TV ON DVD

Music obstacles detonated, China Beach lands in stores

China Beach, Complete Series
China Beach, Complete Series

What is it? China Beach, Complete Series, 62 episodes on 21 discs from Star Vista Entertainment

How much? $199.95

When? Now

Set in China? Try Vietnam in the middle of the war. China Beach was an evacuation hospital and rest and recreation center on a picturesque stretch of beach near Da Nang.

As for the series, which ran from 1988 to 1991, it’s basically a more dramatic, woman-centric version of MAS*H.

That woman is Army nurse Colleen McMurphy (Dana Delany). She volunteered to go to Vietnam, anxious to serve her country. What she has found is death, destruction and an unlikely surrogate family with cohorts like the womanizing but caring Dr. Dick Richard (Robert Picardo), philosophical graves registrar Pvt. Samuel Beckett (Michael Boatman) and Sgt. Dodger Winslow (Jeff Kober), the Marine who has seen way too much.

McMurphy also has an unlikely friend in K.C. Kolowski (Marg Helgenberger), an opportunistic prostitute who lives at China Beach in an unofficial capacity and sees the war as her gateway to financial security. She saves herself for officers but makes an exception for charming Marine-turned-lifeguard Cpl. Boonie Lanier (Brian Wimmer).

Others come and go, like mechanic Sgt. Bob Pepper (Troy Evans), eager Pvt. Frankie Bunsen (Nancy Giles), bubbly USO singer Laurette Barber (Chloe Webb), and naive Red Cross worker Cherry White (Nan Woods). But around here, no one stays bubbly or naive for long.

Maj. Lila Garreau (Concetta Tomei), a by the-book World War II veteran, is in charge and tries to keep everyone in line.

It’s a show that plays fast and loose with style, sometimes mixing cartoons, dream sequences and real-life interviews into the episodes. The first three seasons are spent in the late 1960s, then the final season jumps into the ’70s and ’80s.

How is it? It can be soapy. It can be melodramatic. It can be preachy. But it can also be moving and thought-provoking. The creators made an effort to be as authentic as possible, and real-life veterans were very much involved in the series as consultants. A couple of episodes mix real-life interviews with clips from the series.

Most of the characters are three-dimensional and frequently surprising, and it’s easy to grow attached to them. The roles are well-written and well-acted.

I remember this one! Why hasn’t it been on DVD before? Short answer? Music. China Beach episodes were packed with 1960s classics, and keeping music in place for a DVD release can be a tricky (and costly) legal matter for series that aired before the DVD age. Luckily, they were able to keep most of the music intact for this one.

Extras? Enough to make a fan giddy. This release comes not long after the cast, crew and creators celebrated the show’s 25th anniversary. So, in addition to the requisite gag reel, deleted scenes and commentary tracks, there are multiple, lengthy interviews, featurettes, roundtable discussions and footage from the reunion and the filming of the series finale. The accompanying booklet has character descriptions and letters from vets and fans.

New this week: Burning Love, Season 1; Damages, Complete Series; Degrassi: The Next Generation, Season 12.

Next week: Absolutely Fabulous, Complete Collection; Bat Masterson, Season 3; Beverly Hills, 90210, Complete Series; Boy Meets World, Complete Series; Dexter, Complete Series; Family Ties, Complete Series; Keeping Up Appearances, Collector’s Edition; Law & Order, Season 3; Mad Men, Season 6; Saved by the Bell, Complete Series; Seinfeld, Complete Series; Under the Dome, Season 1; Weeds, Complete Collection (Blu-ray).

Style, Pages 49 on 10/27/2013

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