I'm not exactly sure when my interest in serial killers began, but I do remember being quite the happy high school graduate when one of the presents I opened at my graduation party was a book about Ed Gein. There was a time, near the beginning of my college education, that I was a double major in Criminal Justice and Psychology with my sights set on being a Forensic Psychologist. I can easily remember having to tell everyone on my floor (at our first dorm meeting upon arrival to college) something interesting about myself, and deciding that naming as many serial killers (and their basic stories) as I could name in the span of five minutes would be a warm welcome for the rest of the dorm. I think I ended that speech with "I'm not crazy. I'm just very interested." The shocked faces and open mouths prompted me to throw in this little caveat: "You can check out all the serial killer books in my room if you want."
Needless to say, COLD CASE dvd Files: The Most Infamous Cases is right up my alley. The A&E show deals mostly with serial killers and homicide cases that went unsolved for so long that they became "cold," or were basically put on the back burner until some new bit of evidence would prompt the investigators to open the case back up. Often times, the introduction of a new technology (e.g. DNA evidence) brings a whole new perspective to these cases. And often times, it is this new technology that ends up being the determining factor in apprehending a suspect (after all those years) and proving that suspect's guilt. It is this fascinating lapse in time that makes COLD CASE dvd Files such an interesting show. The fact that no one could find the evidence and make the connections to bring these killers to justice for so long makes it all the more miraculous when the investigators finally do track the suspects down.
While not providing complete "seasons" of COLD CASE dvd Files, A&E has rather opted to spread this DVD release over two discs and provide "The Most Infamous Cases." Although I wouldn't completely agree with these ten particular cases being "The Most Infamous," I will say that A&E has chosen a very good batch of stories for this release. Four of the ten episodes are of the 45-minute variety, while the rest clock in at 26-minutes, and it is these four longer episodes that are the best of the bunch. At their longer runtimes, the four longer episodes give their stories a little bit more room to breathe, and Bill Kurtis and his crew seem to dig just a little deeper in these tales. Most people are familiar with the stories of "The Green River Killer" and "The Zodiac Killer," but these two episodes are about as in-depth as you could possibly get with these cases. They detail just about every little nuance of the stories (and some that even I had never heard before seeing these episodes). This is when the show is at its very best; by bringing new light to a subject that people have been hearing about for years and years. "Killer in the County" and "Kidnapped," however, are not to be dismissed as they use their 45-minutes to fully detail stories of homicide that most people have never before heard.
The longer episodes are clearly the most detailed and intricate, but that doesn't discount the value of the shorter episodes. Some tales simply don't require as much time to tell, and many of the shorter episodes on this DVD are just as interesting as the longer ones. "Weepy-Voiced Killer" is an excellent profile of a man that just couldn't bring himself to stop killing, and instead, basically begged the police to catch him. "Frozen in Time" starts as a story about a missing women and a stolen Ryder truck, and ends up with a body found frozen in a freezer in that very truck. And "A Map to Murder" shows how the police find a killer by locating the computer he used to print a map off an internet site. Not every episode, however, is just as great. "Love Triangle," for instance, ends up being a bit clichéd and simply not interesting enough to warrant inclusion as a "Most Infamous Case."
Nevertheless, Host (and Producer) Bill Kurtis is at his most charismatic as he provides the narration for every episode of Cold case seasons dvd Files. He even shows up on screen to introduce a few of the more grisly tales. COLD CASE dvd seasons Files is proof-positive that it is not only Kurtis's instantly-recognizable voice that makes him a valuable asset to A&E, but it is also his depth of knowledge and dedicated interest in his subject. The ten cases on this DVD release are varied and intriguing enough to warrant at least a few repeat viewings. Especially if you're a true-crime fanatic who just can't get enough of your serial killer fix.
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