Walker Texas Ranger - The Final Season
In the world ofWalker, Texas Ranger, there's no problem that can't be solved with a big truck, a few roundhouse kicks, and the unflappable-bordering-on-comatose cool of martial-arts-champion-turned-B-movie-star Chuck Norris (Good Guys Wear Black,Forced Vengeance). As Texas Ranger Cordell "Cord"  Walker, Norris helmed this fusion of karate chops and cowboy hats for nine seasons; for some reason, the last season is being released on DVD before any of the earlier ones. By this point, the show's formula--non-stop action and high drama with no concern for common sense or coherent storytelling--has been honed to a science. No opportunity for peril is overlooked, particularly when it affords Walker a heroic moment. In the season's first episode, firemen recoil from a burning  building, but Walker strides in without a word (and without any of that cumbersome protective gear) to rescue a cute boy and his loyal dog. This is refined cheese: Bad guys wear evil on their sleeves and criminal masterminds act like morons whenever it's convenient to conclude the episode. Norris wisely keeps his dialogue to a minimum, usually curt commands to his multi-ethnic troupe of high-kicking Rangers (Clarence Gilyard Jr., Judson Mills, and Nia Peeples) or warm endearments to his beloved wife Alex (Sheree Wilson). Most episodes bounce between a couple of overlapping high-tension elements (say, arms dealers and an outbreak of the Ebola virus), though this season also features an epic four-episode arc about a villainous computer genius known as "The Chairman" (Michael Ironside,Scanners,Starship Troopers). The standard two-pronged attack can be amazingly effective; no matter how absurdly the characters may behave, the next stirring scene is underway before anyone has time to notice. It's as addictive as potato chips. Fans will findWalker, Texas Ranger: The Final Seasoncrunchy and completely satisfying.--Bret Fetzer