TV Epic ‘Lonesome Dove’ Preserved on Four-Disc Set

Watching a good miniseries on television isn’t much fun if you have to wade through countless commercials and wait 24 hours to see the next installment. That was the main problem in watching “Lonesome Dove,” the eight-hour Western saga that aired on CBS in 1989.

Now, thanks to Image Entertainment’s four-disc special laser edition, “Lonesome Dove: The Complete Mini-Series” ($125), you can see this superb adaptation of Larry McMurtry’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel without any interruptions or distractions. It’s the best way possible to see one of television’s biggest success stories--high ratings, critical acclaim and lots of awards (seven Emmys and a Peabody).

“Return to Lonesome Dove,” the sequel due on CBS Nov. 14--without any of its principals, save Rick Schroder--has plenty to live up to. Taking an uninterrupted look at this wide-ranging epic shows why.

A bonus is “Lonesome Dove: The Making of an Epic,” a documentary that makes up the eighth side of this set. Actor Robert Duvall, whose performance as the former Texas Ranger Augustus McCrae is riveting, explains in that program that “Gus may be my favorite of any character I ever played.”

Out of character on the set, Duvall appears a powerful contrast to the wizened, wry man he breathes such life into. With makeup and trail dust off his face, it’s easier to see the intensity with which he approached the role, and why. He explains how he sees Gus in Shakespearean terms: “He’s at least as good a character as Hamlet.”

The 50-minute documentary, which comes with enough pats on the back to warm any producer’s heart, nonetheless offers some insight into the difficulties of undertaking such a massive project and the challenges faced by cast and crew alike.

Tommy Lee Jones, whose portrayal of Texas Ranger Woodrow F. Call matches Duvall’s performance scene for scene, discusses the power of the McMurtry novel and Bill Witliff’s TV adaptation that drew him to the miniseries. Anjelica Huston describes her initial bout with the novel: “It’s like a wonderful meal you can’t bear to be over.”

So now, the lauded TV version of that epic doesn’t need to be over either. If “Return to Lonesome Dove” doesn’t come close to the original, the epic is now preserved as it should be, not fading off into the sunset on disintegrating video.

The same is true for some of the finest moments of TV series that continue to appeal for their inventiveness and originality and are being offered in laser release.

“Quantum Leap,” starring Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell in the time-skipping, body-swapping series, comes to laser initially with three discs, all offered individually (MCA Universal, $35). The first, “The Pilot Episode,” written by executive producer Donald P. Bellisario, sets the theme of the series and its intriguing premise. Two additional releases come with two episodes apiece.

Other recent laser editions include a new double bill from the annals of “Northern Exposure” (MCA Universal, $35) that offers two episodes from the quirky, offbeat series appropriate to holiday viewing. One deals with Thanksgiving, the other with Christmas.