Review of Prime Suspect Box Set (7 Discs)

Introduction

British television has a proud history of delivering high quality serious Police drama - both in series form like the critically acclaimed (and simply brilliant) Between the Lines and in mini-series form like Cracker and Prime Suspect. The latter two ITV produced shows have recently been released on DVD, with each of the seven and ten respective episodes available as single discs or box sets. Each box set contains the same discs as the individual releases, repackaged in a fold-out slipcase. The discs themselves are identical.

This box set contains the seven episodes of Prime Suspect that have been made so far, with one disc for series 1, 2, 3 and 5 and three covering series 4.

Prime Suspect
When DCI Jane Tennison (Mirren) takes over the running of what appears to be an open and shut murder case, her investigations lead her into a male dominated world and the hunt for a serial killer.

Prime Suspect 2
DCI Tennison begins an investigation into the death of a young girl, whose body is found in the back garden of a house in London.

Prime Suspect 3
Chief Inspector Jane Tennison investigates the discovery of a male prostitute`s charred body in the burnt-out flat of a trans-sexual...

Prime Suspect 4 - The Lost Child
Detective Superintendent Jane Tennison`s return to London`s Southampton Row is complicated by personal upheaval and an investigation into the disappearance of a child...

Prime Suspect 4 - Inner Circles
Detective Superintendent Tennison investigates the mysterious death of a local country club manager and is led to a hidden political scandal...

Prime Suspect 4 - Scent of Darkness
A series of brutal sex murders disturbingly similar to the pattern of Tennison`s first major case leads to the awful suggestion that she may have caught the wrong man...

Prime Suspect 5 - Errors of Judgement
Detective Superintendent Jane Tennison has been transferred to Manchester and finds herself in a world she does not know, surrounded by people she cannot trust, and invloved with a man she cannot have. Her latest case is destined only to make things worse...

Video

The video is presented in the 4:3 full-frame as originally broadcast on British television. The image is free from dirt, and the first three series are a little grainy at times - the image improves considerably in series four and five.

Prime Suspect always has been a series made with movie production values, and the first three series carry eighteen certificates and deservedly so, with grisly murder scenes and hard hitting visuals. Series four and five feature less hard hitting visuals, and as a result they carry just a fifteen certificate. All seven episodes are however well filmed and make good use of location and crime scenes to tell the story.

Audio

The soundtrack is presented in Dolby Digital 2.0, which is shame because a full 5.1 channel remix would have given the soundtrack the bite to match the visuals - something that would have increased the impact of the series even further.

As it stands, the Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack is more than adequate and delivers solid vocals and a reasonable reproduction of the series` score and sound effects.

Features

Sadly, the discs are totally devoid of extras, featuring only a static menu offering "Play" and "Chapter Selection".

Whilst this box set represents good value for money, I`d like to have seen a bonus disc with some making-of featurettes.

Conclusion

There are seven episodes of Prime Suspect in this box set, six of which are excellent, the other one is merely good, but all feature an excellent cast, good storylines and script and are very well made.

There is just under nineteen hours of top-notch entertainment spread across these seven discs, and few series can offer the consistency of Prime Suspect, despite the "Lost Child" episode being a little weak in comparison compared to the others in the series.

The video is generally good and the sound is adequate. The lack of extras is a little disappointing, but overall the quality and length of the content makes the box set excellent value for money.

This box set is highly recommended.