The three officers spent a lot of time together. Webster and Gillis were roommates, while Danko and his wife Jill (Kate Jackson)—a nurse at a local hospital—lived in an apartment next door. Oddly enough, the three officers usually ended up working the same cases under the guidance of the tough but caring Lt. Ryker.
Since Kate Jackson’s character Jill Danko isn’t in law enforcement, her character was often the victim or would-be-victim of a crime. If she wasn’t part of a given weeks crime story, she was always available at the hospital to offer support to the victims, her husband and the other rookies.
The second season begins with “Cauldron,” in which Terry and Willie are kidnapped by a dying criminal, in a bid to flee the country for cancer treatment. A cop holds Mike responsible for the death of his partner in “Margin for Error.” In “Deadly Cage” Webster goes undercover at the State Prison. When the inmates discover he’s a cop, chaos ensues. Willie and Terry arrest a teenage boy whose father is trying to protect him from being arrested in “Frozen Smoke.” In “Get Ryker,” the veteran policeman finds his life is in danger when a criminal he put away years before, decides to get revenge. Terry and Willie investigate a burglary ring in “Cry Wolf.” In “A Matter of Justice,” crime hits close to home, when Jill is shot during a dinner to mark her wedding anniversary; Mike is determined to make sure the assailant pays for his actions. Terry’s brother, a Vietnam vet, finds himself in trouble after a jewelry store is robbed in “Blood Brother.”
In “Code 261” a rapist with a taste for nurses has his sights set on a new target: Jill. Ryker is put in charge of a team that investigates the murder of a priest in “Prayers Unanswered, Prayers Unheard.” Terry and Willy must protect a country music star whose life is at risk in “Down Home Boy.” Jill must deal with an “ill” ex-lover while Mike is out of town, in “Lots of Trees and a Running Stream.” Willie must find a diabetic, suicidal 16-year-old before it’s too late in “Sound of Silence.” A veteran officer steadfastly believes Willie is responsible for the shooting of another policeman in “Trial by Doubt.” In “The Authentic Death of Billy Stomper,” Terry falls for a Jamaican college student who witnessed the murder of a drug dealer.
Mike and Jill’s marriage becomes strained, when Mike reaches out to help the widow of a man killed during a police shoot out in “The Late Mr. Brent.” A teenager helps an armed robber escape in “The Teacher.” In “Eyewitness,” Ryker takes a murder witness under his wing, but the young man has a split personality… and one of those personalities is a cop killer. In “Something Less than a Man” an aging security guard claims to have shot and killed a local crime boss, in an effort to gain the respect of his daughter. In “Rolling Thunder,” Terry is kidnapped along with a young police cadet. In “Time Lock,” a young felon holds three women, one of whom is pregnant, hostage in a bank vault demanding that his partner be freed from jail. The season ends with “Death Watch,” in which a convict with a deadly vendetta escapes from prison… but what may be more deadly is the viral meningitis which he may be carrying.
This season’s notable guest stars include: John Saxon, Claude Akins, Victor French, John Travolta, Scott Jacoby, Joseph Campanella, Joan Blondell, Glynn Turman, David Canary, Sissy Spacek, Nick Nolte, Strother Martin, Don Johnson, Tyne Daly and Anthony Zerbe.
Most of the episodes appear to be unedited, with a runtime of approximately 51 minutes. The one notable exception is “Prayers Unanswered, Prayers Unheard,” which runs about 47 minutes and appears to be the version shortened for syndication. It should be said that Shout! has included a disclaimer with the episode, saying it was taken from the “best available source.” One can only presume that the original episode simply wasn’t available.
Below is a list of the episodes as they appear on each disc and their individual runtimes:
Disc 1:
1. “Cauldron” (51:07)
2. “Margin for Error” (50:55)
3. “Deadly Cage” (50:57)
4. “Frozen Smoke” (50:55)
Disc 2:
5. “Get Ryker” (50:53)
6. “Cry Wolf” (51:08)
7. “A Matter of Justice” (51:06)
8. “Blood Brother” (51:06)
Disc 3:
9. “Code 261” (50:38)
10. “Prayers Unanswered, Prayers Unheard” (46:21)
11. “Down Home Boy” (51:05)
12. “Lots of Trees and a Running Stream” (51:05)
Disc 4:
13. “Another Beginning for Ben Fuller” (51:08)
14. “Sound of Silence” (51:02)
15. “Trial by Doubt” (50:37)
16. “The Authentic Death of Billy Stomper” (51:02)
Disc 5:
17. “The Late Mr. Brent” (51:05)
18. “The Teacher” (51:06)
19. “Eyewitness” (51:04)
20. “Something Less than a Man” (51:08)
Disc 6:
21. “Rolling Thunder” (51:08)
22. “Time Lock” (50:33)
23. “Death Watch” (51:02)
Given its age, The Rookies: The Complete Second Season is a solid transfer. Shot on film, the picture is clean and boasts fairly good colors. You’ll likely notice the occasional faded shot over these 23 episodes, but those moments are few and far between.
The Dolby Digital 2.0 monaural mix won’t blow you away, but dialogue is always clean and crisp. Some episodes have a little more oomph then other during action scenes, but that generally comes with the territory when you’re dealing with DVD’s that contain shows almost 40 years old.
No subtitles or closed captions are available.
There are no special features.
