin Peaks), Dean Cain (Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman), Michael Rooker (Guardians of the Galaxy franchise), Don Knotts (The Andy Griffith Show), Jane Lynch (Glee), Aimee Garcia (Dexter), Rachael Leigh Cook (She’s All That), Sherman Howard (Day of the Dead), Ron Jeremy (Orgazmo), James Hong (Big Trouble in Little China), Elliott Gould (Friends), Judd Nelson (The Breakfast Club), Jaime Pressly (Joe Dirt), Frank Grillo (Captain America: The Winter Soldier), Robert Wagner (Austin Powers franchise), Jay Mohr (Suicide Kings),Vincent Pastore (The Sopranos), Joe Manganiello (True Blood), Giancarlo Esposito (Breaking Bad), William Forsythe (The Devil’s Rejects), Cheryl Ladd (Charlie’s Angels), Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters franchise), Wayne Newton (The Adventures of Ford Fairlane), Jon Lovitz (Rat Race), Jill Hennessy (Crossing Jordan), John Elway (NFL), Terry Bradshaw (NFL), Dennis Rodman (NBA), Jon Bon Jovi (Vampires: Los Muertos), Gladys Knight (Hollywood Homicide), Ashanti (Coach Carter), Rihanna (Bates Motel), Snoop Dogg (Training Day), and The Black Eyed Peas, Paul McCartney (The Beatles). It’s packed with Vegas regulars and some of the most popular musical acts. Las Vegas had a few crossover episodes with Crossing Jordan that were very fun to see these different type of people collaborate with each other. This series had a little bit of everything which includes crime, action, murder comedy, drama, suspense, and romance. Las Vegas honestly ran out of gas for it’s last season so I’m not really surprised that it ended up getting cancelled. The bad thing was that creator Gary Scott Thompson didn’t see that coming because he left all kinds of cliffhangers at the end. So many stories weren’t finished yet, I’m still shocked that they didn’t followed it up with a full length movie to tie it all up. That’s the only major flaw for Las Vegas but it’s still a blast and very entertaining. It’s awesome to see it finally get some proper treatment on home video, RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this high definition presentation and list some of it’s impressive special features from Universal Pictures! These 1080p (1.78.1) transfers on all 106 episodes look amazing on blu ray on all 22 discs. I’ve seen this television series on it’s original broadcast and DVD, this is a real nice upgrade when it comes to Las Vegas. It’s the best it’s ever looked so far and I don’t think it will ever be on 4K. It has English: Dolby Digital 5.1. for Seasons 2 through 5. It has English: Dolby Digital 2.0 tracks for Season 1. When it comes to TV, it’s one of the better sounding productions. It has a variety of so many chaotic situations here. All of the dialogue is crisp, the madness is elevated, and the music has a killer boost to it. It has English SDH subtitles. It has the “Rumble in the Montecito”. It has an “Audio Commentary” for the “Pilot” with Gary Scott Thompson, James Lesure, Nikki Cox, Molly Sims and Marsha Thomason. It has an “Audio Commentary” for b”Hellraisers and Hearbreakers” with Gary Scott Thompson and James Caan. It has an “Audio Commentary” for “The Night the Lights Went Out in Vegas” with Scott Thompson and Vanessa Marcil. It has the “Inside the Montecito”. It has “Las Vegas: The Big Gamble”. It has “Las Vegas: The TV Show”. It has “City of Las Vegas Promotional Spot”. It has an “Audio Commentary” for “Always Faithful” with Gary Scott Thompson and Josh Duhamel. It has “V.I.P. Access Only”. It has a “Gag Reel”. It has the “In with the New Backstage with Cast and Crew”. It has “Behind The Scenes – The Making of Las Vegas Season 4”. It has “Season 3 Recap”. It has an “Audio Commentary” for “Father of the Bride Reduxe” with Gary Scott Thompson. It has an “Audio Commentary” for “Delinda’s Box Parts 1 and 2″ with Gary Scott Thompson. It has an”Audio Commentary” for “White Christmas” with Gary Scott Thompson. It has an “Audio Commentary” for “Heroes” with Gary Scott Thompson. It has an “VFX Featurette”. It has “Hot Stuff”. It has the “NBC.com Webcasts”. This is a must own for any fans of Las Vegas, James Caan, and Josh Duhamel. Each season comes in it’s own individual blu ray case in a high quality slipbox. It’s available everywhere right now including MovieZyng.com, CHECK IT OUT!!!!