When the Cheyenne: The Complete Series was announced for a Blu-ray release, a lot of fans rejoiced over the announcement due to its popularity. Because I do like Westerns, I decided to give this seven-year series a spin as I had never watched this television series before. There were a few delays for this Blu-ray release, but yes, it was more than worth the wait.
The description of the series and its release as quoted from the Warner Archive Collection “In the 1950s, a posse of popular Warner Bros. TV Westerns galloped into American living rooms: Maverick, Sugarfoot, Bronco, Lawman, Colt .45. The sagebrush rage began with Cheyenne, an epic series of gun blazing action and panoramic prairie vistas that ran for seven top-rated seasons and helped turn a nation of accountants, salesclerks, and kids into armchair cowpokes. The source of Cheyenne’s significant popularity was its charismatic and heroic leading man, Clint Walker, who rose to instant TV-star fame as Cheyenne Bodie, six-and-a-half feet of cowboy brawn, courage and integrity. The series is highlighted by early television appearances of such future stars James Garner, Edd Byrnes, Alan Hale, Jr., Dan Blocker, Lee Van Cleef, Michael Landon, Lorne Greene, Angie Dickinson, Connie Stevens and Ellen Burstyn. This Blu-ray collection contains all 107 episodes of the series, all meticulously remastered from 4K scans of the original camera negatives.”
Cheyenne: The Complete Series as did indeed have a lot of guest stars during its seven-season run, some of them were already established major stars while others who would have their stars rising shortly after this series. To name just some of the guest stars for this series include L.Q. Jones(Warlock, The Brotherhood of Satan) James Garner (Maverick, The Rockford Files), Edd Byrnes (77 Sunset Strip, Grease), Alan Hale, Jr. (Gilligan’s Island, Hang ‘Em High, Angels Revenge), Dan Blocker (Bonanza), Lee Van Cleef (The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, Day of Anger), Michael Landon (Highway to Heaven, I Was a Teenage Werewolf), Lorne Greene (Battlestar Galactica), Angie Dickinson (Police Woman, Dressed to Kill), Connie Stevens( Two on a Guillotine), Marie Windsor ( The Narrow Margin) , R.G. Armstrong( Predator, Dick Tracy) , Gerald Mohr( The Monster and the Girl, The Angry Red Planet), Ellen Burstyn (The Exorcist), Steve Brodie(Crossfire, Desperate), Whit Bissell( He Walked by Night, Lost Continent) and Julie Adams (Creature from the Black Lagoon, Horizons West). The list goes on and on! There were plenty of guests stars that kept the series interesting, even if it was for just a few episodes.
Standing above all the guest stars is the great Clint Walker starring as the big imposing character Cheyenne Bodie. As far as I am concerned, after viewing this series, he was just perfect for the role.
Having never watched the series before, and after digging into this set, I can say Cheyenne: The Complete Series is a lot of fun, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Each episode was an adventure and for the most part, it didn’t have much in the way of continuity meaning you could miss or skip an episode and not worry about missing anything. But why skip or miss an episode? Watch them and you will be entertained! The acting from the performers in this series is impeccable, with compelling characters and gorgeous cinematography throughout the series.
The Warner Archive Collection, with all the restoration work done for all 107 episodes of the Cheyenne series, has done an excellent job. Much kudos should go to them for restoring this mammoth of a set. For starters, each season has its own Blu-ray case with unique artwork. The cases are housed inside a beautiful, sturdy box as well.
Most importantly, the restoration work has paid great dividends. All thirty discs been transferred in 1080p and received a 4K scan. The picture quality for these episodes from the original negatives for each episode in nothing short of fantastic. The black and white image sparkles with a lot of details. Close-ups of the actors and the outfits worn, the outdoor scenery, landscapes and terrain look marvelous with lots of great exterior shots. Interiors also look just as fantastic. The picture quality for all the episodes look perfectly clear, with an added sharpness due to the 4K scan, and having a fantastic, remarkably polished look to it due to the extensive clean-up. I didn’t detect any print damages and there is plenty of film grain abound, so the series maintains its organic look. I can only imagine how much work it to restore all these episodes! The only real issue and it is minor is that Cheyenne: The Complete Series used plenty of stock footage from other films, mainly in the first batch of episodes and the picture quality dips a little bit, but outside of that, you will not be disappointed!
The audio track is a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. The audio quality for all the episodes is consistently clear with dialogue, music and various action sounds coming in with excellent fidelity with nothing really sounding overly aggressive. Only during the biggest action scenes during the show does the music come in somewhat stronger in volume. Very few episodes had a minor hiss sound and was minimal. No crackling or pops were detected. This release offers English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.
There is one bonus features on this Blu-ray set it is The Lonely Gunfighter: An Interview with Clint Walker. This runs for nearly 15 minutes.
Despite the one extra, this release is a dream come true for fans of the Cheyenne: The Complete Series and this set will be noted for the excellent audio and video quality and the great packaging for each season. This is a large set so make sure you have room on your movie shelves to place on it! Highly recommend to those who love the old classic shows and especially to Western lovers! You will undoubtedly enjoy this release!
Cheyenne: The Complete Series
Directors – Richard L. Bare, Leslie H. Martinson, George Waggner, Paul Landres, Lee Sholem, Robert Sparr
Cast- Clint Walker, Lane Chandler, Andrew Duggan, Alan Hale, Dan Blocker
Country of Origin-USA
Distributor – Warner Archive/ Warner Home Video
Number of Discs –30
Reviewed by – David Steigman
Date- 5/11/2025