The Master: The Complete Series

I love The Master. My dad and I would watch this show together when it came on tv.

Hi this is Max Keller and this is how I usually leave a review ...*Crash*... If you're a Master Ninja fan (The Master) you're in luck, because you can now finally have your very own copy of the complete series.I won't go very deep into the particulars of the series; but it couldn't hurt to mention, if you love the cliché side of the' 80's ninja craze, you'll probably love these episodes.On the quality of the product:-My own personal note: I am a little biased based on the medium of my vintage copies. Clearly my initial Master Ninja 2 VHS; from a garage sale that had parts of it recorded over and crap all over the clam shell case, can't compete with the clarity and sound quality of this production.Pros:-All episodes available at once, no more hunting on-line, at thrift shops, or garage sales.-No more fast forwarding through an episode (If you have the VHS Master Ninja series).-Affordable.-Very crisp audio.-Authentic presentation of the authentic video footage (Generally a crisp picture compared to the VHS).Cons:-Authentic presentation of the authentic video footage. (Understandably so; yet disappointing, it retains the original "T.V." aspect ratio format)-The menu screen has the great theme song, but the scene selection section feels a little simple.-No apparent extras.My Conclusion: If you're a fan of the show and you have the means, I suggest you should grab one of these while you can. It's been so long since it was commercially available, and each of my "Cons" are irrelevant if you've been waiting to see the rest of the series but haven't been able to find it. This series it so horridly and beautifully cliché it's hard to pass up. I promise that it's better than the VHS copy from a garage sale, with part of it copied over, and crap all over the clam shell case. I even enjoyed it that way, imagine how pleased I am to finally have a have a copy of the complete series. If you're a fan, I know you will too.

Its work great thank you

The Master is what you get if you take any of the serialized 1980's action series like A-Team, Greatest American Hero, Night Rider etc., and combine it with the Cannon ninja trilogy (which had a big cult following). It never gained traction as a show and was ultimately canceled after just 13 episodes. I was in the neighborhood of 7 or 8 when the series first aired, and loved martial arts and all things ninja and remember watching some of the episodes when they originally aired. It was easy to overlook the cheesy, and sometimes downright bad acting and writing back then, more than it is now, but if you were growing up back then and watched the show it will be a nostalgic blast from the past.The series starred Lee Van Cleef and Timothy Van Patten, with recurring appearances by the star of the Cannon ninja trilogy (Enter the Ninja, Revenge of the Ninja, and Ninja III: The Domination), Sho Kasugi. Van Cleef played John Peter McCallister, an aging Ninja Master returning to the United States to find his daughter. Kasugi played his former student, Okasa, from Japan who was out to kill him, and Van Patten plays Max Keller, who becomes his new student after the two meet in the mists of a bar fight. It is basically a story-of-the-week show where the with Keller and McCalister driving around the country looking for McCallister's daughter, and eventually getting involved in some local dust-up between (usually) a damsel in distress against the local bad guy(s). It does take a lot of suspension of disbelief on many levels. Including buying that either Van Cleef or Van Patten had anything close to martial arts skill (which you could see during the extreme close-ups during the fight scenes they did not), or that the McCallister character, who would walk around as himself in broad daylight beating up the bad guys, would need to change into his ninja uniform at night to beat up the same bad guys, with his same apprentice in tow (who was not in a ninja uniform). And even when he was in uniform he was always pulling his mask down, so there was never any real disguising who he was. And of course, there was the carrying around tons of illegal weapons.For those who get the blu rays, the transfer is about as good as it can be for an old 1980s tv show. For extras, there are trailers for a handful of the Westerns that Van Cleef was known for throughout his career, as well as trailers for Enter the Ninja and Revenge of the Ninja, the two movies Kasugi had been in at that point.I think most people who will get this are those who were kids in the 1980s and remember watching it back then. It is definitely not something you will get because of great writing or acting. There were a number of very recognizable and good character actors and actresses in the show (including a young Demi Moore in the pilot), but it was overall a pretty hokey and cheesy show. That point was best summed up when one of the characters picks up a piece of uranium and sticks it in his pocket. If you watch it expecting it to just be a fun blast from the past, it is enjoyable and even pretty funny. If you are expecting award-winning TV, you will be sorely disappointed.

Superb quality DVD set with memorable guest stars. The chemistry works well between Lee Van Cleef and Timothy Van Patten and the stories are fairly good for 1984. Timothy Van Patten is likeable as Max - a far cry from his villainous role in Class of 1984, which demonstrates his versatility. Sho Kosugi is also good.1. Max - Claude Akins, Clu Gulager, Demi Moore2. Out-Of-Time-Step - Dick Durock, Soon Tek-Oh. Bill Saito3. State Of The Union - Crystal Bernard, Mickey Jones, Davis Roberts4. Hostages - Randi Brooks, Bob Dowdell, George Lazenby, David McCallum, Monte Markham5. High Rollers - Art Hindle6. Fat Tuesday - Robert Pine, Stafford Morgan7. Juggernaut - Diana Muldaur, William Smith, Stuart Whitman, Burton Gillium,. Robert Tessier,Tara Buckman8. The Good, The Bad and The Priceless - George Maharis, Johnny Seven, Tara Buckman, Kathleen Kinmont9. Kunoichi - William Campbell, Jack Kelly10. The Java Tiger - Dick O'Neill, Kabir Bedi11. Failure To Communicate - Mark Alaimo, Edd Byrnes, Doug McClure, J.D Cannon, Mark Goddard, Rebecca Holden12. Rogues - Kaz Garas, Tony Swartz, Paul Tulley13. A Place Called Home - James Gammon, Ed Anders, Kane Kosugi, Jock Mahoney, Hunter Von Leer

I loved watching this series as a young teenager and still enjoy watching it many years later. Some people may call it cheesy but that’s just because they don’t understand classic tv. If you enjoy Lee Van Cleef, you have to have this series. It does not disappoint.