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The Movie: One of the better recent television shows, "Las Vegas" is a much-needed boost for NBC - a quality show that often seamlessly slips between comedy and drama, while managing to bounce between several subplots in every episode and throw in the occasional bit of action. It's a fun series that looks slick and sleek, yet all its whip pans and zooms and creative editing choices don't overwhelm well-constructed stories and compelling characters. The show takes place at the Montecito casino and hotel in Las Vegas. Ruled over with an iron fist by former CIA operative Ed Deline (James Caan), the place runs smoothly, despite a series of con artists, criminals and other riff-raff that find their way through the doors. Danny McCoy (Josh Duhamel) is in charge of security and is Ed's extra pair of eyes and ears on the floor of the casino. As the series opened, Danny has just screwed up big time, getting caught sleeping with Delinda (Molly Sims), who Danny finds out is Ed's daughter. The third season of the series continues the show's formula: a crisis - criminal or otherwise - has occured and it's up to Ed, Danny and the rest of the Montecito staff to try and crack the case. Despite not doing much tweaking to what the show has brought to the table in the past, "Las Vegas" still had some surprises up its sleeve this season, including a bizarre ending for guest star Lara Flynn Boyle that was certainly unexpected and sparked debate from fans. Boyle was brought on to play new boss Monica, but the actress is a rather abrasive at times in the role, bringing conflict where it wasn't particularly necessary and not seeming like an entirely smooth fit with the rest of the cast. Still, her inclusion didn't cause much disarray and she has her moments. Other guest stars on this season include: Rachel Leigh Cook, Dennis Rodman and Dean Cain. Overall, "Las Vegas" is a fun series that offers a balance between the visual flash and flair of "Vegas" and good, fun and often compelling stories. The performances from the cast are great and the whole ensemble has good chemistry. The show has allowed itself to get a little too corny for its own good at times since its first season, but the series generally remains a slick guilty pleasure, never taking itself all that seriously. The DVD release of the series promotes itself as being "uncut and uncensored", but there really doesn't seem to be too much extra "wild" footage (although I guess that's not too surprising, given that this is a network TV show.) However, there is another issue - the opening credits have been changed: now there is a different tune instead of the remix of the Elvis track "A Little Less Conversation", which worked so well to open the show. Bit of a bummer. Season 3 48. 3- 1 19 Sep 05 Viva Las Vegas 49. 3- 2 26 Sep 05 Fake the Money and Run 50. 3- 3 3 Oct 05 Double Down, Triple Threat 51. 3- 4 10 Oct 05 Whatever Happened To Seymour Magoon? 52. 3- 5 17 Oct 05 Big Ed De-cline 53. 3- 6 24 Oct 05 The Real McCoy 54. 3- 7 7 Nov 05 Everything Old Is You Again 55. 3- 8 14 Nov 05 Bold, Beautiful, and Blue 56. 3- 9 21 Nov 05 Mothwoman 57. 3-10 28 Nov 05 For Sail by Owner 58. 3-11 5 Dec 05 Down & Dirty 59. 3-12 2 Jan 06 Bait and Switch 60. 3-13 9 Jan 06 The Bitch is Back 61. 3-14 23 Jan 06 And here's Mike with the Weather 62. 3-15 6 Feb 06 Urban Legends 63. 3-16 3 Mar 06 Coyote Ugly 64. 3-17 10 Mar 06 Lyle & Substance 65. 3-18 17 Mar 06 Like A Virgin 66. 3-19 31 Mar 06 Cash Springs Eternal 67. 3-20 7 Apr 06 All Quiet on the Montecito Front 68. 3-21 28 Apr 06 Chaos Theory 69. 3-22 5 May 06 Fidelity, Security, Delivery 70. 3-23 12 May 06 Father of the Bride The DVD VIDEO: "Las Vegas" is presented by Universal in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen for this DVD release. All 23 episodes are presented across three dual-sided/single-layer DVDs. The video quality is merely good, which is a little bit of a disappointment. Sharpness and detail are generally satisfying, although small object detail is a bit lacking at times. Definition is a little inconsistent though, with some scenes looking better than others. The picture seems just a touch on the dark side, as well, which takes away from the sparkle of Vegas a bit. Some other concerns present themselves, as well. Some mild edge enhancement is visible fairly often, as are some minor traces of pixelation. The elements are in fine condition though, with no wear or damage. Colors look fine enough (as with the detail, sometimes better than others), but sometimes came up just under expectations. Flesh tones looked accurate and natural. SOUND: "Las Vegas" is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1. It's nice to have the series in 5.1, but the sound design isn't anything too extraordinary. There's some light ambience and occasional sound effects heard in the rear speakers, but the surrounds are mostly silent. Audio quality is fine, with well-recorded dialogue and effects and rich, dynamic-sounding music. EXTRAS: Gag reel from season 3 and "In With the New" (time-lapse photography of the process of building the new hotel.) Final Thoughts: "Las Vegas" is an entertaining series that often skips between genres and tones well - it's funny, thrilling, maybe even a little dramatic and emotional at times. The addition of Lara Flynn Boyle to the cast doesn't work out as well as the creators likely thought it might, but the season does rebound from it. The rest of the cast remains quite good (especially Caan, of course) and the show still clicks more often than not in this third season. Universal's DVD comes up a bit short in terms of video quality, but the audio is fine and the supplements are worthwhile. Recommended. |