joyousfive This was one of my all time favourites. It is where I fell in love with Bruce. The acting was suburb. The one scene that stands out for me was when Fiona was either being raped or sexually harassed. She had that look on her face that showed a multitude of emotions: fear, indignation (how dare you), and that she was flattered (thinking she was beyond the age that someone would think her attractive).The other episode I remember was when Bruce's sister in the show was stung by a Bee and almost died. This was when I first realized that people could be allergic to Bee stings. Why, Why is this not out on DVD yet? It is only 2 seasons. I'd love for it to also have plenty of interviews with Cast & crew. And to see how Bruce fell in love and married his first wife was interesting, considering they were brother & sister on the show.Please bring this out on DVD soon.

andy_bumgarner "HOW THE WEST WAS WON" Was first - to my knowledge - a Louis L'Amour story. Louis was a storyteller and novelist who started his career in the 1940's. He wrote simple stories for magazines. He did this until he learned to do more.The 1962 movie is much more true to the novel.That being said,. I Love the TV Series. Jim Arness, all 6 foot 4 of him, Bruce, the kid who learns his lessons and marries his co-star, the scene where Arness tosses his knife underhand in the bushes and sticks the bad guy in the belly...How The West Was Won the TV series is much more Jerimiah Johnson with family obligations. It's great and I love it.I hope you will all see both the 1962 movie, and the 1979 TV series. The movie is Louis L'Amour's novel. The TV series is a wonderful adaptation beyond that.

ingemar-4 "How the west was won" ( or "The Macahan's) is a western that I remember as truly first rate. In particular, the first episodes had great script and also great acting. After that, the two leading actors, James Arness and Bruce Boxleitner, carry the series on their shoulders as the perfect western heroes, the rough old trapper and the young handsome hero. James Arness entering a room, with his gun in hand, muttering in broad American English through his teeth "I'm Zeb Macahaaan!", that was an icon here in Sweden at the time, an icon on par with "Bond, James Bond".The whole series starts off with a massive family tragedy. The Macahan's grandparents were left behind when the family left, so when they hear that the civil was has started, dad Macahan goes back to get them. But, he never comes back, so Luke (Boxleitner) also goes back. Alas, the grandparents are already dead, killed by accident as bystanders to a battle around/near their home, so the mission is a failure from the start. Both Luke and his father are enrolled in the army, and only Luke gets away alive, as deserter. The scene when he decides to defect is superb, a micro-battle between two very small groups of soldiers, fighting for nothing, and only Luke survives. I will never forget the face of the dying soldier boy, probably pierced by Luke's bayonet (I am not sure about this), begging for help, and then the shocked Luke looking at the dead boys, throwing his gun to the ground. Good acting to a good script!This makes Luke an outlaw, which is one of the driving forces of the series from then on. The rest of the family is less important, except Zeb of course. I understand that it did not get very famous in the US, which is surprising.But, I haven't seen it since I was a kid (which is why I give no rating). I wonder if it would still thrill me. Well, the equally good "Alias Smith & Jones" series does, so I think it would.

slfreedjafreed Few shows (mini-series) except for "Centennial" have depicted the gritty realism of the west as well as How The West Was Won. Jim Arness brought the character of Zeb Macahan to life / bigger, rougher and tougher than Matt Dillon could have ever hoped to be. I have the entire multi-season mini series, including the premiere movie, on 15 year old VHS tapes that are losing their quality. I wish the series would be released on DVD in a boxed set. Gunsmoke has been released, and considering some of the awful shows that HAVE been released I don't know why they don't. Does anyone know the status of this situation? I would like to find out who produced the series and perhaps recommend that there is a large audience out there for this kind of DVD release. Perhaps Jim Arness' website could help.