(ad for the old box set release)
Toei is finally re-releasing the classic detective/action show
Key Hunter (1968-1973), starring Tetsuro Tamba and Sonny Chiba, which has been OOP for a long time, on DVD.
This is the TV show that made both Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan fans of Sonny Chiba. The show apparently had quite a bit of following in Hong Kong. Tetsuro Tamba is the main star, but Chiba plays a major role as one of the detectives and was responsible for designing all the action scenes. The series features quite a lot of classic stunts performed by Chiba, as you can see in the video below.
Top 5 Key Hunter Stunts Chosen by Fans:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6SXggYiYp8
Toei originally released a 5 disc box set in 2009, which has been OOP for a long time and impossible to obtain for a decent price. The box set contained a selection of 20 episodes, each running about 50 minutes. It's too bad we can't get the entire series, but it ran nearly 300 episodes so it would be quite impossible to put them all out. Here is the original product page for the box set:
http://www.toei-video.co.jp/DVD/keyhunter.html
Toei is now re-releasing those five discs from the box set, starting in March (one volume each month, five in total). I'll be picking them up for sure. I have copies of the rental discs, and I'm not proud of that, but I just couldn't afford it. Used copies of the set were going for 500 dollars the last time I checked.
The episodes included are:
第１話 「裏切りのブルース」
第27話 「殺しの招待旅行」
第28話 「太陽に帰った殺し屋」
第60話 「パラシュート殺人部隊」
第105話 「世界殺人集団 南国の決斗」
第109話 「俺は西部の殺し屋キッド」
第120話 「宝石泥棒 裸で御免なさい」
第132話 「日本アルプス 大追跡作戦」
第135話 「吸血昆虫島 上空異状あり」
第140話 「人殺し あの手この手」
第154話 「サギ師の皆さま ふところにご用心！」
第161話 「荒野の列車 大襲撃作戦」
第162話 「蒸気機関車 大渓谷の決戦」
第168話 「サイコロGメン 死んで貰います」
第171話 「お化け怪獣大戦争」
第185話 「真昼の決戦！すれすれ愚連隊」
第196話 「1972紅の翼 大空を行く」
第210話 「いんちきキイハンター探偵局」
第225話 「大空のギャング 現金強奪作戦」
第262話 「また逢う日までキイハンター」（最終回）(Final episode)
The first episode was directed by Kinji Fukasaku, btw.
(picture of the old rental release. The new releases will probably have the same covers)
Sonny Chiba doesnt actually look that old to me at all.
