Army Wives: Season One - DVD review
Judging by the Nielsen ratings Lifetime is raking in for Army Wives in its second season, this show has found its audience. It actually started last spring when Army Wives was a national surprise — to everyone in the business outside of Lifetime, which picked up the show when ABC passed.
It’s still amazing to think that ABC had a chance to put this show in their schedule and let it get away. Their loss is Lifetime’s gain — and they’re feasting on it.
If you missed the first season of Army Wives, and didn’t get into the show until the fifth episode — like me — then you’ll be glad to know that Army Wives: The Complete First Season is now available on DVD. It’s a great set, too, with some very nice bonus features and quality commentaries.
Packaging
There’s no giant Zippo lighter design for the Army Wives package. Perhaps a real diamond ring would have made it too pricey or even zirconium. Instead, the ring logo is emblazoned on the front and the slide-out tri-fold holder reveals the three-disks, all 13 episodes.
There’s no booklet; the menu is printed on the inner sleeve, and only there. The back of the box offers a brief synopsis of the show, with emphasis on executive producer Mark Gordon’s involvement. That’s no minor detail, because Gordon is the same guy that presented Grey’s Anatomy. The back of the box also hawks the bonus features and technical info.
Audio/Video
The DVD set comes with Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound, Spanish and French subtitles; and widescreen 1:78.1 enhanced for 16×9 Television. The picture quality was superb throughout, as was the sound.
The show, which is filmed in Charleston, South Carolina, looks as top-notch as any Hollywood production. Like so many series nowadays, shooting outside of L.A. is just more economical. Army Wives’ cinematography, sound and effects are first rate and the DVD reproduction is excellent.
Extras
I don’t know about you, but I don’t buy DVD sets unless there are extras. I want more from a TV series than the episodes; I want commentary and behind the scenes and making-ofs. Call me greedy, but that’s how I roll.
Fortunately, Army Wives delivers the goods. There are bloopers and outtakes, deleted scenes, a very nice documentary about the stars interacting with real Army families, and two “Have At It” (named for Pamela’s radio show) sessions with the cast and executive producers all about the show and the characters. The latter are like informal round-tables and they’re reason alone to buy the set if you’re an Army Wives fan.
Episodes
If you’re watching Army Wives now, you will definitely want to get your hands on this DVD set to see all the storylines that have come before. The first season was filled with compelling stories for every one of the wives, including the lone male of the tribe, Roland.
Roxie and Trevor’s love story, Michael and Claudia Joy’s joint role as base commander and wife, Roland and Joan’s troubled marriage, Pamela’s pregnancy — yes, she was pregnant and had a baby! — as well as the very controversial story involving Denise and her teenage son Jeremy.
The acting is excellent throughout, starting with Kim Delaney who does her best work since NYPD Blue. The breakout star is Sally Pressman as Roxie, and Brigid Brannagh as Pamela and Catherine Bell as Denise also contribute mightily with strong storylines.
Conclusion
Price-wise, you can find Army Wives for about $35 or less on line, a bargain when you consider how much storyline you get for the money, plus the extras. Army Wives is a serial drama that actually plays well in repeat viewings, so owning rather than renting is a good investment.
Could Criminal Minds be the next CSI?
After the success of the CSI franchise, it’s only natural that CBS would look at other shows on its lineup for spinoff possibilities. Oddly enough, the lucky show isn’t World’s Greatest Dog, but Criminal Minds. According to Executive Producer Ed Bernero, talks between CBS and ABC studios, who produces Minds, are currently underway, saying, “It’s safe to say there will be something soon.”
Because the Criminal Minds spinoff is still in the discussion phase, there’s no news on exactly what the new show will entail. But, since there are obviously many more specialties within the FBI besides criminal profiling, chances are the new series will focus on one of those. As is the case with most spinoffs nowadays, the new series will probably be introduced via a “backdoor pilot” in an upcoming Criminal Minds episode.
As for whether or not any current castmembers will be spun off, Bernero basically shoots down the idea while technically leaving the door open. He says that while he doesn’t think that will happen, “it’s possible characters could be on both shows… All options are open.”
So there you have it. CBS may or may not be doing a Criminal Minds spinoff, which may or may not deal with a different FBI specialty, which may or may not include current cast members. Do those of you who watch Criminal Minds think a spinoff is a good idea? Do we really have another CSI on our hands, or is the Criminal Minds franchise destined for the trash heap?
Robert Picardo and Joseph Mallozzi on season five of Stargate Atlantis
After a fairly brief hiatus (only 4 months) Stargate Atlantis returns to the SciFi channel with all new episodes starting on July 11th. Now entering its fifth season, the show is reaching a turning point thanks to a number of off-season cast changes. First and foremost in is the replacement of Amanda Tapping’s Colonel Samantha Carter as administrator of Atlantis with Robert Picardo’s Richard Woolsey. This is one year after Tapping replaced Tori Higginson on the show. It’s an interesting turn of events since Woolsey has not been the most popular of characters in the entire Stargate franchise. And, as the character has never been a people person, there is bound to be some conflict between members of the Atlantis team and himself.
In order to hash this all out, Picardo and Atlantis executive producer Joseph Mallozzi got together with the press to answer some questions about Woolsey and Atlantis, the shows 100th episode, and how Picardo looks in a jumpsuit.
***Slight Spoilers Below***
The outlook for season 5: Now that the Wraith are weakened, season five is looking at the bigger picture that is the Pegasus galaxy. According to Mallozzi, a couple of new races will be introduced. They will be taking power in a big way as they begin to form into a galaxy-wide version of the United Nations and take Atlantis to task for all the trouble that they have caused. Mallozzi hopes to build on the momentum that season four had with the events that will take place in season five.
Episode specifics: The season premiere, “Search and Rescue”, starts off where the season four finale left off. By the end of the episode Colonel Carter will be out and Richard Woolsey will be in. By the second episode Woolsey will learn that he can’t always use the rule book to solve issues. It is a very dramatic role for Woolsey, said Picardo. In the third episode, “Broken Ties”, Woolsey will learn a bit about the technology of Atlantis, which will lead to some unfortunate circumstances.
In addition to episodes focusing on Woolsey, Mallozzi said there will be a two-part, mid-season episode featuring Stargate SG-1 fan favorite Daniel Jackson in a team-up with Atlantis’ own Rodney McKay. Joseph says that fans of both series should enjoy this two-parter because it features two of the fastest talkers of the Stargate universe. Another episode, “Whispers”, will be a horror-based entry featuring Sheppard, Carson Beckett (who returns this season for several episodes) and an all-female expedition team. Mallozzi mentioned that this was the first horror-based show written for Atlantis.
Why an all-female team: Mallozzi wanted an all-female team added to the cast of Atlantis in order to balance out the cast after the loss of Amanda Tapping (Samantha Carter). That, and they wanted a new set of characters for fans to invest in.
Picardo on Woolsey: The producers (of Stargate) have a tradition of using actors from the other franchise that “should remain nameless” (Star Trek) as stunt casting. They normally last from one to four episodes. Picardo managed to outlast them all, and it has been fun working with both casts.
They have really built the character from an officious blamer to someone who is developing leadership skills. Picardo said that there is something inherently interesting in seeing how Woolsey, who has second-guessed other leaders decisions, is now in the main seat. There will even be an episode where the person who replaced Woolsey in the IOA will be evaluating his skills as a leader. Picardo is interested in seeing how die-hard fans accept the new leader, “who isn’t nearly as cute as the other two.”
Concerns about filling the leadership shoes of Colonel Carter: Of course he’s concerned about filling her shoes, both the actor and the character. Picardo said that it was very similar to his feelings when he was cast as The Doctor on Star Trek: Voyager. At that time he was concerned that fans were going to measure him against Brent Spiner’s character of Data. Luckily, he was defined as differently as he could be from Data. Although it’s daunting to replace such a popular character, Picardo’s hoping the audience will eventually accept the character. He’s also hoping to bring what Star Trek fans that haven’t watched Stargate yet to come over and sample the show because it’s a great time to come into the series since his character is starting out as the leader.
Bringing in new fans to the show: According to Mallozzi, it isn’t as hard to bring new fans into the Stargate universe as people may think. Despite its mythology, Stargate isn’t really a serial. There may be small connections to the past, but it’s not a show that you have to watch previous seasons to know what is going on.
Stargate versus Star Trek: According to Picardo, Star Trek does some things well, but it doesn’t have the successful formula that Stargate has. Stargate does action very well and also does humor well. Star Trek has to take itself very seriously, while Stargate has the ability let the audience in on the good humor that we know we’re going to save the world every week. It’s the combination of action and humor that makes Stargate so much fun.
Picardo’s initial feelings on Woolsey: Early on, Robert thought of Woolsey as a bit of a jerk. But, by his second appearance, even though he rubbed people the wrong way, at least he was driven by a personal passion that was quite positive and ethical in order to prevent a rouge element from obtaining the Stargate technology. He meant well, and in subsequent appearances the writers gave the character a weird charm that, Picardo hopes, will continue during season five.
Woolsey’s relationships with the crew of the Atlantis: Picardo said the relationships between Woolsey and the rest of the crew is what will make it interesting for the viewers. When he arrives he is unintentionally cold to Teyla; yet, her character is the first to reach out and be kind to him, which disarms Woolsey a bit. He then makes a connection with Sheppard as Woolsey wonders if he is going to be right as Atlantis leader. There has not been a breakthrough moment with McKay, but there is an episode where Woolsey catches Dr. McKay’s attention with his actions.
A potential Screen Actors Guild strike: If a SAG strike occurs Mallozzi said it will definitely hurt the show since most of their players are members of the union. They are currently working on the back five episodes right now. There were no special considerations to film a bunch of episodes ahead of time. According to Mallozzi, with the tight filming schedule they had, they did the best they could getting 14 episodes in the can.
On Torri Higginson (Dr. Elizabeth Weir): It is highly unlikely that Tori Higginson will be back on the show, said Mallozzi. While Higginson was excited about coming back on the Replicator storyline she wanted some closure for the character while the producers did not. Ultimately, she passed on the script that the writers prepared. “She’s kind of move beyond this show and is looking elsewhere,” said Mallozzi.
Prospects for the show’s 100th episode: As much as the temptation is there to make the 100th episode of Atlantis as off the wall as the 200th episode of SG-1 was, it probably won’t happen. The episode is going to fall on the season finale and they want to take it more seriously…more on the lines of last season’s finale. Not so funny, but something that the fans will really enjoy. In addition, said Mallozzi, there are no plans to film an alternate ending just in case the series is canceled.
On the passing of Don S. Davis: “Don had a bigger heart and was even nicer than the role he played on SG-1″, said Mallozzi. When he came to Stargate during season four, Davis warmly welcomed Joe to the set. Mallozzi added that he is proud to call Davis a true friend. and he will be missed by fans and anyone who worked with him.
Finally…
How Picardo looks in the command uniform: Picardo said wearing the command uniform is a bit of a change for a character who has worn a business suit for the last 30 years. Saying that, he looks okay in the uniform. “It’s good to have a trim butt in science fiction.”
Breaking: James Bond a Superbig Video Game Nerd!
Daniel Craig’s cover is about to be blown. He’s the cool and suave new James Bond, but the dudes working on the Quantum of Solace video game revealed his true identity: game geek. And one who’s not quite the killing machine he is onscreen. (If you haven’t seen the movie’s new trailer, by the way, do so now.)
Garrett Young, executive producer of the Solace tie-in game, shared the scoop with us: He went to Pinewood Studios outside of London to show the star his electronic alter ego and found Craig in his trailer, strumming a fake guitar.
“Yeah, Guitar Hero, that’s our game,” said Young. “Right on, that’s our company, too!”
But would you want this guy in your Halo clan? Well…
Young gave 007 a hands-on lesson with the new game, and he said that Craig wasn’t, at first, as good a shot on the Xbox as he is with a real Walther PPK. “Once he learned the controls for cover combat,” he admitted, “he was really smooth with it.”
The gamers then bonded with Craig over his suggestions, and he even got them to leave behind their demo.
“He brought his buddies in on the set to see the game,” Young said. “It’s really cool working with somebody that is a gamer and passionate.”