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Married With Children: Outrageous Episodes 2
Columbia/Tri-Star // Unrated // April 1, 2003
List Price: $19.99 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
A Man's Castle, Raingirl, Have You Driven a Ford Lately, If Al Had a Hammer, Who'll Stop the Rain?.
Controversial, rude, sleazy and mean-spirited, "Married With Children" was also occasionally brilliant, witty and acted with nearly perfect comedic timing. Years later, some of the "cutting edge" humor doesn't seem so outrageous anymore, but the jokes still hit with remarkable consistency. The show, which had a remarkable ten-year run as one of Fox's biggest hits, starred Ed O'Neill as Al Bundy, a former high school football "legend" who now finds himself with a wife he hates (Peggy Segal) and two children (David Faustino and Christina Applegate) who he can't stand.
While it's great that the series is finally arriving on DVD, this first "Outrageous Episodes" release is certainly an injustice to the show and its fans. Less "Outrageous" than "Random", these episodes are fine, but certainly not among the highlights of the show's 10-year run. Although it was often tasteless, the show's writers seemed to have an endless supply of hilarious insults, new ways for Al to demand Peg actually make him a meal and idiotic things for Applegate's Kelly to say. Although the show changed in tone on occasion throughout its run, it never lost its dark charm or its sense of humor. The episodes here may not be the best of the series, but the brightest moments in these five episodes only make this fan want full-season sets more.
These episodes have their moments, but overall, these five seem more like random choices from the show's many episodes than actual highlights. "A Man's Castle" is the most consistent of the five, getting quite a few laughs from Peggy's attempt to change Al's bathroom from white and plain to pink and fluffy - to Al's shock and horror. After using public toilets, Al decides to brew up revenge. "Raingirl" provides a showcase for Applegate's talents, as some of her lines as an intern-turned-Weather Bunny at a local newsstation are priceless.
I remembered "If Al Had a Hammer" as funnier than it seemed watching it again after all these years. In the episode, Al breaks out his father's hammer, building a remarkable new room where he can live free from the rest of his family - unfortunately, word gets out about Al's new addition. The episode also offered the debut of Bud's alter-ego, rapper "Grandmaster B". "Who'll Stop The Rain?" puts one of the show's most heavily-used bits - Al falling off the roof - to good use, as he tries to fix a leaky roof during a rainstorm. "Have You Driven a Ford Lately?" has Al and Steve purchasing a vintage car from one of Kelly's boyfriends. Without much to the plot or many of the show's usual one-liners, this is one of the weakest episodes.
The DVD
VIDEO: The 5 episodes of "Married With Children" included here are presented in the show's original 1.33:1 full-frame broadcast aspect ratio. The presentation actually looked a little better than broadcast-quality, as the image seemed a bit sharper and more consistent than I remember the shows looking. The episodes here certainly vary in age, though, and the oldest of the five - "Have You Driven a Ford Lately?" - looks a tad softer than the rest. Some minor faults - a tad of shimmering, a compression artifact or two, a little bit of graininess - are noticable, but don't take away terribly. Colors are nicely rendered, although the show's color palette is intentionally plain.
SOUND: The show's 2.0 soundtrack clearly presents both the score and dialogue.
EXTRAS: The only extras include a promo for a "Salute to Sinatra" album, a trailer for "The Sweetest Thing" and a promo for other Columbia/Tristar comedies on DVD. Same supplements as the prior "MWC" release.
Final Thoughts: One of the most hilarious sitcoms ever, "Married With Children" should certainly have been released in full-season sets than these "Outrageous" volumes, which look to be a test of interest of the show on DVD. As for this volume, it's nice to have at least a few episodes on DVD, but - as with the first 5-episode volume - there were better episodes over the show's run.
A Man's Castle, Raingirl, Have You Driven a Ford Lately, If Al Had a Hammer, Who'll Stop the Rain?.
Controversial, rude, sleazy and mean-spirited, "Married With Children" was also occasionally brilliant, witty and acted with nearly perfect comedic timing. Years later, some of the "cutting edge" humor doesn't seem so outrageous anymore, but the jokes still hit with remarkable consistency. The show, which had a remarkable ten-year run as one of Fox's biggest hits, starred Ed O'Neill as Al Bundy, a former high school football "legend" who now finds himself with a wife he hates (Peggy Segal) and two children (David Faustino and Christina Applegate) who he can't stand.
While it's great that the series is finally arriving on DVD, this first "Outrageous Episodes" release is certainly an injustice to the show and its fans. Less "Outrageous" than "Random", these episodes are fine, but certainly not among the highlights of the show's 10-year run. Although it was often tasteless, the show's writers seemed to have an endless supply of hilarious insults, new ways for Al to demand Peg actually make him a meal and idiotic things for Applegate's Kelly to say. Although the show changed in tone on occasion throughout its run, it never lost its dark charm or its sense of humor. The episodes here may not be the best of the series, but the brightest moments in these five episodes only make this fan want full-season sets more.
These episodes have their moments, but overall, these five seem more like random choices from the show's many episodes than actual highlights. "A Man's Castle" is the most consistent of the five, getting quite a few laughs from Peggy's attempt to change Al's bathroom from white and plain to pink and fluffy - to Al's shock and horror. After using public toilets, Al decides to brew up revenge. "Raingirl" provides a showcase for Applegate's talents, as some of her lines as an intern-turned-Weather Bunny at a local newsstation are priceless.
I remembered "If Al Had a Hammer" as funnier than it seemed watching it again after all these years. In the episode, Al breaks out his father's hammer, building a remarkable new room where he can live free from the rest of his family - unfortunately, word gets out about Al's new addition. The episode also offered the debut of Bud's alter-ego, rapper "Grandmaster B". "Who'll Stop The Rain?" puts one of the show's most heavily-used bits - Al falling off the roof - to good use, as he tries to fix a leaky roof during a rainstorm. "Have You Driven a Ford Lately?" has Al and Steve purchasing a vintage car from one of Kelly's boyfriends. Without much to the plot or many of the show's usual one-liners, this is one of the weakest episodes.
The DVD
VIDEO: The 5 episodes of "Married With Children" included here are presented in the show's original 1.33:1 full-frame broadcast aspect ratio. The presentation actually looked a little better than broadcast-quality, as the image seemed a bit sharper and more consistent than I remember the shows looking. The episodes here certainly vary in age, though, and the oldest of the five - "Have You Driven a Ford Lately?" - looks a tad softer than the rest. Some minor faults - a tad of shimmering, a compression artifact or two, a little bit of graininess - are noticable, but don't take away terribly. Colors are nicely rendered, although the show's color palette is intentionally plain.
SOUND: The show's 2.0 soundtrack clearly presents both the score and dialogue.
EXTRAS: The only extras include a promo for a "Salute to Sinatra" album, a trailer for "The Sweetest Thing" and a promo for other Columbia/Tristar comedies on DVD. Same supplements as the prior "MWC" release.
Final Thoughts: One of the most hilarious sitcoms ever, "Married With Children" should certainly have been released in full-season sets than these "Outrageous" volumes, which look to be a test of interest of the show on DVD. As for this volume, it's nice to have at least a few episodes on DVD, but - as with the first 5-episode volume - there were better episodes over the show's run.
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