Friday, Dec 14, 2007
Ladies and gentlemen, we finally have a genuinely complete season of our beloved Will & Grace on DVD! After buying the DVDs for seasons 3-6 only to find that nearly all of the "super size" episodes and many of the hour-long episodes were the syndicated versions on the DVD, NBC seems to have gotten their act together and put together a long-overdue quality DVD release with season 7. The "super size" season premier, "FYI: I Hurt, Too" and the hour-long "Queens For a Day" are both fully intact with no scenes cut and are presented in their complete original broadcast versions.
As for the season itself, I'm in the minority of W&G fans by really liking this season. Many fans claim that season 7 is their least favorite, but I think of it as the recovery season, or the comeback season, if you will. Like another reviewer said, this season the show returned to the basics, which is all the show ever needed, if you ask me. I think the show's genuine problems were found in seasons 5 and 6: Grace married Leo, Karen dated and subsequently married Lyle, and Debra Messing's absence throughout season 6 due to her pregnancy definitely took its toll on the overall quality and dynamics of the show. Seasons 5 and 6 certainly had great episodes, but they also had their share of duds which precipitated the show's decline in ratings and quality.
What works about season 7 is that it is complex, proportionately mixed with comedy and drama: Grace getting over her failed marriage to Leo and Karen getting over her husband's death and her failed brief marriage to Lyle, all underlying the comedic situations that Will, Grace, Jack, and Karen usually find themselves in. I especially like how no time is wasted stringing Leo along-- he disappears after the first episode! Near the end of the season premier Grace appears at Will's door with an overnight bag and says, "I just couldn't. It's over." It's a heart-wrenching scene that lasts about 30 seconds, but it's one of the most real and touching scenes in the entire series. Grace's marriage was over and she relied on Will, her best friend, to catch her fall.
What doesn't work about season 7 is the gratuitous celebrity guest stars. I don't begrudge the show for this, rather it's the fault of the network for forcing the show to accommodate guest stars. Lily Tomlin, Sharon Stone, Jeff Goldblum, and Molly Shannon were great ("Partners" with Lily Tomlin is one of my favorite episodes of the season and series), but there was no need for another appearance by Jennifer Lopez, Janet Jackson's appearance was beyond ridiculous and unnecessary, and the part of Vince's best friend "Nadine" could have been a much more unique and interesting character had Kristen Davis not been cast in the role, who landed the part solely on the basis of her recent Sex and the City fame.
Considering the quality of the DVD release and the season itself, I think it deserves 5 stars, simply for fact that there are no edited episodes to be found. Despite the fact that there are very few extras, I can enjoy this season, in its entirety on DVD, for what it was. Season 7 wasn't the show's greatest season, but it rectified the problems presented in previous seasons and set the show up for its superb final season.
As for the season itself, I'm in the minority of W&G fans by really liking this season. Many fans claim that season 7 is their least favorite, but I think of it as the recovery season, or the comeback season, if you will. Like another reviewer said, this season the show returned to the basics, which is all the show ever needed, if you ask me. I think the show's genuine problems were found in seasons 5 and 6: Grace married Leo, Karen dated and subsequently married Lyle, and Debra Messing's absence throughout season 6 due to her pregnancy definitely took its toll on the overall quality and dynamics of the show. Seasons 5 and 6 certainly had great episodes, but they also had their share of duds which precipitated the show's decline in ratings and quality.
What works about season 7 is that it is complex, proportionately mixed with comedy and drama: Grace getting over her failed marriage to Leo and Karen getting over her husband's death and her failed brief marriage to Lyle, all underlying the comedic situations that Will, Grace, Jack, and Karen usually find themselves in. I especially like how no time is wasted stringing Leo along-- he disappears after the first episode! Near the end of the season premier Grace appears at Will's door with an overnight bag and says, "I just couldn't. It's over." It's a heart-wrenching scene that lasts about 30 seconds, but it's one of the most real and touching scenes in the entire series. Grace's marriage was over and she relied on Will, her best friend, to catch her fall.
What doesn't work about season 7 is the gratuitous celebrity guest stars. I don't begrudge the show for this, rather it's the fault of the network for forcing the show to accommodate guest stars. Lily Tomlin, Sharon Stone, Jeff Goldblum, and Molly Shannon were great ("Partners" with Lily Tomlin is one of my favorite episodes of the season and series), but there was no need for another appearance by Jennifer Lopez, Janet Jackson's appearance was beyond ridiculous and unnecessary, and the part of Vince's best friend "Nadine" could have been a much more unique and interesting character had Kristen Davis not been cast in the role, who landed the part solely on the basis of her recent Sex and the City fame.
Considering the quality of the DVD release and the season itself, I think it deserves 5 stars, simply for fact that there are no edited episodes to be found. Despite the fact that there are very few extras, I can enjoy this season, in its entirety on DVD, for what it was. Season 7 wasn't the show's greatest season, but it rectified the problems presented in previous seasons and set the show up for its superb final season.
Friday, Jul 22, 2005
This episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer originally aired just months after my father's death and it tore me to pieces.
My partner and I began watching (rewatching parts of it for me) the series well over a year ago and irony of all ironies, season 5 disc 5 arrived a few weeks ago on the anniversary of my dad's death. I felt that it arrived on the day for a reason, so we proceeded to watch that episode that day, and while it was painful, it was also helpful in a way. Afterward, we watched the special feature on the episode and sure enough Joss had based that on his own personal loss (his mother) and the losses of other people in his life. He did a superb job, as there were times in that episode that I could almost identically identify as things I experienced throughout the time of my dad's death. For those of you who haven't seen this episode, I highly, highly recommend it.
Well done, Joss!
My partner and I began watching (rewatching parts of it for me) the series well over a year ago and irony of all ironies, season 5 disc 5 arrived a few weeks ago on the anniversary of my dad's death. I felt that it arrived on the day for a reason, so we proceeded to watch that episode that day, and while it was painful, it was also helpful in a way. Afterward, we watched the special feature on the episode and sure enough Joss had based that on his own personal loss (his mother) and the losses of other people in his life. He did a superb job, as there were times in that episode that I could almost identically identify as things I experienced throughout the time of my dad's death. For those of you who haven't seen this episode, I highly, highly recommend it.
Well done, Joss!
Some people just don't have opinions. Like pisceandreams.
pisceandreams must really love MovieTome and agree with every review we've ever written! What other reason could pisceandreams possibly have for not rating a single film?
Friends
My Friends
Tracked Blogs
