More Than Murder (TV)

Well before the explosion of TV police procedurals in the '90s, there were notable cops doing serviceable gumshoeing in the pursuit of law and, well, order. One of the best was the Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer series in the '80s, starring Stacy Keach as the world-weary Hammer, chucking off hard-boiled bons mots as he got ever-more entangled in the seamy underbelly of murder and conspiracy. This double-feature set includes More Than Murder, with cool cameos by an assortment of '80s character actors including a pre-Designing Women Delta Burke; and Murder Me, Murder You, which features a lovely Michelle Phillips as Hammer's ex-flame and Tanya Roberts as the enticing Gal Friday Velda. If the writing and plotting seem a little clunky in hindsight, there's still no denying the appeal of Keach and the Mike Hammer character, who's every bit as jaded as Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe. Keach was nominated for a Golden Globe in 1984 for his tough-as-hardtack portrayal of Hammer, and revisiting these episodes is a reminder of both the great chops Keach possessed, and of the appeal of the tough-guy dick as seen through the jaundiced eye of Mickey Spillane. --A.T. Hurley