Grievously injured in the crash of an experimental aircraft, Colonel Steve Austin's shattered body is covertly rebuilt via the miracle of modern science known as bionics. Equipped with atomic-powered limbs that make him "better, stronger, faster" than the average mortal, Austin (Lee Majors) can now run at speeds exceeding 60 miles per hour, overturn cars with ease, and spot an encroaching enemy from over a mile away. Under the watchful eye of OSI director Oscar Goldman (Richard Anderson), Steve repays his debt to the taxpayers by taking on perilous missions of a highly classified nature.
SEASON 1 chronicles Steve Austin's amazing metamorphosis from "a man barely alive" to cyborg to patriotic superspy. Armed with futuristic abilities, Austin is dispatched to do battle with kidnappers, arms smugglers, evil scientists, political assassins, and a diabolical robot – with time enough to spare to counsel a troubled astronaut (William Shatner) and clear his dead father's name. Relive the thrill of Steve's first bionic run on six Blu-rays featuring 13 uncut episodes, all three made-for-TV movies in their original broadcast versions, and the two-part syndication versions.
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BONUS FEATURES
• NEW Audio Commentaries by Herbie J. Pilato, Author of The Bionic Book: The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman Reconstructed
• Featurettes: "Real Bionics" and "An Iconic Opening"
• "Season 1 VIPs: A Look at the Guest Stars of the First Season
• "OSI Mission Debriefing": Executive Producer Harve Bennett
• "Bionic Breakdown"
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PILOT TV MOVIES
The Six Million Dollar Man (a.k.a. Cyborg / The Moon and the Desert) (3/7/73)
Wine, Women and War (10/20/73)
The Solid Gold Kidnapping (11/17/73)
EPISODE LIST
1. Population: Zero (1/18/74)
2. Survival of the Fittest (1/25/74)
3. Operation Firefly (2/1/74)
4. Day of the Robot (2/8/74)
5. Little Orphan Airplane (2/22/74)
6. Doomsday, and Counting (3/1/74)
7. Eyewitness to Murder (3/8/74)
8. Rescue of Athena One (3/15/74)
9. Dr. Wells Is Missing (3/29/74)
10. The Last of the Fourth of Julys (4/5/74)
11. Burning Bright (4/12/74)
12. The Coward (4/19/74)
13. Run, Steve, Run (4/26/74)
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EPISODE GUIDE
Pilot TV Movies (Disc 1: Original Broadcasts, Disc 6: Syndication Versions)
The Six Million Dollar Man (3/7/73)
Audio Commentary with Author Herbie J. Pilato
When Colonel Steve Austin tests a new government plane, he is nearly killed after it malfunctions and crashes. To save him he is rebuilt using bionic parts. Having a hard time making the psychological adjustment and feeling depressed, Steve is given a government assignment in the Middle East.
Part 1: When test pilot Steve Austin is seriously injured in a crash, Dr. Rudy Wells rebuilds him into a superhuman through the medical science of bionics.
Part 2: With his new bionic arm, legs and eye, Steve undertakes his first bionic mission for the Office of Scientific Intelligence in order to rescue a young boy in Saudi Arabia.
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Wine, Women and War (10/20/73)
Steve is assigned to stop weapons dealer Findletter, who claims to have a Polaris nuclear missile for sale. Along the way, he must deal with Soviet agents Alexi and Katrina and stop Findletter's hijacking of a newly launched submarine.
Part 1: Things go terribly wrong when Steve goes to Egypt to stop an arms dealer, and as a result, he is reluctant to go back out into the field.
Part 2: After a devastating loss in Egypt, Steve soon finds himself back in the field to track the arms dealer – this time with revenge on his mind.
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The Solid Gold Kidnapping (11/17/73)
Steve becomes involved in a series of kidnapping cases culminating in a demand in a billion dollar ransom delivered from Fort Knox. When the ransom is hijacked, Steve must team up with a scientist to extract the information from a dead kidnapper's brain through cell transfer technology.
Part 1: Steve must rescue a U.S. ambassador to Mexico who has been kidnapped and held for ransom in an ancient temple.
Part 2: Steve returns to duty when a U.S. official is seized by the same group that kidnapped Ambassador Scott, and he and Dr. Erica Bergner race to save him.
Disc 2: Episodes 1-4
1. Population: Zero (1/18/74)
Audio Commentary with Author Herbie J. Pilato
When the entire population of a town is knocked out, Steve and Oscar investigate the situation. They discover the culprit and must stop him from striking again.
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2. Survival of the Fittest (1/25/74)
Steve and Oscar's flight makes an emergency landing. As they wait to be rescued, things get complicated when Oscar is wounded in an assassination attempt and Steve must save him.
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3. Operation Firefly (2/1/74)
When Dr. Samuel Abbott is kidnapped while working on his portable laser projector, Steve goes to Spain to meet the scientist's daughter, whose ESP helps guide the pair in their rescue mission.
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4. Day of the Robot (2/8/74)
Audio Commentary with Author Herbie J. Pilato
Steve is called to duty when the inventor of an anti-missile device is kidnapped and replaced with a robot; he must go head-to-head with the robot to save the missile guidance system from spies.
Disc 3: Episodes 5-8
5. Little Orphan Airplane (2/22/74)
Steve is dispatched to save a U.S. pilot who has crashed in Africa and recover valuable evidence that the pilot has with him; to escape the region, Steve must repair the airplane.
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6. Doomsday, and Counting (3/1/74)
When an earthquake traps a woman in an underground nuclear reactor, Steve travels to Russia to rescue her, but a self-destruct weapon has been activated and needs to be stopped.
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7. Eyewitness to Murder (3/8/74)
Steve witnesses the attempted murder of an attorney, and his bionic eye helps him identify the sniper; later, when the accused murderer is released from custody, Steve goes after him.
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8. Rescue of Athena One (3/15/74)
Steve comes to the aid of America's first woman astronaut when she runs into trouble, but things get complicated when he discovers that his bionic replacements malfunction in outer space.
Disc 4: Episodes 9-12
9. Dr. Wells Is Missing (3/29/74)
When Dr. Rudy Wells, the doctor who created Steve's bionic limbs, is kidnapped by criminals who want him to build them a bionic man, Steve must find and rescue him.
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10. The Last of the Fourth of Julys (4/5/74)
Steve must infiltrate a terrorist compound to stop the mastermind behind a plot to assassinate several world leaders using a deadly laser beam.
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11. Burning Bright (4/12/74)
After an accident in space, an astronaut finds himself able to communicate with dolphins and control people's minds, but when his condition deteriorates, Steve is called in to help him.
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12. The Coward (4/19/74)
When an earthquake uncovers a missing World War II airplane, Steve must recover the secret documents on board.
Disc 5: Episodes 13
13. Run, Steve, Run (4/26/74)
A crime syndicate and an infamous robot builder plot to create a team of bionic robots to steal gold from Fort Knox, and they kidnap Steve to find out how his bionic replacements work.
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BONUS FEATURES
• "Real Bionics" (11:58, SD) features interviews with writer/producer Kenneth Johnson, executive producer Harve Bennett, technical director Ian Fothergill, writer James Parriott, and touch bionics director Karl Lindborg. The fictional world of The Six Million Dollar Man and its influence on medical research is examined. Fan response is explored, with Bennett having the unenviable task of communicating with young viewers seeking their own bionic parts.
• "An Iconic Opening" (18:54, SD) features interviews with main title director Jack Cole, director Jerry London, executive producer Harve Bennett, director Steve Stafford, actor Martin E. Brooks, and fan Jesse Mesa Toves. The interviewees discuss the intent and execution of The Six Million Dollar Man main title sequence, working with technology of the time to create an opener capable of keeping viewers connected to the series.
• "Season 1 VIPs: A Celebration of The Six Million Dollar Man Guest Stars" (12:16, SD) features interviews with author Herbie J. Pilato, fan Paul K. Bisson, and executive producer Harve Bennett. The many famous faces of The Six Million Dollar Man are discussed, contributions from such guest stars as William Shatner, Jo Anne Worley, and Farrah Fawcett being highlighted.
• "Bionic Breakdown" highlights the different abilities of Steve Austin's superpowered body. Click on Steve Austin's eye, arm or legs to learn more about each one of his bionic enhancements; from night-vision to cauterizing veins to running speeds that exceed 65 miles per hour, Colonel Austin's skills and abilities are cataloged here with episode clips as a visual reference.
• "OSI Mission Debriefing" (75:04, SD) is an interview with executive producer Harve Bennett.
Scene Selection
1. Becoming Part of The Six Million Dollar Man
2. Who Was "Steve Austin?"
3. Richard Anderson
4. Martin Caidin and Steven Bochco
5. The Bionic Woman
6. "One of Our Running Backs is Missing"
7. The Iconic Sound Effects
8. Was The Six Million Dollar Man Science Fiction? |
Overview
