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Category:    Home > Reviews > Drama > Comedy > Murder > Courtroom > TV > Matlock – The Fifth Season (1990 – 1991/CBS DVD Set)

Matlock – The Fifth Season (1990 – 1991/CBS DVD Set)

 

Picture: C     Sound: C     Extras: D     Episodes: C-

 

 

Shocking as it is, Matlock ran for nine seasons as a hit for CBS, which is like Mama’s Family running in syndication forever and becoming filler of the goofiest kind.  In both cases, the Hee Haw audience had not disappeared and without their lead stars, neither show would have made it past their first few episodes.  In the case of Matlock, the appeal and talent of Andy Griffith is inarguable, but the show is not about solving mysteries or the deep inner-workings of the U.S. justice system, but how funny Griffith can be.

 

The Fifth Season is the show in the middle of its unlikely run, but Griffith showed his appeal and popularity three decades after his classic sitcom (also for CBS) made him a household name.  He is obviously having fun here, but I never did and the result is a show that once again added to CBS becoming the “fuddy duddy network” for a very long time starting in the early 1980s.  There are 21 hour-long shows over 6 DVDs and they have not aged well one bit, but at least fans will be happy.

 

The 1.33 X 1 image is shot in 35mm film, but finished on analog videotape for its credits and for broadcast and these copies are particularly aliasing-ridden and harsh throughout.  The Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono is also down a few generations and also a bit harsh, so the combination is annoying.  There are no extras.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo


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