|
“That
70’s Show- Season Two“
|
 |
Reviewed
by: |
Wayne A. Klein |
| Genre: |
Comedy |
| Video: |
1.33:1 Full
screen |
| Audio: |
Dolby Digital
2.0 (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround) |
| Languages |
English |
| Subtitles |
English
|
| Length |
398 minutes
|
| Rating |
NR |
| Release Date |
4/19/05 |
| Studio |
20th Century
Fox Home Entertainment |
| Commentary:
|
3 Commentary
tracks by David Trainer on “Halloween”, “Hunting” and “Cat Fight
Club” |
| Documentaries:
|
None |
| Featurettes:
|
“That 70’s Show Season
2 Overview”, “Webisodes”, “Season 1: A Look Back” |
| Filmography/Biography:
|
None |
|
Interviews: |
None |
| Trailers/TV
Spots: |
Promos |
| Alternate/Deleted
Scenes: |
None |
| Music
Video: |
None |
| Other:
|
None |
| Cast
and Crew: |
Topher Grace,
Laura Prepon, Ashton Kutcher, Danny Masterson, Mila Kunis, Wilmer
Valderrama, Debra Jo Rupp, Kurtwood Smith |
| Written
By: |
Will Forte,
Mark Hudis, Sarah McLaughlin |
| Produced
By: |
Marcy Carsey,
Mark Brazil |
| Directed
By: |
Dan Trainer,
Tim Ryder |
| Music:
|
Alex Chilton
(“In the Street”) -- |
| The
Review: |
It used to be said that if you could
remember the 60’s you weren’t there. The decade noted for
leisure suits and disco would probably like to be forgotten
by many people but Fox won’t let us do that. The second season
of “That 70’s Show” comes to DVD with all its day glow colors
intact. Eric and Donna take their relationship a bit further
although she’s a bit surprised when he responds to her “I
love you” with “I love cake”; Kelso and the irritating Jackie
will break up and Hyde makes his “special” brownies that get
distributed at Forman’s garage sales with hilarious results.
(SPOILER) Hyde gets busted for a bag of pot in the concluding
episode of this season which is concluded during season three.
|
| Image
and Sound: |
A good thing
that this show ISN’T from the 70’s; it might look much worse
for the wear otherwise. A top notch transfer with some minor
digital imperfection issues, the colors remain bright and as
memorable as that bad nuru shirt you worse while you were in
high school. Like those vintage Aerosmith and Led Zepplin albums,
the surround sound makes you feel that you’re immersed in an
era where tight flared jeans were all the rage. The crisp soundtrack
literally jumps out at you and threatens to pull you in, dress
you up in bad clothing. |
| The
Extras: |
Packed
with more extras than the first season, the second season
set has some exceptionally cool extras. Three featurettes
are highlights of this set. “Season One-A Look Back”. This
summary of the first season tends to be a bit clip heavy but
it provides the background on season one and is a nice glimpse
back. “Webisodes” is a 40 minute glimpse behind-the-scenes
of six different episodes. The “Season Two Featurette” runs
about 13 minutes and focuses on David Trainer a director who
has worked on the show for the last seven seasons. It’s an
interesting glimpse into the chemistry that makes the show
work as well as the talent that goes into making this groovy
show. ---
|
| Commentary:
|
Trainer provides
far out commentaries on “Halloween” (one of the best episodes
of season two), “Hunting” and the very funny “Cat Fight Club”.
Trainer brings a lot to the table with these commentary tracks.
He focuses both on the story elements, changes to the scripts
through rehearsals and improvs that were integrated into the
final episode. He also praises the top notch cast and their
performances in these very funny episodes. |
| Final
Words: |
A top notch
comedy, “That 70’s Show” had fallen off my TV schedule over
the past couple of years. Watching this DVD set reminded me
of what I liked so much about the series. It’s also made me
revisit some of the reruns of previous episodes and some of
the newer ones as well. It’s like looking through a photo album
of the past—you may be embarrassed at the color or style of
the clothes you were wearing but you still have the fond memories
of the humor you shared with others. This set is an improvement
over the previous set with a lot more extras and commentary
tracks. |
