The Waltons was a testament to the strength of family bonds and self reliance over the welfare state the USA had become, something a great many of us found endearing (if sometimes corny). Set during the so-called Great Depression of the 1930's, the show detailed the events facing a large fictional family living on a mountain in rural Virginia, based loosely on the real life family of series creator Earl Hamner Jr. (who also played the narrator during the entire run of the show).

The Waltons: Season 3 picked up where the second season left off. The basic structure of the series was that the family was seen through the eyes of John-Boy Walton (a young man making his way through life, now going to Boatwright College). The episodes were written as if they were fond memories of John-Boy (played by Richard Thomas), and the narrative form was used many times afterwards both in movies and in other television series, like Wonder Years for example. The family was mostly self sufficient, living off the land and trading labor or lumber from their sawmill provided for most of their outside needs. Each week, a crisis involving money woes or an outsider visiting the community took center stage with the light humor of family life tempering the harsh economic times. Unlike the mean spirited jokes bandied about in contemporary shows of the time, the show relied on a gentle look at how people survived hard times, making it as much on faith and hope as on hard work.

Set as something of a semi-ensemble cast, with John-Boy as the lead and a host of others playing off his character, the show employed such notables as Ralph Waite (John Walton), Michael Learned (Olivia Walton), Will Geer (Grandpa Walton), Ellen Corby (Grandma Walton), and many other regulars that added just enough spice to the mix. John-Boy is an aspiring writer, desperately seeking to leave his home and set out in the great big world of possibilities before him. His pleasant nature, writing talent, and skill at observing those around him win him a scholarship at a University not too far away, a good thing since times are tough and otherwise he'd be working in his father's mill. His younger siblings weren't as actively involved in the plots (for the most part) as the older folk are and you get the feeling that Mr. Hamner was remembering the times with the same rose colored glasses most of us refer to when thinking of our past (typically calling those years: "The Good Old Days", no matter how tough they really were).

Still, the third season found the clan in just as many of the same predicaments as in Season 2, from the government's use of eminent domain to take the property of kinfolk away (with an early role for Battlestar Galactica, both series, regular Richard Hatch) in the two-part season opener The Conflict to the great many trials and tribulations John-Boy had as a freshman in college. As the virtual center of the show, John-Boy's ascent to college could've been the end of the show or the focus could've changed completely but this wasn't the case. While it's true that he was still the main character of the show and his college exploits were more fleshed out than his school work ever was, there also seemed to be an attempt to expand the roles of the other characters. Will Geer's role seemed more demanding as several episodes were devoted to his and Ellen Corby's characters (The Birthday, The Caretakers, and The Statue in particular) as the grandparents of the show. There were more focal points for the other kids as well, The Lie showing off brother Ben; The Ring giving sister Mary Ellen her shot, and The Runaway providing brother Jim Bob lots of quality time. These moments were all intertwined with the usual parental guidance and moral lessons of the show.

The quality of the acting improved for the younger, less experienced, cast members with the parents seeming to be even more comfortable with their roles than in the first couple of seasons. The show had hit its stride by this point and the events were loosely tied to 1935 where the social experiments of the government were supposedly having a positive effect on the quality of life in general (The New Deal was a mixed blessing with both positive and negative attributes). Tensions in Europe were escalating though they didn't play into the series much at this point. The outside world crept in a bit more than previously but it was still a relatively insulated world set up (except for John-Boy's college interactions). The technical matters were just as shaky as they were in Season 2 but the thematic excellence was still in fine form and the show had yet to devolve into the mire of the last couple of years (once Richard Thomas was gone, the writers seemed to run out of steam as I recall). In any case, I think the show was still worth a rating of Recommended for those of you that want the episodes in complete form, in order, looking better than they do on cable television (if you even get cable/satellite).

Season Three Episodes:

Episode 1: The Conflict: (September 12, 1974):
Episode 2: The First Day: (September 19, 1974):
Episode 3: The Thoroughbred: (September 26, 1974):
Episode 4: The Runaway: (October 3, 1974):
Episode 5: The Romance: (October 10, 1974):
Episode 6: The Ring: (October 17, 1974):
Episode 7: The System: (October 24, 1974):
Episode 8: The Spoilers: (October 31, 1974):
Episode 9: The Marathon: (November 7, 1974):
Episode 10: The Book: (November 14, 1974):
Episode 11: The Job: (November 21, 1974):
Episode 12: The Departure: (December 5, 1974):
Episode 13: The Visitor: (December 12, 1974):
Episode 14: The Birthday: (December 19, 1974):
Episode 15: The Lie: (January 2, 1975):
Episode 16: The Matchmakers: (January 9, 1975):
Episode 17: The Beguiled: (January 16, 1975):
Episode 18: The Caretakers: (January 23, 1975):
Episode 19: The Shivaree: (January 30, 1975):
Episode 20: The Choice: (February 6, 1975):
Episode 21: The Statue: (February 13, 1975):
Episode 22: The Song: (February 20, 1975):
Episode 23: The Woman: (February 27, 1975):
Episode 24: The Venture: (March 6, 1975):

Picture: The Waltons: Season 3was presented in the same 1.33:1 ratio full frame it was filmed in so long ago on 35mm film. There were a lot of print scratches, minor blemishes caused by years of neglect, and grain to contend with but it probably never looked much better than this either. Keeping in mind that modern television is far more accurate in terms of showing everything that's on the screen than televisions on the market 30 years ago, you have to understand that the rose colored glasses I had for the way it looked were probably due to the limited resolution of the broadcast as much as anything. That said, there didn't appear to be much of an effort to clean this one up digitally and the episodes looked only slightly better than the syndicated run you'll find on cable. The colors looked slightly muted at times, the composition of the shots pretty solid, and the scenic views that were so problematic in Season 2 were less in evidence, though still occasionally a problem.

Sound: The audio was presented in the same monaural it was shot in, slightly cleaned up by the Dolby Digital used on it. The music and vocals were mixed well but they were suitable to the material and I detected no alterations from the original release. There was a set of French subtitles (probably to sell it in Canada) and it was closed captioned for the hearing impaired (in English of course). I have no evidence that any of the minimal music was changed, nor does the cover mention any edits, but while the score was always on hand to cater to the drama, the music was only the focus of a single episode (co-starring Erin Gray, in The Song) and it didn't seem to be changed at all.

Extras: There were no extras outside the folding DVD case that had some minor information about the episodes on the folds. I would have liked better extras but the cost was low and the amount of episodes high, so I still can't complain too loudly.

Final Thoughts: The Waltons: Season 3was another season slice of the kind of show that they just don't make any more. Much like the Andy Griffith Show , from the prior decade, The Waltons was a gentle show, focusing on drama more than comedy (though there were numerous comedic touches; just done with a light hand). Even today, a lot of people yearn for the days when you could trust strangers and fend for yourself most of the time but it's important to remember that the Great Depression wasn't the best of times, no matter how much the creator of the show would have us believe. This five disc set was another nice way to spend some quality time and it certainly had a lot of replay value for fans of the genre. In short, The Waltons: Season 3 was one of the best seasons of the show as the lead character, John-Boy Walton, essentially grew up, spread his wings, and ventured off to college. Unlike contemporary show Little House on the Prairie, that had a similar appeal to it (though set back further in time), The Waltons had direct input from the guy that walked the walk instead of just basing it very loosely on some books. It wasn't the most technically perfect television season set I've come across but fans will delight in finally getting to see the unedited versions of the episodes after all these years and I can only hope that later seasons get even more care put into them.