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Category:    Home > Reviews > Comedy > Canadian TV > Stage > Slings and Arrows - The Complete Collection (+ All New Bonus Disc/Acorn Media DVD)

Slings and Arrows - The Complete Collection (+ All New Bonus Disc/Acorn Media DVD)

 

Picture: B     Sound: B-     Extras: A     Episodes: B+

 

 

Just as the tears had dried and this reviewer got done saying goodbye to Slings and Arrows, Acorn Media surprises fans and puts out a smashing new collectors set.  Now available for your COMPLETE enjoyment is Slings and Arrows: The Complete Collection (Plus a Bonus Disc with all new Extras).  Though only lasting three brilliant seasons Slings and Arrows most definitely left its mark on television history.  The series was critically acclaimed and gathered many awards.  It is very difficult for dark comedies to work on television, but the infusion of great acting and gripping plot twists gave Slings and Arrows that special edge to engage the audience. 

 

Though the series has been reviewed elsewhere on this site I will give a brief synopsis of what the entire series plot entails.  The Canadian series chronicles the lives and tales of a group of odd and troubled Shakespearean theater troupe as they attempt to put on several productions throughout the three seasons this series lasted (Hamlet, Macbeth, and King Lear).  The director of the theater company, Geoffrey (played by Paul Gross), has many factors stacking up against him since the theater itself is seeing financial ruin, his actors are difficult and pretentious, and oh yea, he is being haunted by the ghost of his predecessor Oliver (played by the hilarious Stephen Ouimette).  If the crazy plot wasn’t enough to get you to watch the series amazing cast regulars like Mark McKinney (Kids in the Hall) and guest stars such as Rachel McAdams (The Notebook) and the late, brilliant William Hutt are sure to get your attention.  The series may be very tongue in cheek and YES it is very Canadian, but at the same time it is pure fun with a strong stage presence.

 

The technical features on this 7 disc Complete Series set are exactly the same as the previous seasons, except this set includes one additional disc jam packed with bonus features.  The picture once again is great, being presented in its standard 16:9 widescreen and maintains a crisp and clear quality throughout.  The DVD’s sound quality varies since Seasons One and Two are only presented in a less than stellar Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo, whereas the Third Season is presented in the greatly improved Dolby Digital 5.1 Surrounds as well as the old 2.0 Stereo, overall the sound is crisp and clear despite the troubles of Season One and Two.  The DVD’s extras are the same as all previous sets and revisiting the extras this reviewer finds himself still impressed.  Still today (after years and years) television series on DVD have not learned to demonstrate a high level of care for extras or special features.  Slings and Arrows, however, continues to take great care in presenting its audience with a surplus of extras such as Cast Interviews, extended scenes, bloopers, deleted scenes, trailers, production notes and even more.  Though many of the deleted scenes and bloopers were dry as ever, they were still quite enjoyable to watch.  The extra disc itself could be a reason to repurchase this Complete Series set.  The extra disc gives the audience a chance to catch up with the cast in a nicely put together ‘Behind the Scenes’ Featurette, plenty more interesting cast and crew interviews, and additional on set footage.  In the end, the extras are a nice tribute to a fantastic series.

 

Goodbye once again Slings and Arrows.  Parting is such sweet sorrow.

 

 

-   Michael P Dougherty II


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