Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Season one of Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman captures the popular
television series at its most charming and original: a gently
feminist, 19th-century Western with mythic overtones, a Gunsmoke-like
vision of small-town constancy, and an audacious love story that
might best be described as Buckskin Bronte. British actress Jane
Seymour scrubbed away her accent to play Michaela Quinn, fifth
daughter of a well-to-do Boston physician who encouraged her to get
a medical degree despite social obstacles.
The headstrong Quinn moves to rough-and-tumble Colorado Springs to
set up a practice, faces stiff resistance from the locals, witnesses
the brutality of white America's expansionism, and generally
experiences a classic Western transformation from privilege to
pioneering. Along the way, Quinn makes a heartfelt connection with
the mysterious Sully (Joe Lando), a laconic
outsider/cowboy-knight-errant/widower preserving his broken heart.
While the series' pilot may be the best thing in this set, there is
a lot to enjoy about further episodes (with such guest stars as
Johnny Cash and Robert Culp) exploring Quinn's hard-won admiration
from town skeptics. Dr. Quinn creator Beth Sullivan admirably
balances the many influences and narrative forces at work; some of
the best shows are idea-driven, such as "Portraits," which deals
with prejudice. --Tom Keogh
Product Description
From the moment that Dr. Michaela "Mike" Quinn (Jane Seymour) first
stepped from the stagecoach into the mud of Colorado Springs, TV
audiences had a new destination on Saturday nights. Dr. Quinn,
Medicine Woman won popular and critical acclaim--including five
Emmy® awards--with its tales of courage, conviction and romance on
the American frontier. When the show was cancelled after six
seasons, it sparked one of the largest viewer protests in TV
history.
This comprehensive collector's set gathers all 17 episodes from the
groundbreaking first season--plus a host of exclusive extras--on 5
DVDs. Old fans will delight in revisiting favorite moments, like Dr.
Mike's first kiss from Sully (Joe Lando) and General Custer's visit
to town, while newcomers will be captivated by the gripping,
family-friendly stories and painstaking authenticity. Return to
Colorado Springs for the unforgettable first season of Dr. Quinn,
Medicine Woman, available for the first time on DVD!
Season
1: 1993
#
Title
Original
Airdate
Disc
1-2
Dr. Quinn, Medicine
Woman (Pilot)
January 1, 1993
Disc 1
Michaela
"Mike" Quinn, of Boston, followed in her
father's footsteps by becoming a doctor. Dr.
Mike worked side by side her father. But his
sudden death caused her the loss of, not
only her best friend, but the loss of their
medical practice. The lack of job
opportunities for women doctors lead
Michaela to answer an ad for a doctor in
Colorado territory. Michaela left her fancy
home in the city of Boston for the western
town, Colorado Springs. When she arrives in
town she is met with mockery, for they
expected a male doctor. She is befriended by
Charlotte Cooper (Diane Ladd) and becomes
good friends with her. Charlotte and Dr.
Quinn become close friends and when
Charlotte is bitten by a rattle snake, she
leaves her three children Matthew (Chad
Allen), Colleen (Erika Flores, later Jessica
Bowman) and Brian (Shawn Toovey) for Dr.
Mike to look after. As the town continues to
mock Michaela for expecting to be the town
doctor, she meets Sully, a white man
"turned" Native American who lets her live
in his old house. Michaela continued to
certify her doctoring abilities to the town
and slowly she became accepted by some
townsfolk.
3
Epidemic
January 2, 1993
Disc 1
Horror mounts
when a flu epidemic attacks Colorado
Springs. Dr. Mike must attend the sick
townspeople and protect others from getting
the deadly disease. But being a lady doctor
has people questioning whether she can
handle the fatal epidemic.
4
The Visitor
January 9, 1993
Disc 1
Mike's
estranged mother (Jane Wyman) visits, but
she and Mike are still miles apart.
Meanwhile, Robert E is injured in a fire.
5
Law of the Land
January 16, 1993
Disc 2
A gunslinger
(Johnny Cash) arrives looking for a quiet
town in which to hang 'em up, but Colorado
Springs is itching to lynch an immigrant
(Christopher Keene Kelly) for cattle
rustling to feed his starving family.
6
The Healing
January 23, 1993
Disc 2
A bitter
Loren, who blames Sully for his daughter's
death, tries to repossess Dr. Mike's cabin
when he learns he still owns the deed.
7
Father's Day
January 30, 1993
Disc 2
As Dr. Quinn
is trying to persuade the townspeople that
smallpox vaccinations are necessary, the
father of Brain, Colleen, and Matthew
arrives, causing trouble among the siblings
as Matthew is suspicious of the father who
abandoned them years ago and will not see
his younger siblings hurt. Dr. Mike and
Sully will have to ensure that Colleen and
Brian don't get hurt as Ethan Cooper's
actions could reflect poorly on the young
Cooper children.
8
Bad Water
February 6, 1993
Disc 2
When several
townspeople come down with mercury
poisoning, Dr. Mike forces a reluctant Sully
to guide her to the high mountain stream
which may be the source of the problem. The
trek is difficult for her, but she
ultimately earns Sully's respect and
gratitude after saving his life twice
despite a broken wrist. Just as they confirm
that the water is being polluted by a local
mine owner whose mining process is dumping
mercury into the stream, they are captured
by his men. In the interim, worried
townsfolk send out an inept posse to try to
locate Sully and Dr. Mike. Olive backs
Grace's new venture--Grace's Cafe. In the
end, Dr. Mike saves the day by curing the
mine owner's son, who has fallen victim to
the poisoned water, and convincing the owner
to close the mine.
9
The Great American
Medicine Show
February 13, 1993
Disc 3
Dr. Mike
tries to heal the soul of Doc Eli Jackson, a
Civil War surgeon turned medicine-show
huckster. With the aid of a drunken Indian
(Franklin, aka "Chief Sick No More") and his
boy, Doc Eli touts an all-curing elixir
supposedly developed by the Kickapoo. Dr.
Mike doesn't trust the sales pitch of this
exploitative showman, especially when she
faces a real medical crisis involving Myra.
She must help Doc Eli confront his demons
before he can help her remove an ovarian
cyst from Myra. Meanwhile, Sully's on a
similar mission to convince Franklin, a
disillusioned Cheyenne and massacre
survivor, to join his own people in their
continuing fight for survival. Myra and
Horace get engaged.
10
A Cowboy's Lullaby
February 20, 1993
Disc 3
Dr. Mike
takes in Red McCall, a down-and-out cowboy,
and his ailing "half-breed" infant boy.
McCall reaches the end of his rope, so he
abandons the baby with Dr. Mike, robs
Loren's store, and flees. Dr. Mike tries to
find a home for the baby, but the potential
parents prove unwilling or unsuitable. When
she travels to a remote cabin to check on
the health of its owner, she finds him badly
mangled from a bear attack. Her horse is
frightened off and she's trapped in the
cabin until Sully shows up looking for her.
They narrowly escape being the rabid bear's
next victims. After returning to town, Dr.
Mike decides she'd rather raise the child
herself than turn him over to an orphanage.
But Sully locates Red and convinces him to
keep the child.
11
Running Ghost
February 27, 1993
Disc 3
Sully ends up
badly beaten and partially paralyzed after a
run-in with buffalo hunters whom a railroad
has hired to clear the herds and Indians out
of the planned train path. As Dr. Mike,
Cloud Dancing, and the kids fight to help
Sully regain the use of his legs, a con man
passing himself off as the railroad's
advance man is swindling the townsfolk out
of the deeds to their properties. As Sully
recovers, Dr. Mike unmasks the con man's
plan and saves the town. When Sully
confronts the buffalo hunters, a mystical
white buffalo ("Running Ghost") appears to
avenge the animals' deaths.
12
The Prisoner
March 13, 1993
Disc 3
After
ambushing Black Kettle's camp, General
Custer enters the town carrying wounded
soldiers and Indian prisoners, including
Cloud Dancing, whom Custer threatens to kill
if Dr. Mike doesn't treat his men first. Dr.
Mike treats Cloud Dancing's broken arm while
he's shackled in the livery after Custer's
interrogation. After Custer hauls Cloud
Dancing before a firing squad that fires
blanks, Dr. Mike and Sully engineer Cloud
Dancing's escape. Meanwhile, Olive organizes
a hurdy-gurdy dance, recruiting girls from
the immigrant camp and a reluctant Loren,
Horace, and Jake for the band. Matthew buys
all of Ingrid's dance tickets, then shyly
confesses that he doesn't know how to dance.
13
Happy Birthday
March 27, 1993
Disc 4
After a
patient of Dr. Mike's dies of blood
poisoning, she accuses Jake, the barber, of
infecting the man with his dirty razor. Her
accusation throws Jake into an alcoholic
binge. Dr. Mike tries in vain to pull him
out of it, but finally realizes he must be
the one to want to stop drinking. She gives
him something to live for by pointing out
his many friends in town, including her.
Meanwhile, Mike's children try to help her
deal with her loneliness on her 35th
birthday by conspiring to find her a proper
suitor before her surprise party. Sully and
Michaela share their first kiss.
14
Rite of Passage
April 10, 1993
Disc 4
Episode
summary Matthew and Michaela are at odds
over his future when he sets out to prove to
others--and to himself--that he is a grown
man ready to take on life, and decides to
marry Ingrid. Frustrated by her
overprotectiveness and his desire for
independence, Matthew undertakes a "vision
quest," a Cheyenne ceremony in which a man
searches for direction. Michaela, knowing he
is spending four days and nights without
food and water in the wilderness, worries
that his quest to discover his manhood may
cost him his life. Chuck Bowman directed
from a script by Sara Davidson.
15
Heroes
May 1, 1993
Disc 4
Colleen
develops a teenage crush on Sully after he
pulls her out of the path of a runaway
wagon. Imagining herself as a damsel in
distress and Sully as her knight in shining
armor, she purposely sets out to get lost in
the woods hoping Sully will rescue her. A
freak cold snap blows up and she almost
freezes to death before Sully and Dr. Mike
find her. Dr. Mike works hard to save
Colleen's badly frostbitten hands, and Sully
ultimately has a heart-to- heart talk with
Colleen. Meanwhile, racial tensions in town
reach a boiling point when Hank accuses
Grace of food poisoning which is later
proved false when Dr. Mike discovers Hank
has been eating meat infected with
trichinosis.
16
The Operation
May 8, 1993
Disc 4
While Brian
and Sully are out hiking, Brian climbs a
tree and jumps out before Sully can stop
him. Brian lands hard, hitting his head.
Mike, angry with Sully for not watching
Brian more carefully, is relieved to find no
signs of injury. Later, the townsfolk argue
over who will build the new schoolhouse,
Matthew wants Robert E included, but, in the
end Jake and Loren are tapped for the job.
Brian begins to exhibit symptoms of
compression, which escalate to blindness and
later, coma. A specialist can't be found and
Mike must perform a dangerous brain
operation while Jake and Grace assist.
Meanwhile, the town, including Robert E,
pulls together to build the schoolhouse.
Brian awakens and wanders out to the new
school where Mike and the family find him,
overjoyed that he can see again
17
The Secret
May 15, 1993
Disc 5
When Mike and
Sully stop to check on old Mrs. Johnson,
they discover her dead and a young boy,
Zack, hidden in the closet. Mike takes the
child in and confronts the townsfolk, who
reluctantly admit to knowing the boy's
mother was one of Hank's whores. When she
died they sent Zack to Mrs. Johnson because
he was "simple." Mike is frustrated in her
attempts to find a medical diagnosis and
cure for Zack's condition. Mike's further
detective work reveals that Hank is Zack's
father, and she helps Hank own up to his
responsibility. Meanwhile, Brian seems to be
the only one to get the boy to exhibit his
artistic abilities, and he is mistakenly
given credit for a drawing that Zack has
done. Later, when Zack's artistic talent is
discovered, Hank agrees to send him to an
art school in Denver. The show has a cute
opening scene of Mike and Sully with him
criticizing her driving.
18
Portraits
May 22, 1993
Disc 5
David
Watkins, a civil war photographer arrives in
Colorado Springs. Dr. Mike diagnoses David's
diabetes and is frustrated that he refuses
treatment and will ultimately go blind.
David suggests taking a portrait of the town
and an argument ensues over who will be in
it. When the camera equipment is destroyed,
the whole town must pull together to create
a camera and take the photo before David's
eyesight fails. At the same time, Mrs. Bing,
Horace's mother, is brought to town,
seriously ill. Mrs. Bing disapproves of Myra
until she learns how much they love each
other, and on her deathbed bestows her
blessing on their marriage.
