Back in the 1970s, my family watched "Police Story" religiously. However, I was pretty young and cannot say just how good all the episodes were. This is because a few years ago they released Season One on DVD...and no other episodes have been released. So, my giving the show a 10 is purely based on the First Season....though it seems logical to assume subsequent seasons were also excellent.The show was very unusual because there were no series regulars. A few actors appeared periodically playing the same characters--but that was the exception to the rule. Instead, each episode focused on a different type of policework or different situation. One episode was all about a fingerprint man who was bored because he wanted to do field work, another was all about the Chief, another was about a dirty cop...and so on. Each was like a made for TV film and it was one of the real quality productions of its day. The writing was top-notch and realistic, the acting exceptional and the episodes were never dull. And, unlike most cop shows, it was never formulaic. If any of you learn about how to see the rest of the episodes...please let me know.

I have seen many series about detectives and cops of all kinds all over the decades. Cops as the leads, I mean. And of course this TV show will remain as one of the best ever, even forty years after its releasing. In this TV show, cops are shown from every angle possible: high rate cops, commissioners, beat cops, detectives, lieutenants, homicide, drug enforcers, vice squad cops, Internal Affairs cops; male cops, female cops, cops with problems of all kinds, cops with kids, lone cops, widower cops...But, unfortunately, in this show, I have not seen corrupted, rogue, rotten cops schemes, which is although a very interesting point of view about police force and which we have seen many times in long length features for the big screen, and not only... But not in this series. So far I remember. But maybe I missed one, after all that's possible.

Behind "Dragnet" and "Adam 12," this is THE definitive police show. "Police Story" paved the way for "Hill Street Blues," "NYPD Blue," and "Southland." With a great cast that includes, but is not limited to Vic Morrow, Chuck Connors, Don Meredith, Don Murray, Scot Bready, Harold Duff, Claude Akins, Loyd Bridges and Paul Burke in several re-occurring roles, this shows police work at it's most dangerous, boring, sad and funny. You don't know from episode to episode who is going to be appearing. One week it's SWAT action. The next, Robbery team detectives, Vice cops, Accident Investigation Division and, of course, Patrol Division. The cops are real people with their flaws, prejudices and guts. I was a rookie cop when Season 2 started. This was mandatory viewing for young cops back in the early 1970's. I've been a retired cop for over two years now. In that time, I had not missed being a cop one time, until I watched the first episode of Season 1, "Slow Boy." Vic Morrow made his first appearance as Sgt. Joe La Frieda and it's a gem. I can't recommend this enough. My youngest daughter made a bunch of points with sending this to me. I had no idea that it had been released to DVD. I'll be snapping up the remaining seasons as they become available.

Police Story was a bold and innovative concept for television police drama. It was perhaps the first police drama to portray cops as real humans with human frailties. There was not a smooth script with the sense that everything was under control. There was always an edge that something might go wrong and be irreparable by the end of the show. Its strengths were the revolving collection of actors from week to week. It often took well known type casted actors such as Martin Milnor as Pete Malloy,Adam 12 Hugh O'Brien as Wyatte Earp, and others and played them against type as the so clean appearing cops they were used to playing. That casting against type could make even a lack luster episode interesting.