Touched By An Angel is a show I did not have much experience with prior to this review. When the show aired on television from 1994 to 2003, I never really got into it. On an occasion or two I managed to catch an episode, but nothing as to ever really get acquainted with the series. Without expecting much I dove into the second season of this series. In the first few minutes I didn't think I would enjoy it. You see, the opening dialogue of the season two premiere episode is extremely wishy washy and goody goody. However as the episode unfolded, I realized this show isn't bad at all and as I watched even more, I soon found myself really into it.

For those who are not familiar with the series, it is about angels coming down from heaven and interacting in the world of man correcting wrongs in people's life. Monica (Roma Downey) is an angel trainee working as a case worker. Under the guidance of another angel Tess (Della Reese), Monica sets misguided individuals on the right path. However another important aspect to this show is the development of Monica as she tries to understand the human way of life and her role in it. Another key character to this show is Andrew (John Dye). He is an angel of death and he helps the dying in their transition to the afterlife. He is a former case worker whose mentor was Tess. On more than one occasion he offers advice to Monica that prevents him from doing his duty (with the newfound knowledge/guidance, Monica is able to prevent unnecessary deaths).

In each episode Monica and Tess find themselves in different situations. Monica is usually placed in a position close to the person or persons she is trying to help. Tess randomly appears in various roles to guide Monica. For instance in the first episode of the season "Interview With An Angel", Monica plays a transplant coordinator at a hospital and Tess is a nurse. In the next episode "Trust" Monica is a rookie cop and each other episode has the angels playing some different role in someone else's life. The general format of each episode is fairly generic. Monica and Tess get put into some kind of problem and they work with the individuals to right things that went wrong.

While the show's format is pretty generic, there are a few things about it which keep it entertaining. First of all Monica is a likeable person and it is easy to connect with her as a character by watching her develop and understand the ins and outs of life. The other two characters Tess and Andrew also add two more likeable characters. The interaction between them is also another likeable aspect. There is some light banter between them which is usually worth a few laughs and makes them feel more human than supernatural.

Something else I liked about this show was the way it setup its universe. And what I mean by universe is the explanation around some of the questions that arise from the nature of the show. For instance in an episode someone asks Monica if God really cared about mankind, why would God allow anyone to suffer/die? The explanation goes something like this, God is just as unhappy about it and that is really why Angel's like Monica and Tess are doing what they do. There is also another pretty interesting though approached. The third episode of the season, Monica runs into an old friend of hers. Her friend is an ex-angel who turned to the dark side. This aspect was very interesting because it reveals the flipside of the coin. The Devil has minions who try to do the opposite God's work.

Overall I found season two of Touched By An Angel likeable, entertaining, and easy to get into. However, I can see why some would be put off by the show. The series' sheer nature can sometimes be hard to stomach. Many of the situations, dialogue, and supporting characters seem over the top. The situations are blown out of proportion and can be hard to stomach at times. Along those lines, if you are disbeliever in God, then it most likely to even stomach the show's premise. As well sometimes the dialogue and supporting roles can be pretty cheesy. Despite the shortcomings of this show, I still think this season set is fun watch.

Episode Guide
1. Interview With An Angel
2. Trust
3. Sympathy For The Devil
4. The Driver
5. Reunion
6. Operation Smile
7. The Big Bang
8. Unidentified Female
9. The Feather
10. The One That Got Away
11. 'Til We Meet Again
12. Rock 'N' Roll Dad
13. The Indigo Angel
14. Jacob's Ladder
15. Out Of The Darkness
16. Lost And Found
17. Dear God
18. Portrait Of Mrs. Campbell
19. The Quality Of Mercy
20. Flesh And Blood
21. Birthmarks
22. Statute Of Limitations

The DVD

Video:
The video is given in its original television aspect ratio of 1.33:1 full frame color. For the most part, the picture quality is average. The picture has a heavy grain and occasional compression artifacts. Overall it is decent and fits the needs of this feature.

Audio:
The audio track in this release is in English and Spanish 2.0 Dolby digital stereo sound. In terms of sound quality, it's pretty much similar to any other television release. The dialogue remains fairly flat. As well the music tends to feel the same way. Regarding the track's stereo capabilities, there is very little distinction between channels. This release also support closed captioning.

Extras:
There are no extras included with this DVD set.

Final Thoughts:
When I first started this review, I had very little experience with Touched By An Angel. Besides an occasional episode, I never really got into it. And at first, I did not think I would particularly enjoy watching an entire season of it. As it turns out, I was wrong. Touched By An Angel turned out to be a lot of fun. The characters were all very likeable and the development of the main character Monica was done well. It was easy to get to know her and the others (Tess and Andrew). The general feel good nature of the show was something else I liked. Sometimes it is a bit over done, but generally it is tolerable. Overall I think entertainment and replay value of this season set is strong even to be recommended.