Charlie's Angels - The Complete First Season (1976) Review

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(More customer reviews)It's great to have this 5-disc complete first season compilation on DVD. Although no one will confuse Charlie's Angels with "quality" television (this show was never meant to be taken seriously), this campy series is just plain fun, even 27 years later. Most episodes are light on plotline but the appeal of it's three stars make up for that. Kate Jackson, Farrah Fawcett-Majors and Jaclyn Smith have a chemistry unmatched by any of the future Angel pairings. Season One contains the series most "infamous" episode, "Angels in Chains." Every single "women in prison" cliche is here......the brutal prison matrons, the leacherous sheriff and deputy, the crooked warden and of course the obligatory shower scene. This is probably the highlight of the season.
This DVD collection gets high marks for including the original movie pilot. Although the pilot movie is just average, I haven't seen it since it first aired, so it was a nice bonus. Although Jaclyn Smith is featured prominently in the pilot, it was meant to be a showcase for Kate Jackson. Kate (for whom the series was created) was originally supposed to play Kelly Garrett but decided to play Sabrina at the last minute, thus Jaclyn Smith gets most of the screen time in the movie.
Unfortunately, the pilot movie is the best that can be said about the extras in the DVD collection. It also contains a rather dull featurette called "Angels Forever" which consists of a lot of geeky fans reminiscing about the series. TV Land and the E network had much better features about the series. Alas none of the stars are featured offering their thoughts on the series. The DVD also does not contain chapter selections for each episode, which is rather irritating. The packaging of the collection is certainly sparse as well. Each disc is contained in a flimsy plastic cover. Hopefully Sony Entertainment will correct these issues in future seasons.

I suspect the appeal of this series lies predominantly with those of us who remember when it first aired in the 1970s. Today, it's hard to believe this innocent, cheesey little show caused as much controversy as it did. It's nice to see that Chucky's girls are still fun to watch after all these years.

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This five-disc compilation features the entire First Season with the original Angels Farrah Fawcett, Kate Jackson and Jaclyn Smith and all their adventures from one of the most classic shows in television history.
Once upon a time, Jill, Sabrina and Kelly were police officers whose skills were being wasted in menial duties such as answering phones and filing. A mysterious millionaire named Charles Townsend took them away from all that by opening his own private investigation agency and hiring these gorgeous ladies as his operatives with John Bosley acting as their assistant and liaison.

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Charlie's Angels - The Complete Third Season (1976) Review

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(More customer reviews)The third season of Charlie's Angels, which aired on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. on ABC from September 1978 through May 1979, had a lot going for it, as well as a lot to live up to. The first season exploded onto television and immediately became a Nielsen ratings champ. Thanks to tweaked writing and a better timeslot, the second season was an even greater success, despite losing the angel who became a cultural phenomenon, Farrah Fawcett's "Jill Munroe."
One unique aspect of the third season is that it has the distinction of being the first (and only) season to have all three angels returning from the previous one-Cheryl Ladd as "Kris Munroe" who replaced Farrah, in addition to original angels "Sabrina Duncan" and "Kelley Garret," played by Kate Jackson and Jaclyn Smith respectively. Additionally, Farrah's contractual return for three episodes this season was another asset for the returning show. Her Townsend Associates homecoming alone caused enough media hype to potentially catapult the ratings even higher than before as everyone was curious to see how the former angel would come back into the fold with her younger sister and former colleagues. Not to mention that this season was filled with plenty of guest appearances including Dean Martin, Dick Sargent, Nancy Parsons, Anne Francis, Casey Kasem, and an up-and-coming young actress by the name of Jamie Lee Curtis. So with all of these factors going for it, this season should have been nothing less than stellar.
Well, that wasn't quite the case. I think that the actresses, along with faithful sidekick "Bosley," played perfectly by the late David Doyle, performed to the best of their abilities, given the material. The real problem is that by the time the third season began, the producers/creators thought that the show was infallible given its immense popularity and record-setting ratings, and this arrogance on their behalf lead to a creative decline mostly due to inferior writing. One particular writer became quite lazy with his scripts, and a pattern begins to emerge in his scripted episodes: they lack any real depth and tend to be built around one good central idea that isn't fleshed out enough for an entire episode. Examples of these episodes include: ANGELS BELONG IN HEAVEN, ANGELS ON VACATION, MARATHON ANGELS, ANGEL ON HIGH, and TERROR ON SKIS, the latter of which he admittedly wrote because his wife wanted to go on a skiing vacation!?! The initial ideas for these episodes are good, but the episodes as a whole don't match the calibur of earlier Angel outings.
Since Charlie's Angels is more episodic (meaning that the storylines are limited to the duration of an episode) than serial (where storylines last several episodes or even an entire season), it's better to have a diverse mix of writers and directors so that they can bring their own creativity to the show, thus giving it a fresh, ever-evolving feel. Consequently, the season's highlights are when guest writers contributed scripts: COUNTERFEIT ANGELS is an original episode that uses Charlie's anonymity against him when a man disguises his voice to impersonate Charlie and send his "evil angels" out to do his bidding; Jill's return in ANGEL COME HOME has a well-developed story that naturally involves all 4 angels as they work together to discover who sent the phony emergency cablegram that brought Jill back from racing in Europe; and another bright spot in the season, and series, is the classic ANGELS IN SPRINGTIME where the Angels infiltrate a women's spa to solve the murder of a famous actress and find her missing memoirs. This episode is loaded with fun, from short shorts to frigid adversaries to faking hypnotism, and this episode boasts one of the best villains: Zora the hefty physical therapist who uses her might against little Kris during a rough confrontation.
As for the DVD set, there's nothing in the form of "special features," but for me the show itself is worth the purchase. The packaging for this season is different than the formats used for previous seasons, with this season's packaging consisting of an outer box that houses 3 slim plastic DVD cases. Each case holds 2 discs and features a large photo of an angel on the cover, episode titles, descriptions and airdates on the back, and several photos of the angels and Bosley on the inside. Of all 3 season DVD releases, I believe this one has the best packaging. The film restoration is excellent, as the episodes look and sound great! My only complaint about the set is that the 2 double-length episodes, "Angels in Vegas" and "Terror on Skis," are the syndicated versions that are each split up into 2-part episodes. It would be nice to have the rarely seen, unedited, original versions of these episodes.
I love the Angels, through thick and thin, and even though this season has its flaws, I'm thrilled to add it to my Angel DVD collection. It's just a shame that a season that could have been spectacular as a whole was instead lackluster.
Season 3: 4 stars
Season 3 DVD set: 4 stars

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CHARLIE'S ANGELS:THE COMPLETE THIRD S - DVD Movie

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Charlie's Angels - The Complete Fourth Season Review

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(More customer reviews)The fourth season of CHARLIE'S ANGELS, which aired on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. on ABC from September 1979 through May 1980, is possibly the season that yields the most dramatic changes in the series, namely Shelley Hack becomes the newest angel, "Tiffany Welles", filling the slot vacated by original actress Kate Jackson. Returning for another tour of duty this season are "Kelly Garret" and "Kris Munroe", played by Jaclyn Smith and Cheryl Ladd respectively, along with faithful sidekick "Bosley", played by David Doyle. Farrah Fawcett's "Jill Munroe" also makes her final three appearances of the series.
With the new angel, also comes a new overall look to the series. With Hack, a former fashion model, on board, all three actresses don dresses, gowns, and tailored suits more often than casual wear. And while attention is taken away from the flesh (the Angels wear fewer bathing suits this season than ever before), the Angels never looked classier and more stunning in their wardrobe. The result is mature, professional-looking Angels that seem to have come a long way from the earlier days of the show when they rarely wore bras.
Aside from a new angel and a new look, the significant change that takes place this season that differentiates it from its predecessors is the writing style. Unlike the writing from season three which, at times, is dull and underwhelming, season four's writing includes several intriguing storylines that are largely the contribution of guest writers. ANGELS ON CAMPUS, ANGEL HUNT, FALLEN ANGEL, and THREE FOR THE MONEY are guest writer-contributed scripts and consequently, they are among the season's highlights as they are solid episodes that demonstrate the series' potency and vitality, even in its fourth season. The writing style also differs with certain episodes straying from the usual team formula, instead showcasing a single Angel while the other two Angels and Bosley are relegated to the background. A final aspect of the writing that changes is the overall tone, with some episodes (AVENGING ANGEL, CATCH A FALLING ANGEL, ANGEL'S CHILD, ANGELS ON THE STREET) tackling social issues such as drug abuse, pornography, child abuse, and prostitution with greater urgency than had been seen before in the series.
However, an aspect of the writing this season that backfired is intentionally minimizing the role of new angel "Tiffany" in the first several episodes. Two episodes in particular, ANGELS ON CAMPUS and ANGEL HUNT, are pivotal because the former establishes the back story and character of "Tiffany" and the latter validates the newest angel's position in the group and fleshes out all three angels' profound concern for each other. It's safe to assume these two episodes were among the first ones filmed because clips from them appear in the opening credits, yet unfortunately they did not air until almost halfway through the season. This was a poor decision on behalf of the producers/creators that damaged the series because it prevented the new angel (and actress) from instantly impressing and clicking with audiences. For this reason, Hack often, and rather unfairly, earns the odium from some fans as the death knell to the series. To remedy this, a simple rearranging of the initial episodes of the season would suffice: LOVE BOAT ANGELS, ANGELS GO TRUCKIN', ANGELS ON CAMPUS, ANGEL HUNT, FALLEN ANGEL, followed by OF GHOSTS AND ANGELS. Had these episodes aired in a similar sequence, perhaps the course of the series would have been quite different, with "Tiffany" continuing to work for Charles Townsend and Associates into the fifth season.
The only genuine flaw in the DVD set is the inclusion of the syndicated 2-part version of the season premier, LOVE BOAT ANGELS, instead of the original unedited print. The set is presented in a similar format to that of the third season set, with an outer box that houses 3 slim plastic DVD cases. Each case holds 2 discs and features a different group photo of the Angels on the cover, with episode titles, synopses, and original air dates on the back, and several photos of the Angels, Bosley, and the season's numerous guest stars (Patrick Duffy, Kim Cattrall, Timothy Dalton, Robert Reed, Barbara Stanwyck, etc.) throughout. Aesthetically, this is easily the best presentation of all CHARLIE'S ANGELS season sets. Mike Pingel of the Charlie's Angels website and SONY have put together a beautiful product, which is only fitting as it reflects such beautiful Angels.

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Another season of the hit classic series comes to DVD! This season, the Angels go on the Love Boat to investigate a major art theft, go back to college to stop a white slavery ring, and find more than just fingerprints when Charlie's yacht is stolen. Jill gets help from the Angels after her date with a crown prince is interrupted by sniper fire, and Kelly meets a man who may be her long-lost father.

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Peyton Place: Part Two Review

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(More customer reviews)Shout! Factory is releasing "Peyton Place-Part 2" even before Part 1 is out, so this confirms to us that the studio is dedicated in bringing back this blockbuster soap via DVD format. I for one am very happy. "Peyton Place" was never released commercially through VHS, and this marks the first time the series has ever been on DVD. The serial has also been rarely seen through television during the last several decades. The only time I recall when "Peyton Place" was on was in the late 1990's when Romance Classics aired it, but unfortunately the channel went off the air before the entire library of shows were broadcast. Those episodes that did air were jumpy and scratchy. Now thanks to DVD we will see "Peyton Place" the way it should be shown; in crystle-clear digital format.
This boxset contains 33 30 minute episodes, uncut, without commercials. The reason the studio is releasing the boxsets in "Parts" is because the serial did not run from season to season, but rather was broadcast like a continuing soap opera. "Peyton Place" ran continuously for 5 full years, every week, with a brand new episode, and it never aired reruns, or had a summer hiatus period; it ran straight through the summer with new shows. The serial is the only primtime series to ever air with all-new shows for its entire run, and no other show has ever done this since.
The first year was the show's best as Ryan O'Neil and Mia Farrow played star-crossed lovers Rodney and Allison. Things got worse for them as Betty Anderson, played by Barbara Parkins, pursued Rodney.
"Peyton Place" is regarded by most soap opera critics as being one of the best network serials ever broadcast, and it gave way to other primetime shows like "Dynasty". Even "Peyton Place" star Dorothy Malone stated in 1985 that "Dynasty" was her favorite all-time serial.
The serial was based on the 1957 Lana Turner film of the same name, that received a whopping 9 Academy Award nominations, but winning none. That film, was in turn, based on a novel written by Grace Matalious in 1956. ABC bought the television rights, and in conjuction with 20th Century Fox, produced this television version. At first ABC was going to air an American adaption of Britain's "Coronation Street", but later felt audiences wouldn't warm up to the working-class storyline. The network even hired daytime soap opera creator/writer Irna Phillips, widely regarded as the "Queen of Soaps", to be a consultant.
514 episodes of "Peyton Place" were produced, and the show ran from September 15, 1964-June 2, 1969, and it even spawned a daytime serial, that was only moderately successful, called "Return to Peyton Place", that ran on NBC from 1972-1974. Two TV movies also aired after the mothershow went off the air; "Murder in Peyton Place" aired in 1977, and in 1985 "Peyton Place-The Next Generation" was broadcast on NBC.
Sit back and enjoy a true classic televison program. They don't make soaps like this anymore!

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Following closely on the widely anticipated release of Part One comes Peyton Place Part Two. This ABC show introduced such taboo topics as extramarital affairs, unwed teen pregnancies, family betrayals, mental illness and even murder to 60s America primetime TV, and in the process became not only a ratings giant, but an enduring symbol of the era it represented. Featuring the widow Constance MacKenzie (1950s melodrama star Dorothy Malone), her innocent daughter Allison (Mia Farrow), the wealthy but troubled Rodney Harrington (Ryan O'Neal) and others, Peyton Place is as compulsively watchable today as it was 40 years ago. Part Two includes 33 half-hour episodes in a deluxe 5-DVD box set.

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