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The Movie: Although the series went on a little longer than it should have (it could have wrapped things up a season or two prior to its final run, and the decision to continue without Topher Grace or Ashton Kutcher resulted in a noticable decline) , "That 70's Show" was been consistently excellent throughout much of its five year run, with the first half of the show's run containing some of the best episodes. For those unfamiliar with the show, it involves a group of teenagers living in Point Place, Wisconsin in 1976. Leading the group, seemingly by default, is Eric Foreman (Topher Grace), a shrimpy, good-hearted kid that manages to attract the attention of his attractive next-door neighbor, Donna (Laura Prepon). Joining the two are: vain idiot Kelso (Ashton Kutcher), paranoid Hyde (Danny Masterson), spoiled Jackie (Mila Kunis) and foreign exchange student Fez (Wilmer Valderrama). Also featured are Eric's parents - the nervous Kitty (Debra Jo Rupp) and the rage-a-holic Red (the brilliant Kurtwood Smith) and Donna's parents, Bob and Midge (Don Stark and Tanya Roberts.) The show chronicles the lives of the kids, with the romance between Donna and Eric remaining the core of the show. Superbly played by the two actors, the romantic angle of the series became unfocused and got off track, but Grace and Prepon have always had terrific chemistry. Kutcher's idiotic character could have become old after a few seasons, but Kelso continually reaches new and funny heights of stupidity. The actor's delivery has never really been as good as it has in this series, either. Masterson, Valderama, Kunis and others provide superb supporting efforts, as well. The fifth season is just about the last of the best seasons of the show's run, before it would start to slide downhill in the second half of season six and afterward. The season starts off with Donna and Kelso winding up in California, where she's the third wheel once Kelso meets beach bunny Annette (Jessica Simpson, in a role that essentially has her playing another version of herself). Once Kelso returns, he finds that Jackie has chosen to go out with Hyde ("What Is And What Should Never Be", "Heartbreaker") much to his anger. Some of the gang also try to find work: Kelso makes a decision to become a cop ("Hey, Hey, What Can I Do?"), Fez takes a job at the DMV and Eric takes up the unpleasant task of working in a dog food factory. Jackie takes up with Hyde in the Foreman's basement when her parents leave ("Bring It On Home") and then moves in with Donna ("No Quarter"). The season ends with a big surprise as Fez goes to unexpected lengths in order to stay in the country when his Visa expires ("Celebration Day"). Season 5 106. 5- 1 17 Sep 02 Going To California 107. 5- 2 24 Sep 02 I Can't Quit You Baby 108. 5- 3 29 Oct 02 What Is and What Should Never Be 109. 5- 4 29 Oct 02 Heartbreaker 110. 5- 5 12 Nov 02 Ramble On 111. 5- 6 19 Nov 02 Over the Hills and Far Away 112. 5- 7 26 Nov 02 Hot Dog 113. 5- 8 3 Dec 02 Thank You 114. 5- 9 10 Dec 02 Black Dog 115. 5-10 17 Dec 02 The Crunge 116. 5-11 7 Jan 03 The Girl I Love 117. 5-12 22 Jan 03 Misty Mountain Hop 118. 5-13 29 Jan 03 Your Time Is Gonna Come 119. 5-14 5 Feb 03 Babe I'm Gonna Leave You 120. 5-15 12 Feb 03 When the Levee Breaks 121. 5-16 19 Feb 03 Whole Lotta Love 122. 5-17 26 Feb 03 The Battle of Evermore 123. 5-18 12 Mar 03 Hey Hey What Can I Do 124. 5-19 26 Mar 03 Bring It On Home 125. 5-20 2 Apr 03 No Quarter 126. 5-21 9 Apr 03 Trampled Under Foot 127. 5-22 16 Apr 03 You Shook Me (1) 128. 5-23 23 Apr 03 Nobody's Fault But Mine (2) 129. 5-24 7 May 03 The Immigrant Song 130. 5-25 14 May 03 Celebration Day The DVD VIDEO: "That 70's Show" is presented in its original 1.33:1 full-frame aspect ratio on this release from Fox. The picture quality does show a few minor faults, but it's often equal to broadcast quality and sometimes looks slightly better than that. Sharpness and detail are often very good, and the picture looked consistently a bit better-defined than the first season set. Some slight traces of pixelation appeared in a few scenes, but they did not cause distraction. No edge enhancement was noticed, nor were any flaws with the source material. Colors appeared well-saturated, accurate and without any concerns. Although not quite flawless, these episodes looked very good. SOUND: The show's 2.0 soundtrack sounds perfectly fine, with clean, clear-sounding dialogue and music. EXTRAS: Episode promos and 2 short featurettes: "Season 5 in 5 minutes" and "70's Flashack: Wilmer Valderrama and Danny Masterson." Final Thoughts: The fifth season of "That 70's Show" offers another great round of episodes, with a lot of very amusing plots and a few changes/developments that work well. The DVD set provides little in the way of extras, but fine audio/video quality. Recommended. |