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The Movie: In the early years of Fox, "Married...With Children" was an example of a perfectly cast series that was offensive and edgy, yet brilliantly so. It was also certainly one of the network's few early hits, continuing on for ten years. While tasteless, nearly every one of the show's lines of dialogue remains brutally funny, delivered to perfection by the cast, especially Ed O'Neill, whose Al Bundy is still a television icon. Years later, some of the "cutting edge" humor doesn't seem so edgy anymore (especially with Fox's recent animated sitcom "Family Guy" overtaking "Married" for the title of most offensive network show), but the jokes still connect often. As irritable and sarcastic as the show's humor could be, there was still very much the occasional hint of genuine care between the characters. The first season shows the development of the characters, including the intro of neighbors Marcy and Steve, who provided both the perfect enemy and, in Steve, an example of a guy who's on the border of becoming another Al. Of course, the show stars 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. Although the following episodes began to work Kelly's brillant idiocy and Bud's unsuccessful chase of any nearby women in, these early shows focus more on the dysfunctional relationship between Al and Peg. Unfortunately, they also introduce Al's skirt-chasing and unfunny co-worker Luke, who I believe was dropped after the first season. The second season continues the show's development, with Steve and Marcy becoming a greater presence and Marcy becoming a greater force against Al. There's also a little less focus on the kids, with Bud becoming more of a skirt-chaser and Kelly becoming more in-tune with her idiocy. The writing also became far more inspired in the second season, with some of the plots achieving true low-class brilliance. "Poppy's By The Tree", a two-parter early in the season, has the Bundys finding themselves in trouble when a killer is stalking the residents of their chosen vacation town - Dumpwater, Florida ("The first Howard Johnsons we get to, the Pez is on dad.") "For Whom The Bell Tolls" has the family upset by Al's decision to challenge the phone company after receiving a giant bill (Kelly: "If I did know someone in Vancouver, don't you think I'd be living with them instead of here.") "Alley of the Dolls" has Peg and the rest of the Bundys competing in a bowling match against Peggy's rival and her family, with the loser dressing like a human trophy. "Build a Better Mousetrap" has Steve and Al nearly killing themselves to try and catch a seemingly uncatchable mouse ("Don't worry, as soon as it sees how we live, it'll go away. I know I would.") in Al's house, while the popular finale, "All in the Family", has Peggy's entire family coming to visit, interrupting Al's 3-day weekend. 0201 - BUCK CAN DO IT - 0202 - POPPY'S BY THE TREE (PART 1) - Vacation in Dumpwater, Florida. 0203 - POPPY'S BY THE TREE (PART 2) 0204 - IF I WERE A RICH MAN 0205 - FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS 0206 - GIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE FUN (PART 1) 0207 - GIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE FUN (PART 2) 0208 - BORN TO WALK 0209 - ALLEY OF THE DOLLS 0210 - THE RAZOR'S EDGE 0211 - HOW DO YOU SPELL REVENGE? 0212 - EARTH ANGEL 0213 - YOU BETTER WATCH OUT 0214 - GUYS AND DOLLS 0215 - BUILD A BETTER MOUSETRAP 0216 - MASTER THE POSSIBILITIES 0217 - PEGGY LOVES AL - YEAH, YEAH, YEAH 0218 - THE GREAT ESCAPE 0219 - IM-PO-DENT 0220 - JUST MARRIED... WITH CHILDREN 0221 - FATHER LODE 0222 - ALL IN THE FAMILY The DVD VIDEO: Presented in 1.33:1 full-frame, the second season episodes of "Married...With Children" appear to offer the same sort of image quality as one sees during broadcast re-runs of the series. Sharpness and detail are generally pretty decent, although some darker or dimly-lit scenes can appear noticably softer. With only a few episodes on the third disc, the image quality of the less-compressed episodes on this DVD seemed mildly better and more consistent. Some rather noticable compression artifacts pop up from time-to-time, as does some shimmering, but these issues aren't too terribly distracting. Colors are generally accurate, with no serious problems. SOUND: The stereo soundtracks provide clear dialogue and a balanced mix between sound effects, laugh track and dialogue. Played back in Pro Logic II, some ambience is directed to the surrounds on occasion. EXTRAS: Trailers for other Columbia/Tristar titles are included, and interview snippets (which appear to be randomly taken from the "reunion special") are hidden throughout the menus. Final Thoughts: It's too bad that, given the long run and enormous following of the series, more supplemental features aren't offered. It would be terrific to hear a commentary from the cast or crew of the show, or more behind-the-scenes supplements. Still, it's great to be able to own more episodes from this series, whose cynical, well-timed humor is still a riot years later. |