Boston Legal – Season Three
Picture:
B Sound: B Extras: C Episodes: A-
Now
having won over half a dozen Emmy Awards, as well as a number of other awards,
Will Shatner and James Spader return in the award winning series Boston Legal – Season Three. When a fellow reviewer reviewed Season One of this series he stated “Let’s hope the show holds up and stays this
good for seasons to come” and boy was he wrong. The series has not stayed that good, but
instead rocketed above and beyond to greatness.
The dynamic team of William Shatner and James Spader is purely
perfect. The show is listed as a drama
and continues to win countless awards as a drama, but this reviewer is beginning
to question what this series is (beyond practically perfect). Is it a Drama with a splash of comedy? Because at times the series seems to be a
Comedy with a splash of drama. Though
hard to pinpoint the series true intentions, but one thing that is certain is
that it is splendid event to take part in.
In our
previous review of Season Two, it
was stated that William Shatner was the true essence of the series though James
Spader definitely lights up the room with his personality, wittiness, and
charm. This reviewer is not so sure if
that statement is true anymore. In the
series James Spader and William Shatner’s characters are an inseparable duo,
and the fact of the matter is if either actor was removed from the series it
would not work. They are without a doubt
essential to the series success, heart, depth, comedy, wit, edge, and so much
more. The skilled writing team
definitely works off of Spader’s and Shatner’s strengths as vibrant actors to
propel the series to the next level. The
series is amazing and these two men are amazing.
Sadly, a
slightly large chunk of the cast as reported by TV Guide will not be
returning for Season Four, whereas
other cast members will also only be returning as cameo appearances. This reviewer thinks it will turn into a game
of wait and see, with too many of the characters being too vital. No worries, however, William and James will
be back kicking it old school (Yes, we are on a first name basis).
In a
particularly well written and moving episode the writers utilized Shatner’s
diverse acting past to give an edge to his role on Boston Legal. The writers
and director in Episode eighteen entitled ‘Son
of the Defender’ used clips from a 1957 episode of the hit series Studio One entitled ‘The Defender.’ In this episode of Boston Legal a crazed
bomber seeks revenge on Deny Crane and the man he suspects killed his mother
over 50 years ago by reenacting a trial in which Deny and his father defender
the suspected killer and won. This
original 1957 episode of Studio One
had William Shatner as a young Lawyer and Bill Ballamy as his well experienced
father. Though they were not the Cranes
the writers and directors managed to integrate Shatner’s past in such a
marvelous manner that is was both engaging and moving. A true moment of television genius.
This 7
disc, 1030 minute set is once again excellent in both the areas of picture and
sound but ONCE AGAIN is lacking
somewhat in the area of extras. The episodes of Season Three speed by too quickly, leaving the audience always
wanting more. More Will Shatner and more
James Spader! The picture is presented
in a 1.78 X 1 anamorphic widescreen format, which is quite appropriate for the
attorney based series, the picture again having a clean and crisp
texture. The sound is again presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround and
has been greatly improved over Season
Two. Boston Legal’s Third
Season definitely shows even more growth than the Second Season did. The series continues to be groundbreaking and
equally impressive. The extras continue to lack any content and only one
featurette entitled Out of Order? and
Character Witness. Even with the short comings of the DVD extras the
series remains stunning. Simply
stunning.
If Boston Legal continues to expand upon
itself as detailed character oriented drama and comedy, this show will continue
to be a hit for years to come. And just
as Deny Crane said at the end of Season
Three…
"'Til
next season."
To which
Alan replies, "I can't wait to see what we do next."
- Michael P Dougherty II
