One of the most curious and interesting benefits of the ‘DVD Revolution’ is the ability to go back and re-watch decades-old series, years after they entered the public eye for the first time, thanks to their re-release on disc. But what of the outstanding network programs (and yes, there are a notorious few) that have either completely evaded digital reissue or that have only received a partial reissue, with no plans to expand beyond a Season One box set?

That’s the unfortunate fate that has befallen what I now consider one of the most magnificent prime-time dramas ever scripted for a major American network: St. Elsewhere. A bit of television history may be helpful here. Created by five visionaries – Mark Tinker, John Masius, Joshua Brand, John Falsey, and Bruce Paltrow – this way-offbeat hospital drama experienced a very checkered history. It debuted 26 ½ years ago, in October 1982, at the hands of MTM Productions, the company co-founded by Grant Tinker (Mark Tinker’s father) and ex-wife Mary Tyler Moore. Elsewhere somehow managed to stay on the air for six seasons despite consistently low ratings; according to one of our editors, a small and very wealthy group of viewers remained doggedly loyal to the program and kept it on until August of 1988 (with only two major scheduling changes during the week over the course of that run), despite the constant, looming threat of cancellation by NBC. Season One finally made it to DVD in late November 2006, 18 years after the initial program wrapped. But sadly, that marked the end of the ancillary re-release story – the rights owners have announced no additional plans for the release of consecutive seasons, and it’s looking like a slim prospect at this point, at least according to fans.

Then, in recent months, a cable channel I’d never heard of, called the American Life Network, decided to pick up the program and run it in its entirety, with one episode per week – effectively providing the opportunity for a new generation of viewers (including me) to delve into this material.

I was four years old when St. Elsewhere premiered, and ten when it left the air, so it’s safe to say that most of the program is still fresh to me, despite an undesired knowledge of a few of the big twists that lie ahead, such as the shocking revelation in the final episode that will not be disclosed here. Last month, I started screening the episodes, first by catching up on Hulu, then by tuning in to American Life every Sunday night at 11pm.

I’ve been hooked ever since.

The basic premise of Elsewhere is by now well known: it revolves around the medical staff of a third-tier hospital in seedy South Boston, christened St. Eligius after the altruistic saint. Populating the medical facility at the outset of Season One are a colorful but intriguing group of physicians, including but not limited to: the suave and debonair but warm-hearted Dr. Ben Samuels (David Birney), the awkward, accident prone Dr. Victor Ehrlich (Ed Begley, Jr.), high-strung (but well meaning) wiseacre physician Dr. Wayne Fiscus (Howie Mandel), the emotionally and psychologically disturbed Dr. Peter White (Terence Knox), earnest and compassionate Dr. Jack Morrison (David Morse) and the obnoxious, conceited, hotheaded snob of a surgeon Dr. Mark Craig (William Daniels, who walks away with every sequence he’s in). Episodes interweave multiple substories related to patients in the hospital and the doctors’ personal lives, many of which are sustained over the course of several installments.

For those unschooled in the pleasures of this series, I patently refuse to give away any of the revelations, or even the premises of the individual episodes. But what I will say is that it sticks with the viewer, primarily because of its ability to somehow build and develop long-running arcs with each major character on the physicians’ staff, thus effectively developing a whole population of multilayered onscreen individuals with the capacity for growth and change. One of the creators’ favorite devices, here, involves the use of a Steadicam that glides through the hospital corridors, briefly pausing to pick up snippets of expository dialogue, then restlessly prowling, Altman-like, to one new and different exchange after another. Of course, this has been copied ad nauseum by television programs in years since, but it seldom feels as fresh as it does here. The overall impact hit me like a sledgehammer. Lying in bed one night after watching the first five or six episodes, I found myself wondering about the fates of the individual characters, and thought, “My God, it’s almost as if I’ve been plunged into a real environment, and continually exposed to the lives of staff workers from a real hospital for a period of weeks!” How rarely does that occur within the context of a scripted drama? For me (and, granted, I’m not a frequent television viewer) it was almost a first-time experience.

The second novelty of the series (for 1982, especially) is its willingness to travel to tremendous tonal extremes, at opposite ends of the emotional spectrum, often in the same episode – which also mirrors real life. In one episode, we might encounter whimsy, hilarious absurdity, depressing melancholia, and/or heartbreaking, devastating tragedies riddled with violence – so devastating that it isn’t difficult to frequently wince at the screen or occasionally turn one’s head away in revulsion. Sure, we’ve seen it all before in different contexts, but the ability to combine it all, smoothly and seamlessly, into one 45-minute stretch still feels revelatory, unique and brilliant.

The cast also shines – including not only the said actors, but the late, ill-fated Ed Flanders (as the genial head of the medical staff, Dr. Westphall), a young Denzel Washington, and (in future seasons) Mark Harmon, Stephen Furst, and many, many others. A torrent of recent celebrities (such as a young Tim Robbins, playing a self-styled terrorist!) also took some of their earliest prime time network bows on Elsewhere, usually in guest capacities.

About a year ago, I had the opportunity to re-watch Season One of another MTM series that originally took its bow one night prior to Elsewhere – Barry Kemp’s Newhart – and I did a post about it on this blog. Unfortunately, as I noted at the time, very little about that outing has aged well; though it was a major hit, it feels artificial, dated and (Jerry Van Dyke’s brilliant guest appearance aside) rather silly. But MTM’s other fall 1982 giant strikes one as fresh, even a quarter century later - as fresh as anything on television. Those who didn’t grow up with the Eligius staff and have never seen Elsewhere (who are fortunate enough to pick up the American Life Network) would be well advised to catch up on Hulu as I did and begin working their way through, courtesy of Sunday night reruns, before the episodes from Season Two begin on ALN. Vintage or contemporary television simply does not get any better than this. And if the rumors about MTM’s lack of interest in releasing successive seasons on disc are at all accurate – well, this may be one of the only chances you have. Don’t miss it.

P.S. Editors’ note: as evidenced by the above image, the DVD release of Season One represents yet another hilarious example of Hollywood’s desperate attempts to maximize ancillary sales figures by overemphasizing a cast member who later became a star - in this case, Washington. Yes, he was brilliant on the program, but relegated to a supporting capacity in the First Season - making this overtly misleading.