The Invisible Man, Series 1 (Box Set 1) [DVD]

On The Invisible Man Darien Fawkes quotes at the beginning of every episode that after the operation he subjected himself to was a success, everything started to go wrong. The fact is things went disastrously wrong when the unconscionable decision was made to cancel this wonderful series that is quite simply a rare treat in television.

The story concerning one petty thief inadvertently turned secret-agent, thrives on great comical play, primarily between its two main characters, Fawkes and Hobbes, yet supported by a great cast, any member of which would be sorely missed. Possibly suffering from previous, various attempts to bring it to television, the latest and best adaptation of The Invisible Man can all too easily be overlooked and dismissed ... by all but anyone who has seen and quickly come to love the show. Fans were not only surprised by the show's cancellation - they were devastated. I-man was taken well before its time, but don't let the fact that the show ran for only two seasons put you off buying it - quite the opposite!

Only recently seen in the UK, many aren't even aware of this excellent programme. The two seasons of I-man that exists are precious and may be gone before we know it, yet fans are currently out there fighting for the show's resurrection and there are rumours of a possible movie. I can only advise everyone to seek out information about the show and snap up anything that comes available before it disappears - no pun intended!

Matt Greenberg was the show's creator and executive producer and his concept often crosses genres. The effects are nicely used, never tacky. It's easy to label I-man the coolest show on television. The DVDs are nicely packaged and presented. They are worth owning for the episode notes, interviews and scripts (scripts provided as DVD-Rom content) alone, which give the viewer the additional insight of what a great programme this must have been to work on for all involved. In fact, if you need convincing to buy the DVDs, the chances are you've simply never seen the series. Trust me - you don't know what you're missing!

Vincent Ventresca oozes charisma as the flawed (bungling burglar) but hugely likeable I-man. Paul Ben-Victor is perfect as Hobbs, struggling for financial recognition from the Agency's Official. By the end of the pilot episode it seems Hobbs is going to be totally eclipsed by his new partner who just happens to be able to turn invisible and cost The Agency an awful lot of money.

The relationship between the two has echoes of the Ray and Benton dynamic in "Due South", and like "Due South" it is the interaction of the two unlikely partners that provides much of the humour. There is definitely a lot of fun in this series from the unlikely Agency sponsorship to the names of those working on the Quicksilver project - "Doctor Who" fans might find some familiar, and obviously you can have a lot of fun being invisible. . .

As the series progresses it explores the curse that can come with "gifts" - in this case the Quicksilver madness that ties Darien to the Agency - and the shady nature of secret agencies and their mysterious funding arrangements. Tight scripting and likeable characters make this an excellent series that deserved to go much further than the two years it was given.

The DVD producers have excelled themselves releasing this exciting but little-known series. The four disc packaging is both clever and stylish; the hour-long cast interview is great fun with excellent quicksilver titles; add to this the episode scripts in PDF format and you get an excellent DVD with production values you'd expect to see on a much higher profile series.

The Pilot has been remastered so it's quality is outstanding and the episodes themselves are now commercial and logo free which is always a plus. From the word go, you are greeted with snappy graphics and music, an easy to navigate menu and a choice of which disk to choose first.

The interview with Vincent Ventresca and Paul Ben-Victor plus Mike McCafferty is a joy to watch, showing quite clearly how this cult programme was such a hit with viewers worldwide. There are Episode notes and trivia to view plus the added bonus of scripts of the show on DVD-ROM.

All wrapped up in an eye catching box, The Invisible Man Season One Box Set is a treat to watch and own and a definite asset to anyone's collection, whether it's an existing fan or a new recruit. Everyone will get something out of this wonderful series that was cancelled before it's time.