Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer is a character that defied the archetype of hard boiled detective, bypassing the just broody private eye types and catered to a more vigilante type justice. The show, which ran from 1958 to 1960 caused some scandal for being extremely violent. Still, Spillane's Hammer continued to pop up over the years, later in the person of Stacy Keach (American History X, Prison Break) as The New Mike Hammer. Even Spillane himself embodied the titular character in a couple of films based on his character. While tough talking private eyes were aplenty back when Spillane first created Mike Hammer, Hammer was the first of his kind. A no holds barred, commie hating all American, who not only bent the rules but disregarded them all together to bring criminals the kind of punishment the law was incapable of dishing out.

Mike Hammer is a character that’s been referenced in a lot of films and books that I’ve seen and read but I’ve never had the opportunity to visit the Darren McGavin (Kolchak: The Night Stalker, A Christmas Story) starring series. I was looking forward to it though as I love most things that involve Noir type detective stuff like L.A. Confidential or The Maltese Falcon. Mike Hammer did not disappoint. For an older show it still packs a punch , quite literally, and the cases in which Hammer finds himself are pretty solid for running in a margin of only 25 minutes. Sometimes I felt a little cheated, what with some of the storylines having been reproduced somewhere else in later television shows and or movies, but delivery was always spot on which is amazing for a two season show that runs 78 episodes long. The gritty black and white feel of Mike Hammer fuels the violent nature of the show and suggestive imagery really is no hold barred. Simply fantastic and fantastically packaged I might add. No chances of this set ever falling apart on you as each season is cased in a DVD case with turn pages style holders and slotted inside a cardboard cover box. So if your into this genre of show it is well worth picking up. Enjoy.