The Brady Bunch – The Complete Final Season
Picture: C+
Sound: C+ Extras: D Episodes: C+
The Brady Bunch – The Complete Final Season is the
fifth one for the show that just kept coming back in TV specials and one
bizarre animated series. Again, the
show was no hit in its original broadcasts, but huge in syndication and except
for the aging, growing casts, it feels like it never ended. Paramount tried to use the show to launch
another series and they had a new young cast member, but it was too late to
save the show. This was Robbie Rist as
the nephew of Carol Brady (Florence Henderson) immortally known as Oliver.
The kids were now old enough to have more High School
antics, so that helped, but the series had done everything it could have with
the corner it chose to stay in ideologically and situationally. Had Robert Reed‘s suggestions been heeded,
the show could have had another season by developing the adults a bit more,
which would have made Paramount more money in the long run. However, this was the end of the road. The King’s Island visit, Johnny Bravo show,
more antics of the Brady 5 group, Joe Namath appearance and an attempt to
launch a new show.
This was in the Kelly’s Kids episode where married
neighbors of The Bradys (Ken Barry & Brook Bundy) adopt three children, one
Caucasian, one Asian and one African American.
It is a stand-alone show and one that had a very interesting set-up
(even having Mike Lookinland’s younger brother Todd in the cast) in what would
have been a groundbreaking show.
Paramount passed and that was a huge mistake. Otherwise, this is a complete set that means the whole show is
finally on DVD.
The 1.33 X 1 image is an improvement from the lame poorest
of the previous season set, more in keeping with the first two sets. Again, this was about color more than
detail. Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono is not
as good as the early sets, but a little better than the last one. Once again, there are no extras this time,
but Paramount continues the lenticular flicker covers that do not look like
they’ll be limited editions after all.
That leaves those specials and the animated series The Brady Kids
is most likely the DVD release up next.
We’ll see.
- Nicholas Sheffo
