Weeds: The Final
Season/Season Eight (2012/Lionsgate Blu-ray)
Picture: A- Sound: B+ Extras: B Episodes: B
Nancy Botwin (Mary Louise Parker) and her band of misfits return for
one final go at the family business in Weeds:
Season 8 – The Final Season. The series had its highs and lows thus far,
but with a Season 7 cliff hanger I
was excited to see where they would take this final season.
I am hesitant to give any details away about these episodes as each
slowly leads up to the final episode, but overall I will call this final season
a mixed bag. The episodes don’t truly
contribute to the season finale or come to a peak, acting as standalone
segments rather than a piece of the whole.
Some episodes are great as ever, but others I would call ‘throw aways.’ The season
opener picks up where Season 7 left
off, a sniper pointed at Nancy’s head and subsequently now recovering from a
near fatal wound. Her family is
spreading out and making a name for themselves as Silas (Hunter Parish) looks
into the benefits of medical marijuana and Shane (Alexander Gould) swears to
track down his mother’s shooter. Andy (Justin
Kirk) is having relationship issues, which could make for some messy
situations.
I still find Nancy somewhat annoying and not having many redeemable
features, but that is nothing new. The
series maintains its comic sensibilities and elements of absurdity, but somehow
misses the mark of what it once was. I
don’t feel such a great connection to the characters any longer and the subplots
(that don’t contribute greatly to the finale) are tangential at times and
wasted episodes.
I did enjoy seeing how the series wrapped it all up after eight
seasons, but at the same time many plot lines were abandoned or twisted making
for a less than stellar conclusion.
Interesting on one hand, disappointing on another; regardless if you
have followed Weeds this far, seeing
to the end is the right choice.
The picture once again is a wonderful
1080p AVC 1.78 X 1 Widescreen that has brightly displayed colors, solid
contrast, crisp detail and bold black levels. The
sound is a superbly presented English 7.1 DTS-HD Master Audio lossless mix that
gives off a pleasant audio experience. Whereas the series remains
heavily dialogue driven, it as always manages to use the
full speaker range and offer solid ambient noise with crisp, clear dialogue.
Extras Include:
·
Cast and Crew Commentaries
·
Gag Reel
·
Everyday Advice from Guru Dog
·
Deleted Scenes
·
Clippin’ the Buds
·
Weeds Season 8: The Wrap Up
We have now covered the entire series on
the site, so if you search for them, you’ll find them all.
-
Michael P. Dougherty II
