Wagon Train: Season 2

The second season of one of TV's most popular and best-loved Westerns takes up almost exactly where the first left off, as Major Seth Adams (Ward Bond) and long-time friends Bill Hawks (Terry Wilson) and Charlie Wooster (Frank McGrath), vacationing in San Francisco after their long journey west, manage to get themselves shanghaiied in “Around the Horn,” while scout Flint McCullough (Robert Horton) calmly travels overland with never a hint of their situation. (It's notable that while Hawks is described as “a married man” in both the first and final segments of this season, we never see his wife Emily again, and by Third she's no longer mentioned at all.) What follows is 37 further episodes of adventure and human conflict, illuminated by many noted Hollywood stars, including comic Lou Costello (of Abbott &) in his only dramatic role as a drifter far too fond of the bottle who's redeemed by his bond with a 12-year-old girl, and Bette Davis as the widowed mother of seven youngsters who suddenly learns that she's dying and must make provisions for her children's future. There's Cliff Robertson as an Irish freedom-fighter on the trail of an informer, Jane Wyman as a lady doctor struggling to cope with social censure, Chill Wills as a one-eyed scout, James Coburn as a stagecoach robber, Sessue Hayakawa as a samurai trying to return his dead master's ashes to Japan, Virginia Mayo as a king rancher's daughter struggling to carry on as her father would have wished, Patty McCormack ("The Bad Seed") as a rebellious young girl whose only chance for redemption lies with her friendship with an invalid counterpart, Anne Baxter as a dance-hall girl who takes in an orphaned Indian infant (with Henry Hull a delight as the spry oldster who becomes her greatest partisan and helper), Lloyd Nolan as a veteran gold hunter whose discovery of the precious metal threatens the entire train, Dan Duryea as the only survivor of a party that perished in a mountain winter, J. Carroll Naish as the sly father of a gang of robber brothers, Brian Donlevy as an undercover police detective, Phyllis Thaxter as a hopeful “maiden lady,” Anna Maria Alberghetti as a Comanchero's daughter, Vera Miles as a nun, Richard Anderson as a one-armed Quaker doctor who may be the only chance for a party stricken with sickness, Wally Cox as a westbound schoolteacher, Cameron Mitchell as a fugitive trying to escape his past and doing pretty well at it till he's spotted by a lawman, Robert Loggia as a Californio adopted by the Pawnee, Ann Blyth in a dual role as a maimed San Francisco singer and her daughter, and many others. A young Dean Stockwell (of "Quantum Leap") appears twice—once as a Mexican youth who witnessed his father's hanging and is out to even the score, and once as a white one who was taken in and raised by a Cheyenne exile after his parents were murdered. So does Robert Fuller (who in the final two seasons of the series would play scout Cooper Smith), once as a recently-married young gambler who must fight to survive the snow and cold when his wife is severely injured and he has to stay behind with her while the train goes on to find a doctor, and once in a delightful small role as the 18-year-old suitor of Bette Davis's oldest daughter; and John McIntire, who would take over as Christopher Hale after Ward Bond's death, shows up as outcast preacher Andrew... Hale! (Chris's brother?!)Continuity, as is often true of Golden Era TV Westerns, often leaves something to be desired: this season is variously said to be “six years” since the end of the war (1871), “five years” since its early stages (1866), and “ten years” since 1860. The writers also haven't done their research about Indians, and much of the costume and culture of the red men should be taken with a large grain of salt. And geography's a bit muddled: a wagon train crossing to California shouldn't encounter threatening snow—or the debri of a party lost in last year's—until the Sierras, but several segments focusing on that threat seem to take place in the Rockies. Still, there's plenty of drama, excitement, romance, and—the great strength of this series—human emotion, change, and conflict, not to speak of at least one female director (Bretaigne Windust, whose name appears on several segments) and a frequent female scriptwriter (Jean Holloway), both unusual for the time and genre. Anyone who loves Westerns of this era can't consider his DVD collection complete without a row of embossed tin arch-top boxes on his shelf.

Regarding the TV show "Wagon Train" itself, it definitely rates 5 Stars. Howver, regarding the low quality DVD discs used by this company to produce this DVD box set, it rate 1 Star (Only because they don't have a lower rating). I've had problems many times before with DVD products from this company. Sometimes, I had to return box sets three times before I managed to finally get one that was satisfactory. Actually, the stores that I purchased the DVD sets from were nice enough to allow me to switch the defective discs with ones from another set. After going back three times to do this, FINALLY, I managed to get me a DVD box set that had no defective DVD dics. I really had to work hard for it. This company has a lot of good Western TV shows out in DVD box sets, unfortunately, a lot of those DVD box sts contain low-quality discs that are defective. I will have to save that miraculously, the "Branded" and "Laredo" DVD box sets did not contian defective DVD discs. They were a pleasure to wrtch.

Am buying all of the Wagon Train series. My husband and I watch these every night and they are fantastic. It has stars we recognize, the story lines are almost always terrific, and the black and white is my style and comfort zone in a crazy world where I have evolved into a retired alien. Older people ... buy it and get your life back!

Season 2. 2 of the disks did not work. Disk #7 & #8 would not work. This is better than Season 3 that did not work at all. Amazon was great and sent me a second set of this season and that one didn’t work either. They promptly handled & had me return. Amazon Customter Service are great. Season 3 was the first time I’ve returned anything in all my many purchases and I’m impressed assuming I get a credit.

At last we are getting to see some good, wholesome family entertainment that we so enjoyed in the 50's and 60's. Wagon Train was a major hit that depeneded upon good writers, excellent actors and excellent guest stars. To this day, fans (old and new) write to websites extolling the virtues of the show and how it influenced them to be better people and instilled good values in their lives.This second season collection is an improvement upon the first season as the discs are now easier to remove and replace in their cardboard sleeves. Timeless Video has done a great job on the graphics.We can soon enjoy the third season which will be availabe for distribution in May. Hopefully, Timeless will continue to publish the fourth and fifth seasons which completed the best of the 8 years in which the show ran. There is already a color season collection available, but the show never quite gained its popularity and prestige after Ward Bond died and Robert Horton left the show.

Loved the westerns of the 1950's & this was one of the best. Ward Bond set the tone & was the father figure that was missed when he passed on. I love the music & it's the intangible things that really makes this series special..things that might not seem important, but adds historical & ironic significance to the well written stories as they unfold. The goods the wagons were carrying...things we take for granted..water, shelter for the night...how our ancestors crossed the continent in these wagons still amazes me. Clarity of picture is excellent & I have no problem with the tin the discs came in. I took other's advice & bought the 2nd season (you reviewers out there do help me make purchases..thanks). Sure brings back great memories. BUY!

We were truly delighted to have collected the first 4 seasons of Wagon Train now as this valuable character series has been great for Saturday night movie and popcorn evening with our 12 grandchildren. The resulting discussions have been truly priceless. I myself have been reminded of the values of understanding, compassion, and acceptance even when in disagreement. Each of these stories is worth watching and sharing. They are even better than I remember. Our item was received just as expected and we count this an irreplaceable set in our family library.

Region 1 disc therefore requires multi-region player. Picture quality is a lot better than I had expected and in some instances excellent. Sound is acceptable. Stories, so far, have been good to excellent.

Great DVD received in good order. Well up to expectation.

Love wagon train. Watched it as a small child in the fifties. Ranging it again as an adult.

Well pleased.

These stories are well-written. The guest stars are top-notch. Some of my favourites -- Bette Davis as a widow with seven children who finds out she's dying, Lloyd Nolan as a disreputable miner who runs into the one person in the world that he just can't bilk, Dan Duryea as the "last man" of a doomed wagon train. I have season one which is also good and have season three as well, with season four on order. I highly recommend this series.