One Tree Hill – Season Five (Warner DVD)
Picture:
B- Sound: B- Extras: B- Episodes: C+
Among the
plethora of teen dramas on television today the CW Network’s One Tree Hill
is one of the better; though still manages to be filled with a level of teen
angst that is all to familiar to the Soap Opera genre. The series premiered in 2003 on the WB, where it remained for 3 seasons, and
then was renewed by the CW during the
WB/UPN merger. With the release of Season 5 on DVD, viewers can relive the intensity and drama in Tree
Hill.
One Tree Hill: Season 5 gives a mix of emotional highs
and lows and all the ‘teen’ drama that keeps everyone coming back for
more. Each episode begins on the River
Court, where Season 4 previously
left the audience hanging, but this season changes things up a bit by flashing
forward 4 years into the future. The
emotional history behind the breakup of Lucas (Chad Michael Murray) and Peyton
(Hilary Burton) is revealed and her return to Tree Hill leaves him torn between
old and new love. Married life for
Nathan (James Lafferty) and Haley (Bethany Joy Galeotti) is pushed to the
limits once again as they struggle to deal with the aftermath of Nathan’s life
changing accident. Peyton’s return to
Tree Hill, in pursuit of something more than LA had to offer, also brings with
it the one and only Brooke Davis (Sophia Bush), celebrity and owner of Clothes Over Bros, who decides to stay
and open a new store in Tree Hill. With
all of the main players back in Tree Hill, Season
5 displays how each decision made over the past 4 years has impacted their
dreams, goals, successes, and lives.
While the
flash forward in Season 5 allowed
the show to grow with its audience, the long lapse in plot created a means by
which many flash backs could creatively reveal the path for each
character. In many ways, the flashbacks
could have been disastrous but proved to add a degree of suspense and a subtle
intensity to each episode. Many plot
holes and unanswered questions still exist, but luckily for viewers the CW has renewed the drama for a 6th season; which very well
may be the series last. Where as this
reviewer can by no means call himself a fan of One Tree Hill, the appeal of the dramatic plot lines is definitely
apparent.
The
technical features of this series have not gone down hill, but they have not
improved much over previous seasons either.
The picture is presented in a 1.77 X 1 Widescreen that is light at times
with light/dark issues as well as not having a very impressive color palate,
but over all is adequate. The sound is a
Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround that mostly comes from the front for this mainly
dialogue based teen drama.
The
extras are nice, as there are many, but fails to have a very high rewatchable
quality. The extras include Unaired
Scenes, One Tree Hill Fast Forward featurette, One Tree Hill at 100 featurette,
Kate Voegele Music Video, Gag Reel, 2 Commentary Tracks by Mark Schwahn and key
cast members. The featurettes and the
commentaries are extremely drab and boring; but the gag reel isn’t bad nor are
some of the unaired scenes that give fans a little more to choked-up about.
In the
end, One Tree Hill: Season Five
continues to give fans what they want and does not feel forced or overdone at
all. Here is to hoping Season Six holds together just as well.
- Michael P. Dougherty II
