Lovejoy: The Complete Collection (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)Lovejoy was one of the best television series ever offered on BBC and later shown in America. It had cult followings in both the UK and U.S. during its television showings. I watched almost every episode. Lovejoy (Ian McShane) is a "divvie," a person who can instinctively tell if an antique is authentic and valuable without consulting books or doing research. The term comes from the word "diviner" and it's a talent that few if any others possess. With such a talent Lovejoy is a natural for the antiques business, but his several character flaws prevent him from making a fortune. Instead, this lovable rogue gets himself in situations that are humorous, mysterious, and often exciting. Sometimes these involve crimes committed by others or by Lovejoy himself! In other episodes, Lovejoy helps to solve curious mysteries or helps some person in distress who seeks him out. Wonderful old antique objects are always a part of the plot and Lovejoy is not above sometimes creating or improving these in ways that satisfy a customer, pay off a debt, or get hilarious revenge on an unscrupulous adversary.
Lovejoy's friends--Tinker Dill, Eric Catchpole, and Lady Jane Felsham--are also amusing, often hilarious. Tinker is Lovejoy's inebriated sidekick who knows quite a bit about the antique business himself. Eric's character is really funny: a sullen, sometimes resentful assistant whom Lovejoy does not always treat with respect but who's actions always gets laughs. Lady Jane is Lovejoy's wealthy but married female friend who likes to hang out with the lovable rogue; she often financially aids Lovejoy and willingly and sometimes unwillingly helps facilitate his plots. There is an ambiguity about their personal relationship that continues throughout the series. Are they interested in each other romantically or not? Lovejoy is set to get married to someone else in the final episode of the series but with hilarious results. In fact, both Lady Jane and Eric disappear as characters in Series 6.
All of the episodes in the Lovejoy series were shown on television in the U.S. during the 1990s. Current viewers may know Ian McShane only from his character in Deadwood or perhaps the short-lived Kings. McShane is a really fine actor who completely envelopes his character and creates very satisfying drama. If you love British drama such as the popular murder mystery series (Inspector Morse, Foyle's War, Inspector Lewis) or historical dramas (Reilly, Ace of Spies, Love for Lydia, Brideshead Revisited, I, Claudius) or comedies (Rumpole of the Bailey), you will certainly love Lovejoy. I always eagerly watched each episode.
Now that the series is complete, I highly recommend that you purchase this complete collection. It is encoded for Region 1 and was converted from its original PAL format in which it was created to the NTSC format used in the U.S. From reviews I have read, it appears the conversion was accomplished satisfactorily. The complete Lovejoy collection has been available in PAL format in Great Britain since 2004, so it apparently took five years to get the conversion done properly. You can buy the complete PAL Lovejoy, in All Region format, from Amazon.co.uk for the same price as here. If you have only a Region 1 DVD player as most of us do you in all likelihood cannot play PAL DVDs because of Region locking (not a problem with this PAL set since it is All Region) and because the great majority of Region 1 DVD players have had their PAL playback ability disabled. Also, most NTSC display devices cannot display PAL images. For U.S. customers, it is probably better to just buy this new NTSC set and not worry that the PAL set (higher resolution than NTSC and originally shot in PAL) is probably better and available at the same price. I haven't seen the PAL set so I can't personally judge.
Note: Do not buy the Lovejoy Christmas Specials DVD if you buy this complete collection as Amazon suggests in its "Frequently Bought Together" section. The Lovejoy Complete Collection already includes the two Christmas specials.
Here is the Lovejoy episode list with original air dates:
Series 1
1-1 10-Jan-1986 The Firefly Cage
1-2 17-Jan-1986 The Axeman Cometh
1-3 24-Jan-1986 The Sting
1-4 31-Jan-1986 Friends, Romans and Enemies
1-5 07-Feb-1986 The Judas Pair
1-6 14-Feb-1986 To Sleep No More
1-7 21-Feb-1986 The Real Thing
1-8 28-Feb-1986 The March of Time
1-9 07-Mar-1986 Death and Venice (1)
1-10 14-Mar-1986 Death and Venice (2)
Series 2
2-1 06-Jan-1991 Just Desserts
2-2 13-Jan-1991 The Italian Venus
2-3 20-Jan-1991 Bin Diving
2-4 27-Jan-1991 Montezuma's Revenge
2-5 03-Feb-1991 Who Dares, Sings
2-6 10-Feb-1991 One Born Every Minute
2-7 17-Feb-1991 National Wealth
2-8 24-Feb-1991 Sugar and Spice
2-9 03-Mar-1991 Raise the Hispanic
2-10 10-Mar-1991 Lily's Pearls
2-11 17-Mar-1991 The Black Virgin of Vladimir
(recut into a two part episode on later transmissions, with the first part listed in the opening credits as "Riding in Rollers")
Series 3
3-1 12-Jan-1992 Friends in High Places
3-2 19-Jan-1992 Out To Lunch
3-3 26-Jan-1992 No Strings
3-4 02-Feb-1992 Angel Trousers
3-5 09-Feb-1992 The Benin Bronze
3-6 16-Feb-1992 Eric of Arabia
3-7 23-Feb-1992 Scotch on the Rocks
3-8 01-Mar-1992 Loveknots
3-9 08-Mar-1992 Smoke Your Nose
3-10 15-Mar-1992 Kids
3-11 22-Mar-1992 Members Only
3-12 29-Mar-1992 Highland Fling (1)
3-13 05-Apr-1992 Highland Fling (2)
Special S-1 26-Dec-1992 The Prague Sun
Series 4
4-1 10-Jan-1993 The Napoleonic Commode
4-2 17-Jan-1993 The Ring
4-3 24-Jan-1993 Second Fiddle
4-4 31-Jan-1993 The Colour of Mary
4-5 07-Feb-1993 Fly the Flag
4-6 14-Feb-1993 Judgment of Solomon
4-7 21-Feb-1993 The Galloping Major
4-8 28-Feb-1993 God Helps Those
4-9 07-Mar-1993 They Call Me Midas
4-10 14-Mar-1993 Irish Stew
4-11 28-Mar-1993 Dainty Dish
4-12 04-Apr-1993 Taking the Pledge
4-13 11-Apr-1993 Lovejoy Loses It
Series 5
5-1 05-Sep-1993 Pig in a Poke
5-2 12-Sep-1993 Who is the Fairest of Them All?
5-3 19-Sep-1993 A Going Concern
5-4 26-Sep-1993 The Kakiemon Tiger
5-5 03-Oct-1993 Three Men and a Brittle Lady
5-6 10-Oct-1993 Ducking and Diving
5-7 17-Oct-1993 Stones of Destiny
5-8 24-Oct-1993 Poetic Licence
5-9 31-Oct-1993 The Peking Gun
5-10 07-Nov-1993 Goose Bumps
5-11 14-Nov-1993 Swings and Roundabouts
5-12 21-Nov-1993 Never Judge a Book By Its Cover
5-13 28-Nov-1993 The Price of Fish
Special S-2 27-Dec-1993 The Lost Colony
Series 6
6-1 02-Oct-1994 Fair Exchange
6-2 09-Oct-1994 Day of Reckoning
6-3 16-Oct-1994 Somewhere Over the Rainbow
6-4 23-Oct-1994 Double Edged Sword
6-5 30-Oct-1994 Guns and Roses
6-6 06-Nov-1994 The Last of the Uzkoks
6-7 13-Nov-1994 Breaking the Broker
6-8 20-Nov-1994 Fruit of the Dessert
6-9 27-Nov-1994 Holding the Baby
6-10 04-Dec-1994 Last Tango in Lavenham

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For the first time ever, every Lovejoy episode and Christmas special is available together in this 22-disc gift set including over 63 hours of heart-stopping intrigue!
Just call him Lovejoy.Ian McShane (Deadwood) stars as the irresistible rogue with a keen eye for beauty... and trouble!This antiques dealer and part-time detective scours the murky salesrooms, auction halls, and stately homes of Britain, always on the lookout for a find. Lovejoy has a particular weakness for a good sob story or a pretty face, either of which is enough to send him off in pursuit of villains and help victims recover their property.Whether it's a priceless old master or a pretty young lady, his love of beauty is sure to land him in trouble wherever he goes.

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