Timeless: Shane (1 Viewer)

Received Shane yesterday and watched the first episode in the evening. Here are my quick findings for those thinking of purchasing:


- David Carradine suprised me a bit, younger then i have seen him before (6 years before Kung Fu) and more convincing then I expected.


- Jill Ireland was solid, as expected.


- First episode was pretty good and kept my interest.


- The prints are very good, closer to Virginian quality than the other way around.


- The only negative, for me, is the opening, a bit overkill and overly long with Joey running through the field yelling Shane and jumping into his arms. I know the movie and the ending, but this was a bit too much just watching once, I can't imagine watching it at the beginning of every episode.


While I don't think it will become an all out favorite, I am happy with the blind-buy purchase and look forward to watching the rest of the series over time.

I thought David Carradine was great as 'Shane' - I was never a big fan of Alan Ladd to be honest, and while the film was the classic story well made, I was never convinced by Ladd's rather 'wooden' Shane (I was rootin' for evil old Jack Palance to gun im down ! - LOL)


The (supposed ?) tales re the diminutive Ladd 'standing on a box' in order to square up to the towering figure of Palance (whether true or not) always stuck in my mind...


David Carradine was tall, and had the "look" of a gunfighter - and looked far more like a proper figure of 'Shane' to me....... (only my opinion folks !)


Bert Freed is good as 'Rufe Ryker', Jill Ireland was gorgeous !


I recall and there is a good 2 parter 'The Great Invasion' with guest star Bradford Dillman


The show follows on from the famous film's storyline, and I think it was possibly only envisaged as a one season show as it has a sort of 'conclusion' to the saga with; 'A Man'd Be Proud' at the end of the series run which ties things up well.

This series also explains why "Batman" (also on ABC) came up with their "Shame" parody that year. They carried the in-joke further by casting Christopher Shea's brother in the Batman episode to deliver the "Come back" line.

As the original 1949 novel is one of my all time favorites, I was never very fond of the movie or this series, but every so often I give the movie another chance and will the show too. My tastes are never so set in stone that they can't change or adapt with perhaps age and other factors to inspire them.


Contrary to Jeff above, the one thing I do like about the theatrical film is the casting; to me it's perfect and matches the descriptions and delineations in the novel. It might not work in a standalone movie, but with the genesis of the novel behind it, Ladd is just right as Shane is described as being short.


I've never been a big fan of David Carradine and haven't seen an episode of this for quite some time, but why not give it a shot? I will wait for more of Brad's reviews before purchasing as he and I have very similar tastes and I trust his judgment on these vintage series.

Completed 6 of the 17 episodes now and it's growing on me more and more. While I liked the first episode I wondered where they could go with it based on the limted cast and setting. Now they obviously only did 17 episodes but so far each has been interesting and unique in its own way.


Now while I'm not a huge David Carradine fan I did enjoy Kung Fu growing up. There are aspects of similarities in his approach to the trwo characters, so if you really don't like him this series may not change that thinking.

I was surprised to see this CBS DVD logo on the back of the Shane case. Has anyone seen this before? I wonder if any other CBS/Paramount properties could end up on Timeless/Shout?

Guy Foulard said:

Shane CBS.jpg


I was surprised to see this CBS DVD logo on the back of the Shane case. Has anyone seen this before? I wonder if any other CBS/Paramount properties could end up on Timeless/Shout?

Click to expand...

CBS licensed Bilko to them and it may have happened a few other times. Hopefully, it will continue.

I watched an episode of this somewhere and didn't rally care for it. I'm not big on David Carridine and didn't think he was a good looking enough guy to attract Jill Ireland. I love the movie and while Ladd is not my ideal Shane, he did a good job. I had the novel when I was a kid and it has always been my favorite western story. I liked the picture on the novel I had and always pictured Shane looking like this.

I wouldn't call Alan Ladd wooden by any means. He played the role of a guilt ridden fugitive perfectly.

Just finished episode 10 and can happily say I continue to enjoy it with the more episodes I watch. While the cast does a pretty good job, i think it is the stories more than anything else that has me watching. My initial thought was to watch an episode every other night, but i find myself watching two or three a night instead. I don't find the stories formulaic at all and actually quite diverse from episode to episode. Now i can see why it might not have lasted since Westerns in general were on the downslide by that time, and i don't think the setting and supporting characters were enough. If the remaining 7 episodes stay true to form I'd say they did about the best they could with the short run they had. I'm hoping "Jeff" is right and it has a pseudo conclusion, it will make it easier to revisit some day in the future.

Pathfiner said:

I thought David Carradine was great as 'Shane' - I was never a big fan of Alan Ladd to be honest, and while the film was the classic story well made, I was never convinced by Ladd's rather 'wooden' Shane (I was rootin' for evil old Jack Palance to gun im down ! - LOL)


The (supposed ?) tales re the diminutive Ladd 'standing on a box' in order to square up to the towering figure of Palance (whether true or not) always stuck in my mind...


David Carradine was tall, and had the "look" of a gunfighter - and looked far more like a proper figure of 'Shane' to me....... (only my opinion folks !)


Bert Freed is good as 'Rufe Ryker', Jill Ireland was gorgeous !


I recall and there is a good 2 parter 'The Great Invasion' with guest star Bradford Dillman


The show follows on from the famous film's storyline, and I think it was possibly only envisaged as a one season show as it has a sort of 'conclusion' to the saga with; 'A Man'd Be Proud' at the end of the series run which ties things up well.

Click to expand...

I finished the series this week and have to agree. I think Carradine fit the part well. In the movie the attraction between Shane and Marian was obvious but they did nothing about it due to the respect for her marriage and son. In the show, Marian is a widower and so there is nothing to really standing between them. I think Carradine's soft spoken and reserve approach was necessary to keep the attraction as a background story throughout the 17 episodes.


Interestingly, there are quite a few similarities between Shane and Cain (Carradine's Kung Fu character) besides the fact that the names rhyme. Both quiet and reserve, philosophical at times, running from a past, have a skill to protect the underdog, and working menial jobs. Carradine may not be a great actor, but he can play that role quite well. Of course, Jill Ireland is excellent.


I found the stories to be excellent and diverse, and as mentioned above it has an acceptable last story that could be perceived as completing the series. This isn't a series where I would feel comfortable just popping in an episode every once in a while. The growth of the characters and background story line is needed to fully enjoy it (e.g., Marian and Shane, Cattlemen vs. homesteaders). At only 17 episodes this shouldn't be a problem, so i can see revisiting it a few times over the years.


I recommend the series. It was a blind-buy for me. Now, if you just can't handle Carradine in the lead, well it probably isn't for you.

A friend of mine found the Shane set at Walmart. Not sure of the price--I'll have to check my local store to see if they have it.