In the history of elaborate DVD box sets, few can top “JAG: The Complete Series.” The blue and white packaging is a trick to open and involves unsnapping the naval officers’ shoulder boards on top, which allows you to open side panels, which enable you to slide out the set itself. Once there, choose from among the 10 seasons, each with its own box stuffed with DVDs.
A military crime-courtroom drama, “JAG” got off to a shaky start in the ratings when it debuted on NBC in 1995 but found its audience gradually after being picked up by CBS. JAG stands for Judge Advocate General, the U.S. Navy’s legal office responsible for prosecuting and defending service members under military law. The episodes were tightly formatted along the lines of “Law & Order.” Like its prototype, many shows were inspired by current news events.
At first, the Pentagon offered no assistance—the producers relied on stock footage left over from Hollywood films such as Top Gun or The Hunt for Red October—but the positive impression it gave of the Navy eventually won over the brass. In the “JAG” world, three were bad people in the service, but they were caught and punished. The institution was ship shape.
Binge watching? If you stayed up and watched non-stop, it would take seven and a half days to consume the 227 episodes collected in “JAG: The Complete Series.”
