For quite some time now fans of Cheers have been petitioning Paramount to continue releasing the show on DVD. Season Eight of the beloved series came out in June 2006 which created a wave of discontent for devoted collectors who have waited nearly two years for the ninth season. Well, that time has finally come and though the packaging is very different this time around, Cheers once again can find a welcome and long awaited home on your DVD shelf.

While reruns of Cheers can be found on no less than three channels in just about every corner of America, sitting down to watch the show is like stepping through time. Television shows such as this simply aren't produced anymore. It is iconic of an era and though it may seem silly to say so; it's an American staple. Every week we would invite Sam, Carla, Norm, Cliff, Frasier, and the rest of the gang into our homes and anyone old enough to watch the show most likely looks upon it with fond memories. There was a sense of genius and fluidity from the very first episode and for eleven seasons it remained one of the highest rated comedies around.

Endearing characters, a superb cast, well-written scripts, and an off-the-wall brand of humor were just a few pieces of Cheers' puzzle that led to its success. Seasons one through eight were all great but there's just something about the ninth installment that feels just as good; if not better somehow. There are some cast changes afoot and some of the wayward shifts in the show's plot were realigned. After this season the show went on to slide in quality and it's hard to deny that the final two seasons didn't feature the crew at the top of their game.

This season gets started essentially right where the last one left off with Sam getting Robin arrested and bedding Rebecca. This creates a downward spiral in their relationship that has Rebecca bouncing back to Robin even though he's on the run from the law and eventually behind bars. Through the course of these episodes the plotline revolving around those characters reaches a boiling point. Rebecca spends time devising ways to get to Robin for a conjugal visit, he eventually gets out of prison, the two are about to be wed, and it all ends in tears and laughs as she realizes deep down that she was only after him for the money. This particular storyline plays out perfectly and thankfully it's paced well so that there's room for other developments for Sam's barflies.

My favorite long-running addition to this series is the introduction of John Hill who becomes the manager of Melville's upstairs from Cheers. He starts to throw his weight around and almost immediately he and Sam clash in a major way. In the episode "Bad Neighbor Sam" we see just how the dynamic between the two characters is going to play out and let's just say that our buddy Mayday Malone doesn't take to the change with a level head. There's a rivalry that springs up from their proximity to each other and that becomes a running gag through Cheers that is touched upon several times this season and beyond.

Scattered throughout this season are other little goodies such as Kelly's return from France with a guy who claims he's going to steal her from Woody, Norm's wife Vera gets a brief job up at Melville's, and Cliff cons Carla into being nice to him for a brief period by making her think he is a judge for the Miss Boston Barmaid Contest. To be quite honest there are so many other classic moments found in these episodes that have become TV staples. Some celebrity guest stars also pop up this season such as Michael Dukakis and Kevin McHale. This collection of episodes even includes the 200th episode celebration which is a nice trip down memory lane for the show and a must-see by anyone's standards. Now, as great as this season is there are a few semi-sour apples scattered throughout. Episodes such as "Honor Thy Mother", "Home Malone", and "Uncle Sam Wants You" just weren't as funny as some of the others.

If you have been collecting Cheers on DVD and you have been waiting for two years for Paramount to get off their butts to release the ninth season then chances are you already have this in your collection. The packaging is completely different which is annoying but the actual show itself is still just as good as ever. This season is very strong overall and there are only a few episodes that don't shine as well as the others. That's merely a small blemish on an otherwise classic batch of episodes from one of TV's greatest shows.

As you'd expect Cheers' ninth season is presented on DVD with the show's original 1.33:1 full frame aspect ratio. Given the age of the source material there are a few things that can be expected with this transfer such as a soft image, grain, and dirt. With that being said the video quality here is actually quite good with vibrant colors, a cleaner than anticipated image, and little to no compression. Series of this vintage are often hit or miss in terms of how they appear on DVD but thankfully Cheers looks very good.

Cheers hits DVD with the English 2.0 stereo presentation which mirrors the previous seasons. The sound quality is good for a TV show of this age though you can expect the channels to be relatively flat by today's standards. The audio is clean and not muted in the least which is a definite plus and the volume is balanced well enough. Overall the audio quality is good but not particularly impressive or noteworthy.

Nothing appears on this collection that could be considered bonus material. At this point I suppose fans should just be happy this season has finally been released.

Cheers Season 9 has finally come out! With nearly two years in between seasons it's safe to say that the wait has been a painful one but thankfully it's over and once again we are able to join Sam and company at the bar. There's not much to be said about Cheers as a show because, frankly, it's a television icon. This season is a very strong one but it is also one that foreshadows the decline in the coming years. Either way this is a series that belongs in just about everyone's collection no matter how you feel about the change in packaging after nine releases. Recommended

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