Highway to Heaven: Season One
Michael Landon Productions
2004 A&E Television Networks

Michael Landon was a fixture on American TV for decades. A young Landon was Little Joe Cartwright on Bonanza, became Pa Ingalls on Little House on the Prairie, and then reappeared as the angel Jonathan Smith on Highway to Heaven. An actor and director, Landon starred in over 800 hours of television, making him one of the most-seen--and best-loved--actors in television history.

This week, the full 24-episode first season of Highway to Heaven becomes available on DVD. Landon and longtime collaborator Victor French (Mr. Edwards on Little House, various appearances on Bonanza, Mark Gordon on Highway to Heaven and also director of several episodes) open with a two-part episode about a dreary retirement home facing closure. Jonathan teaches us all lessons about kindness and faith, using a little humor to get his point across along the way. By the end of the second part, the retirement home has been saved, Mark knows Jonathan's true identity, and the two embark on a season's worth of assignments from "the Boss." The series isn't explicitly Christian, but it does align with Christianity better than some similarly-themed television shows such as Touched by an Angel, which had more of a New Age feel.

Highway to Heaven isn't afraid to deal with death, and critically ill characters don't always survive. That extra realism brings added meaning to the series, and provides opportunities for parents to discuss these issues with their children. A hallmark of Landon's directing was his effort to express human emotion and the reality of suffering in his movies and television shows, whether addressing painful childhood issues like bedwetting in the movie The Loneliest Runner, or a bride's cancer in the final episode of Highway to Heaven's first season. A young Helen Hunt (Twister, Mad About You) is a horse trainer's daughter who eventually falls in love with the son of her father's wealthy boss. The two-part episode has both humor and sorrow and draws us into the characters' lives, teaching some valuable lessons along the way.

Bonus features include a brief but hilarious outtakes segment, and a lengthy (103 minutes) tribute hosted by Michael Landon, Jr. The tribute includes numerous clips from episodes of all of Landon's series, with co-stars reminiscing about Landon's life and their experiences with him.

I recommend Highway to Heaven: Season One for wholesome family entertainment that can lead to helpful discussions about the Biblical truths of sacrificial love and God's providence that underlie most of the stories.