As early as the 19th century, German writer E.T.A. Hoffmann speculated about an automaton in human form, and the idea of androids and cyborgs continued to haunt the imagination of science fiction writers ever since. As technology develops, it’s probable that people will become increasingly artificial—at least in terms of replacement organs and limbs.
Such was the premise of the popular ‘70s television series “The Six Million Dollar Man,” finally re-released in an elaborate 40-DVD box set. When introduced as a TV pilot movie, the show registered the anxiety of science fiction and a skeptical, post-Watergate public mood about American foreign entanglements. When onetime Apollo astronaut Steve Austin (Lee Majors) crashes his test plane, losing both legs, an arm and an eye, a U.S. spy agency replaces Austin’s damaged parts with “bionic” versions, endowing him with superhuman ability. The pilot episode allows us to wonder about the human spirit yoked to a non-human body and Austin’s anger at being turned into a commando capable of ripping up a tank hatch with his bare hands.
Soon enough, the series’ settled for a more stock action figure, jetting the rugged handsome Majors, playing in sub-Clint Eastwood laconic mode, from one James Bond setting to the next. Thirty years later many of plot lines such as nuclear trafficking and Middle East conflict remain in the headlines. “The Six Million Dollar Man: The Complete Collection” includes 17 hours of bonus features, especially original interviews with Majors and others connected with the series.
