Fans of the hard-boiled detective shows from the 1970s-80s-90s will be happy to hear that Spenser: for Hire is available once again. Two of the three individual season sets went out of print a few years ago, so this Complete Series set will allow fans to grab them all in one box set.
This set contains a total of 16 discs: 23 episodes on 6 discs for Season 1 (including the 2-hour pilot episode “Promised Land”), 22 episodes on 5 discs for Season 2, and 21 episodes over 5 discs for Season 3. There are no supplemental or bonus content, like audio commentaries, trailers, or outtakes. The episodes appear to be in their unedited entirety, including the “This week on Spenser: For Hire” teasers, at the beginning of each episode.
All of the other content from the series appears to be intact from the original broadcasts. The clarity of the video and the audio is a delight for a mid-80s series. There’s also the changes to the opening theme music for each season, and the female lead casting changes (Barbara Stock was replaced in Season 2 by Carolyn McCormack as a love interest, then returned for Season 3). Also of note are Spenser’s Mustangs; in Season 1, he has a dark green 1966 Mustang Fastback, which is destroyed in Season 2 and replaced for a while by a dark grey 1987 Mustang 5.0 GT. Later in Season 2, that car is in turn traded in for another fully restored dark green 1966 Mustang Fastback, which he keeps for the rest of the series, despite somewhat rough treatment (hard driving, bumps and bullets).
Depending on a completist’s perspective, this box set only contains the complete 3 seasons that aired on ABC between 1985-1987 (and were in the previous single season DVD releases). There were 4 made-for-TV Spenser movies that aired long after the original series’ cancellation. Some might nitpick about whether that affects the completeness of the “Complete Series” label, but those movies aired on Lifetime between 1993-1995, some 8-10 years after the original series ended.
There had been a movie collection DVD set released by Warner Archive in 2005 that contained all four movies: SPENSER: CEREMONY, SPENSER: PALE KINGS AND PRINCES, SPENSER: THE JUDAS GOAT, and SPENSER: A SAVAGE PLACE. That 4-movie box set appears to be out of print and unavailable from the Warner Archive store, and regularly tops $100 on Amazon and eBay, if you can find any copies for sale. The movies were later released individually, but those are a little easier to find than the complete movies box set, and much cheaper.
Fans of the show won’t get anything extra in this set if they already own the previous individual season sets, although to me, the picture seems crisper (comparing the DVD to the digital versions now available on Prime Video and Tubi). It doesn’t seem as though there were any bonus features on the original individual DVD sets, so it would appear there’s nothing missing between those original DVD’s and this Complete Series box set. For collectors of 80s PI dramas, having the main series in one collection should be a good addition to fill a slot on the shelves.
Based on Robert B. Parker’s iconic detective novels and in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the American crime drama series, Spenser: For Hire fans can once again experience every gripping moment with the release of Spenser: For Hire – The Complete Series on DVD, arriving September 9, 2025. For the first time ever, Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment brings together all three seasons of this action-packed crime, mystery-drama in one comprehensive collection. Available both online and at major retailers nationwide, this definitive set is a must-have for longtime fans and newcomers alike. Pre-order your DVD copy or look for it on digital today.
In the shadows of Boston, Spenser (Robert Urich), a former cop with a poet’s soul and a fighter’s fists, solves crimes in his own uniquely stylish way. A true Renaissance man, he faces danger head-on, backed by his formidable ally Hawk (Avery Brooks) and contacts inside the police department. While he’s unstoppable on the streets, his love life stalls as his longtime love (Barbara Stock) refuses to marry a man whose life is a constant dance with death.
Spenser: For Hire stars Robert Urich, Avery Brooks, Ron McLarty, Richard Jaeckel, Barbara Stock, and Carolyn McCormick, and was produced by John Wilder Productions (1985-1986) and Jadda Productions (1986-1987) both in association with Warner Bros. Television.
Spenser: For Hire: The Complete Series
Includes all 65 episodes from all three seasons
Audio: English SDH
Subtitles: English
Running Time: 3,900 Minutes
Rated: TV-14
DVD Review: "Spenser: For Hire" The Complete Series
Summary
Fans of the show won’t get anything extra in this set if they already own the previous individual season sets, although to me, the picture seems crisper. It doesn’t seem as though there were any bonus features on the original individual DVD sets, so it would appear there’s nothing missing between those original DVD’s and this Complete Series box set.
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